Seen the green flash (green ray) at sea?

[PromenadeDeckWriter]

Was watching "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" and they mentioned the "green flash"  (also known as "green ray") - the flash of green when the sun sets, and that got me wondering. Has anyone seen this while on a ship at sea? What was the experience like? 

[CruisingAlong4Now]

Haven't seen from the sea but I did see it on the beach at Maui. 

[davecttr]

Yes, three times off northern Norway. I had heard about it so one sunset I watched. don't look continuously because it is bad for your eyes, just a quick glance. There is was, a short pulse of green light, amazing. I told everyone in the bar and but they did not believe me. next sunset there it was again and happy to say some others in the bar saw it as well.

[Aquahound]

Yes, many times.  

[c-boy]

a looooong time ago while serving on CGN 25,  standing watch and staring off into the distance.

[davekathy]

I've seen some fantastic sunsets (and sun raises) but I've never seen the green ray during the sunset. Something I will look for (pay more attention to) on our next (hopefully) cruise. 

Edited May 1, 2020 by davekathy

[PromenadeDeckWriter]

Thank you all for chiming in! Wasn't sure how prevalent it was, or where it was likely to occur. Hoping to see it on my next ship voyage. 

[jocap]

Yes, I used to watch for this from my house in Seascale, Cumbria, and saw it mainly in the summer months.

 

[Lady Chew]

Quite a few times!  It's very quick, you have to be paying attention

[rkacruiser]

Once, I saw it.  I don't recall where or on what ship.  It happened so fast that it was over before I realized what it was.  

 

 

[Aquahound]

4 hours ago, PromenadeDeckWriter said:

Thank you all for chiming in! Wasn't sure how prevalent it was, or where it was likely to occur. Hoping to see it on my next ship voyage. 

 

The flash is much more common than the ray.  The ray is extremely rare.  With the flash, the crown of the sun simply turns green for a second or two as the sun dips below the ocean horizon.  

[cruisemom42]

32 minutes ago, Aquahound said:

 

The flash is much more common than the ray.  The ray is extremely rare.  With the flash, the crown of the sun simply turns green for a second or two as the sun dips below the ocean horizon.  

 

What does the ray look like?  

 

(From someone who's not seen either one...)

[Sea Hag]

I've been trying to catch this thing in the act for years. Years! Haven't seen it yet.

[navybankerteacher]

24 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

What does the ray look like?  

 

(From someone who's not seen either one...)

I think “ray” is just a different term.  On west-facing beaches on the Gulf Coast of Florida  - on very clear evenings - the instant the upper limb of the sun drops below the horizon - there is a rarely-seen, sudden, split-second burst of green light which could be seen as a ray from the spot from which the sun just disappeared, or a flash.  Some things just have different names - consider the weiner the and hot dog.

 

  

[Langley Cruisers]

I have been on cruises and land vacations and looked for the green flash -  I only saw it once, while sailing away from St. Thomas. It was amazing and stunning. 

[getting older slowly]

Very Interesting   details below copied from en.wikipedia.org  explaining it

 

cheers Don 

 

The green flash and green ray are meteorological optical phenomena that sometimes occur transiently around the moment of sunset or sunrise. When the conditions are right, a distinct green spot is briefly visible above the upper rim of the Sun's disk; the green appearance usually lasts for no more than two seconds. Rarely, the green flash can resemble a green ray shooting up from the sunset or sunrise point.

 

 

Type	Characteristics	Conditions	Best seen from...
Inferior-mirage flash	Joule's "last glimpse"; oval, flattened below; lasts 1 or 2 seconds	Surface warmer than the overlying air	Close to sea level
Mock-mirage flash	Indentations seem to "pinch off" a thin, pointy strip from the upper rim of the Sun; lasts 1 or 2 seconds	Atmospheric inversion layer below eye level; surface colder than air	The higher the eye, the more likely; flash is most obvious when the eye is just above the inversion.
Sub-duct flash	Large upper part of an hourglass-shaped Sun turns green for up to 15 seconds;	Observer below a strong atmospheric inversion	In a narrow height interval just below a duct (can occur at any height)
Green ray	Green beam of light either shooting up or seen immediately after sundown; usually a few degrees long, lasting several seconds	Hazy air and a bright green flash acting as a light source	Sea level

[Aquahound]

3 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

What does the ray look like?  

 

(From someone who's not seen either one...)

 

2 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

I think “ray” is just a different term.  On west-facing beaches on the Gulf Coast of Florida  - on very clear evenings - the instant the upper limb of the sun drops below the horizon - there is a rarely-seen, sudden, split-second burst of green light which could be seen as a ray from the spot from which the sun just disappeared, or a flash.  Some things just have different names - consider the weiner the and hot dog.

 

A ray actually shoots straight up, like a ray of light, unlike the flash that's just the crown of the sun turning green. 

[Krazy Kruizers]

We have seen many sun sets over the years but have yet to see the green flash.  Guess we just aren't lucky.

[evandbob]

On the Celebrity Summit, when Capt Kate was master.  She announced that atmospheric conditions might be suitable for viewing the green flash that evening.

 

Whether it was the power of her suggestion or truly there, my eyes/brain perceived a green flash that sunset.

[c-boy]

we use to call it Poseidon's fart 

[KreinKrunker]

On 5/1/2020 at 11:27 AM, PromenadeDeckWriter said:

 "green flash"  Has anyone seen this while on a ship at sea?  

Saw it once!  Now let's talk about the green glow in the water.  

[navybankerteacher]

7 minutes ago, KreinKrunker said:

Saw it once!  Now let's talk about the green glow in the water.  

Are you talking about the phosphorescence?  There are places where it is beautifully intense - just south of Vieques (to the east of Puerto Rico) is amazing:  any disturbance of the water creates an amazing green glow.

[KreinKrunker]

2 minutes ago, navybankerteacher said:

Are you talking about the phosphorescence?  There are places where it is beautifully intense - just south of Vieques (to the east of Puerto Rico) is amazing:  any disturbance of the water creates an amazing green glow.

Yes.  Mention this to most people, and they kind of look at you funny.  Was also accused of wearing wine googles.

[Kartgv]

San Diego County beaches have been showing green Bioluminescence (probably the same as or similar to phosphorescence) for the last week.   Google "Photos bioluminescence San Diego" and there are plenty of spectacular pictures.  It happens pretty frequently, often in May.   It coincides with a 'red tide' which makes the water look brownish during the day.       

We've seen a green flash twice - once on the Big Island in Hawaii and once sailing out of Papeete.   Haven't seen a green ray, but did see a glowing pink one, also on the Big Island.  

Edited May 3, 2020 by Kartgv

[Silver Sweethearts]

Here on Maui we seem to get a fair amount of interesting things such as the green flash, double rainbows, moon bows, blue and other moons, etc.  We were told that it has to do with Maui's latitude, and places with more or less the same latitude can also see them.  One thing we like for sure is the sky filled with stars.