Are Cold Water Big Waves Heavier Or Just Feel That Way? | MythBusters in surfing

 

Why is it that a 3-second hold down in cold water in winter surf feels like you’re an inch away from deaths door when a 5-second hold down in the Tropics feels like a free diving vacation? Surfings myth busters went to work to see if that is truth or just the mind playing tricks on you.

 

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So, are the waves really more powerful or is it just the effect of the cold water on our bodies, and on our minds? Most people agree that cold, winter swells seem to pack more punch that warm summer ones, even on the same beach with the same sized waves, but the reasons why are not so clear. I asked a few people what they thought about it:

“Winter waves are heavier because in cold water, the molecules are close together, thus making the water denser, though not much. In hot water, the molecules get so hot that they move faster, making them further apart and less dense.”

 

 

 

Click to MAGIC SEAWEED to see if the myth of cold water waves being heavier is busted

 

 

 

 

It is the great debate of the ages: Are cold water waves truly heavier than warm ones?An exploration of just that, now up on the site in part II of our debunking myths series. Pic Nazare from the shore by @helio_antonio

A post shared by magicseaweed (@magicseaweed) on Mar 23, 2018 at 3:48am PDT

 

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