Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race
2002/3
Comments on 24 December 2002 re Sydney to Hobart currents
Both the temperature image and the sea surface topography / inferred currents image suggest favourable currents from Sydney to Eden. Speeds will probably peak at about 5 miles beyond the shelf edge, but they will be healthy anywhere seaward of the temperature front.
Guessing current speeds from the 21 December temperature image is not so easy -- and it would be nice to have a more recent one, but cloud has intervened. Experience suggests that over 2 knots is realistic. In any case, I feel that the currents will be stronger, and not as diffuse ("soft focus") as implied by the vectors in the sea surface topography / inferred currents image. The satellites do not provide a fine enough mesh of topography measurements to achieve a sharp focus.
Hopefully a more cloud-free temperature image will become available before race time and Glen Smith will have it posted on the web for individual tacticians to consider.
George Cresswell
24/12/2002
I wrote an article for "Australian Yachting" a year ago and it may serve as a guide. The editor kindly allowed us to reproduce it in:
http://www.marine.csiro.au/yachtinginfo/eacyacht.htm
George Cresswell
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Temperature Image
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Sea Surface Topography Image
