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Old 17-10-2008, 08:07   #1
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The Green Flash

I was browsing through the gallery, and I came across a pic from Vasco. It reminded me of the time I first saw the Green flash after 20 years of sailing.

We were coming into Staniel Cay from the north. The sun setting over the bank. All 5 of us saw it together. We saw it once again the following night. Anybody else ever witness this flash? If so what were the conditions, and where? I was told that over the banks it is seen often, because of the banks. Anybody know how this occurs?

You can see how flat the water is in this pic just before the flash.
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Old 17-10-2008, 09:13   #2
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Many times. We had property on the hills above Santa Cruz, Ca that overlooked the ocean. We used to see green flash sunsets on a regular basis. Pretty amazing.
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Old 17-10-2008, 09:14   #3
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I saw the green flash numerous times while working in Grand Cayman and in St. Kitts usually sitting in a beach bar watching the sunset. We found we could see a green flash every night if we held up an empty Heineken bottle toward the setting sun...... ;>)
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Old 17-10-2008, 09:19   #4
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here's a picture someone took

This phenomenon has to to with refraction of the light through the atmosphere at a certain point as the sun is either rising or setting. I've observed it ONCE in my life on the side of a mountain facing the sunrise. I knew about it (I'm an amateur astronomer) but had never seen it. I saw it as the sun was rising and I wasn't looking for it, but happened to see it. I thought I was seeing things, and it lasted a few seconds...

I was probably close to 11,000 feet, perhaps a bit more, looking east towards Kansas. I could see the horizon and it was a cold, crisp morning both on the mountain and down on the plains (fall/winter time around November).

According to what I have read about this, summer is not necessarily the best time to see it, but usually a clear view of a horizon is certainly helpful! (on the ocean!)

Here's a couple more links:

The Elusive Green Flash
Alachua Astronomy Club: 2005 Hybrid Eclipse
SpaceWeather.com -- News and information about meteor showers, solar flares, auroras, and near-Earth asteroids

Stuff in the Sky
(Scroll down a bit on that last one for an explanation of why it happens).



Hope that is helpful for finding it!
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Old 17-10-2008, 12:48   #5
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SeaKing,



That's cheating I think??????
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Old 17-10-2008, 14:36   #6
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I have seen it once, I was on the city dock at Cedar Key on Florida's West coast in February.
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Old 17-10-2008, 15:15   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by imagine2frolic View Post
... coming into Staniel Cay from the north. The sun setting over the bank. All 5 of us saw it together. We saw it once again the following night. Anybody else ever witness this flash? If so what were the conditions, and where? I was told that over the banks it is seen often, because of the banks...
We've had numerous sightings, mostly from the deck at Club Thunderball @ Staniel Cay.
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Old 17-10-2008, 20:15   #8
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If there are no clouds on the horizon, it's happens every evening. Seen so many we seldom bother to look. Just another lousy day in paradise.

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Old 17-10-2008, 21:43   #9
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The Pacific Ocean was our biggest green flash destination.

To see a green flash, you need an absolutely clear horizon. I think the reason we saw dozens of green flashes crossing the Pacific is because the Pacific is so vast with so few land masses to facilitate the convection that produces clouds that are green flash slayers. During our Pacific crossing, the vertical development of the cumulus clouds was minimal, and the scant cumuli melted away at sunset creating optimum conditions for observation of the green flash.

We started logging the numbers of green flashes that we saw, and then finally we stopped counting when we discovered how common they are.

The Pacific is the only place where I have seen double green flashes. We spot the green flash while we are in the trough of a giant Pacific ocean swell, and as the swell quickly lifts the boat up out of the trough to the top of the swell, the green flash appears again. Double green flashes were awesome.

In the Red sea, we never saw a single green flash. That's not surprising because we sailed up the west coast of the Red Sea, and we never had an unobstructed view of the western horizon. Mountains were always off to the west. Even if we could see the horizon, it's possible that a green flash wouldn't be visible because all of the dust in the air would likely prevent a green flash from appearing.

Have any of you Red Sea sailors ever seen a green flash in the Red Sea?
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Old 03-08-2009, 18:02   #10
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I didnt know it was so rare, during certain times of the year we see it every night from the beach in St Kitts.
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Old 03-08-2009, 18:37   #11
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I was at Key West looking toward the setting sun, but the only "flash" of green I saw was tourists handing dollars to the local vendors at Mallory Square.
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Old 03-08-2009, 19:13   #12
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We used to live in Kwajalein, RMI. I saw the green flash once while sitting on North Point. I must say it was awesome.
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Old 03-08-2009, 19:22   #13
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Saw it once really well at 13 degrees N latitude. Never thought it was anything to speak of - until I saw a really good one. Shorter than a flash bulb but just as bright and green as green can be. Lower latitudes help and the horizon has to be totally clear. You 'll see it just after the sun clears the horizon or it's not going to happen. It's rare because the humidity and some tiny cloud you barely see screws it up.
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Old 04-08-2009, 04:12   #14
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Like seeing a turtle on a dive, a green flash at night always adds a little to our day. We see them often in the Bahamas but they remain special.

George
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Old 04-08-2009, 04:47   #15
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Never saw one... what is the scientific explanation? Has it been filmed?
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