Weather Phenomena in Tenerife 5 is the fifth article in a series of six that cover specific weather phenomena in Tenerife and, by extension, the Canary Islands. In this article is about wind.
The weather in Tenerife is discussed and described with many words, from literary descriptions and meteorological approaches to daily chats among people. The weather is a hot topic, especially because it features a number of variations, as strange as that may sound. During extreme weather conditions, the meteorological institute Aemet and soon after the island government, issue weather alerts: first a yellow warning, then orange, and sometimes red. This also applies to Weather Phenomena in Tenerife 5 – Waves.
Exceptional and local weather phenomena have already been published in previous editions of this ‘series.’ Rain, clouds, calima, trade winds, pressure systems, ocean currents (Canary current), and geographical relations with the weather have been covered in the recent past. You can find the articles in this series at the bottom of this page. We continue with Weather Phenomena in Tenerife 5 – Waves.
Wind Generates Waves
When there is wind over the ocean, the phenomenon mar de fondo (groundswell) occurs, and in this article, I want to delve a bit deeper into a weather phenomenon that can only occur in coastal areas. When speaking of an island, this ‘ocean swell’ is magnified even further; it becomes exponentially more important.
The contours of the island are bordered by water—seawater from the Atlantic Ocean. This brings some delightful features: beaches, swimming, and recreational areas, water sports, small harbors, endless views, and breathtaking sunrises and sunsets. However, the coastline also presents dangers: broken dikes, high waves, splashing seawater, and flooding—not to mention the risk of drowning.
Stumbling Body
To understand how waves are formed, what causes them, and the different types of waves, you need to dive into meteorological phenomena.
We can explain this quite clearly here, although not all meteorological, physical, and dynamic elements will be fully explored; we can explain it briefly yet clearly.
The deeper the water, the more room the water has to circulate. Near the coast, the sea becomes shallower. The constantly moving water suddenly has to spread in a smaller space, piling up and creating a wave movement that flows toward the shore. The upper layer of water continues moving freely, while the lower layer is slowed down by the rising seabed.
You can compare this to a stumbling person: the legs catch on something while the body keeps moving forward, ultimately causing the entire body to fall out of balance. This is in line with the description of Newton’s First Law, or the ‘Law of Inertia.’
Mar de Fondo
Waves can be generated by wind, currents, surface tension, viscous friction, and the gravitational pull of the moon. Other factors also play a role, such as earthquakes, tsunamis, the Coriolis effect, and gravity. Surface tension of seawater also plays a small role.
With a mar de fondo or ocean swell, a wave pattern is generated at the water’s surface by prevailing winds. The farther out in the ocean this occurs, the longer the period and wavelength, and the longer and straighter the wave crests become, while the wave height slowly decreases.
Out of nowhere, several giant waves suddenly appear on the shore, and then it stops for a while. After 5 to 10 minutes, the phenomenon repeats itself. This is a dangerous situation for children playing at the water’s edge. Many beachgoers have quickly retreated, staying dry with a quick reaction, or getting soaked after hesitating.
Sun and Moon
The Earth, Sun, and Moon act like magnets on each other. The Moon pulls the water on Earth toward it, causing high tide. As the Earth slowly rotates, the Moon pulls different bodies of water toward it. When the water is not being pulled as much by the Moon, it becomes low tide. This is what we call tidal waves.
Twice a month, during the new moon and full moon, there is a spring tide. At this time, the difference between high and low tide is greatest: low tide is lower than usual, and high tide is higher. Additionally, these tidal waves can be further amplified by the wind, which gives them an extra push to create even larger waves.
Storm Surge and Tidal Wave
A storm surge is the pushing of seawater by storm winds. Storm winds can push seawater even further. On the open sea, waves can reach 10 meters or more, but these waves are relatively short in length. A storm surge can become even more problematic when it coincides with high tide (or worse, spring tide). The (spring) tide is then heightened by the storm surge.
Worse still is a tidal wave caused by an undersea earthquake, where the epicenter lies on or below the seabed. The sudden movement of the seabed along geological fault lines can displace large volumes of water, especially when an undersea earthquake occurs at great depth. A wave is generated at the water’s surface, growing in size in proportion to the distance it travels.
Also check out the previously published articles about weather and climate on Tenerife:
Part 1: Phenomena
Part 2: Calima
Part 3: Winds
Part 4: Clouds
Part 5: Waves
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