'Superior mirages occur because of the weather condition known as a
'towering' or 'stooping' mirages, respectively.
*
*Walker 'stunned' to see ship hovering high above sea off Cornwall *
.
/*
Because cold air is denser than warm air, it has a higher refractive
But in a temperature inversion, warm air sits on top of a band of
David Morris encounters rare optical illusion known as superior
David Morris, who captured the extraordinary sight on camera,
Default The weirdest mirage you'll ever see: a ship floating high in
English coastline.
More familiar optical illusions are the 'inferior mirages' that give
Photographers around the world have captured striking images of
Sailors say such ships are 'looming' over the horizon and sometimes
Such illusions are reasonably common in the Arctic but can also
The effect is an example of an optical illusion known as a superior
The illusion is caused by a meteorological phenomenon called a
The latter effect is well known to sailors who can sometimes rely on
There are only so many polite words that come to mind when one spots
a ship apparently hovering above the ocean during a stroll along the
above the sea surface.
above the water as he looked out to sea from a hamlet near Falmouth
air, directly above a road, for example. When sunlight coming down
appear in a higher position than it really is -- in this instance,
back upwards to the observer's eye, making the sky appear to be
cold air is denser than warm air, it bends light towards the eyes of
colder air, playing havoc with our visual perception. The inversion
colder air, to observers on the shoreline. This makes the ship
coming from the ship are bent downwards as it passes through the
declared himself 'stunned' when he noticed a giant tanker floating
distant object appears.'
example a mirage of a 'hovering' yacht lacked the lower hull and keel.
from the sky approaches the air near the hot surface, it is bent
happen in UK winters when the atmospheric conditions are right,
https://theguardian.com/science/2021...tical-illusion
in Cornwall was caused by chilly air lying over the relatively cold
in Cornwall, SW England.
increasing altitude, making mountaintops colder than the foothills.
index. In the case of the 'hovering ship', this means light rays
mirage
mirage is the lack of any detail below the vessel's waterline -- for
mirage while out on coastal stroll*/
reflected on the road.
refraction to spot ships that are geometrically beyond the horizon.
report distortions that stretch or compress the images, making them
rise to apparent oases in the desert and puddles on hot summer
roads. These mirages happen when cooler air sits on a layer of hot
sea with warmer air above.
ships, yachts and other vessels apparently hovering in mid-air
someone standing on the ground or on the coast, changing how a
temperature inversion, where cold air lies close to the sea with
temperature inversion. Normally, the air temperature drops with
thanks to superior mirages. One potential clue that the sight is a
the air
though they are very rare.
warmer air above it,' said David Braine, a BBC meteorologist. 'Since
