In these times, we are all trying to do more to reduce our carbon footprint and be more aware of the effect our action have on the world we live in. Cars and their emissions are one of the biggest problems we have today. While scientists, inventors and engineers strive to come up with more eco-friendly motoring options, such as electric cars, we thought we should take a look at some of the other non-car transportation that we could be using in years to come.

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If you have ever stood on a sandy beach and watched the waves roll in, you may have found yourself wondering what exactly causes the waves to form.  There are several different types of waves and each is formed by different events.  In certain situations the waves can be very small and gentle, other situations will produce violent waves that can cause enormous damage.

Now that’s a big wave…

The basic concept of a wave is the same regardless of how it is created.  A wave is simply produced through the transference of energy.  If you were to skip a rock across the surface of a lake, ripples would radiate outward from each location where the rock touched the water along its path.  In this situation, the rock transferred energy to the water which produced the tiny waves.  All this really means is that waves just don’t appear; they are created with the help of some other form of energy.

The most common types of waves are produced by the wind.  Picture the wind blowing over the surface of the sea.  As the wind blows, there is energy transference to the surface water that helps to push the wave forward.  On a particularly windy day, the waves are more likely to be bigger simply because there is more energy being transferred to the water.  On a calmer day of weather, waves may barely make a splash as they roll onto the beach.

It’s the wind that causes all the waves

Hurricanes are capable of producing the most violent waves.  The most destructive hurricanes can produce winds that blow at more than 135 knots.  It is easy to see how such strong winds could create dangerous waves.  These waves may also reach much further inland than the ordinary waves that roll in each day and may cause coastal flooding.

Wakes are another type of wave that can be seen in the water.  Watch a boat drive by in the water and you will see a series of small waves form at the bow and pass down the sides, forming a wake as they leave the stern.  These waves will spread outwards away from the boat. The waves are caused by the boat’s movement in the water which is another type of energy transference.  If the boat is just bobbing in a stationary position, the wake will likely be very small.  If a speedboat ploughs through the water, expect a far bigger wake.  The largest wakes that you are likely to see are those produced by some of the high-speed ferries that operate from ports on the South Coast of England.

Wake in the wake..

Although they are thankfully quite rare tsunamis are just another form of wave, but these ‘walls of water’ can cause a great deal of damage.  This type of wave caused much concern in 2004 after a tsunami in the Indian Ocean washed ashore and killed close to 230,000 people.  Tsunamis happen fairly infrequently although at least 25 major events have been recorded throughout the last century.

Unlike the more traditional wave a tsunami is triggered by a different kind of event.  Anything from an earthquake to a large underwater detonation can trigger these giant waves.  If a large earthquake were to occur in the ocean, a great deal of water would very suddenly be displaced.  As the water absorbs energy from the earthquake, a tsunami can form.  Because of the way a tsunami gradually grows, it might not even be detectable at sea.  It is possible that a ship could sail right over a tsunami and never even know it was there.

Normal waves created by the wind will have around 100 metres between each crest in the series.  A tsunami has closer to 200 kilometres between each crest in the series and they travel at speeds greater than 800 kilometres per hour.  As the tsunami comes closer to the shore, the waves begin to slow down and they start to pile up on one another.  This causes the distance between the waves to decrease dramatically. The end result is a gigantic wave that crashes onto the beach carrying all before it.

Tsunami’s are awful, dangerous things

Because of the unique nature of a tsunami, this type of natural event can’t really be predicted.  One of the biggest indications that a tsunami is coming occurs within minutes of the massive wave’s arrival.  As the tsunami comes closer to land, the water will begin to drawback from the shore into the crest of the wave.  Someone standing on the shore would notice that a portion of the beach that is not typically visible could now be seen.  Anyone witnessing this type of event needs to head towards high ground quickly because the tsunami will not be far behind; you will never outrun one!

Another type of large wave is known as a rogue wave.  This type of wave may not be as large as a tsunami but they can certainly pose a great threat to shipping or to people standing close the edge of the sea.  Unlike a tsunami that may be completely unnoticed at sea, a rogue wave appears along the surface of the ocean.  Rogue waves can be so dangerous because they are completely random and unpredictable. For many years, this concept of a rogue wave was considered to be a thing of fiction.  It was not until more recent years that evidence was found to prove that such waves actually existed.  Rogue waves occur fairly infrequently and nobody knows for sure what exactly causes them to form.

Quick! It’s a rouge wave!!!

It is a misconception that the moon creates waves.  Although the moon does have an impact on the Earth’s seas and oceans, it comes in the form of the tides and not waves.  There is a gravitational attraction between the Earth and the moon that is similar to two magnets trying to pull themselves together.  The Earth can’t hold on to the water like it can the land and so the moon is able to pull the water up and down on a continuous basis.  This process produces our high and low tides

So there are several different types of waves that exist.  Wind created waves are very common while tsunamis and rouge waves are thankfully much more rare.  The one thing that these waves all have in common is that they were created by the transference of some type of energy.

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Electricity has become such an integral part of our daily lives it is easy to take it for granted. Practically everything we do revolves around electricity in one way or another.  What would happen if we woke up tomorrow and there was no electricity available?  Would our lives change that much?  Let’s consider the various activities that would be affected if electricity disappeared one morning.

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Most experts agree that tornadoes are the most violent storms on Earth.  The destructive power that is contained in the storms has no concern with who it hits or how hard.  It is often the randomness of the tornado’s power that can be most painful - when one house is completely leveled and the house next to it loses not even one shingle.

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There are many ways in which the abundance of energy around us can be stored and adapted for our use. Nuclear-powered sources are fission and soon hopefully, fusion; fossil fuels include petroleum, natural gas and coal; and the renewable energy sources are hydroelectric, solar, wind, geothermal power, and biomass.

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Nuclear power is used to generate around 20% of the electricity in the United States.  Around the world the percentage is slightly less at around 17%.  One small pellet of the enriched uranium has the ability to produces as much electricity as one ton of coal.

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All energy comes from the sun to earth in the form of sunrays called solar energy. The sun’s first job is the delivery of radiant energy to provide heat and light to earth’s plants, animals and humans. The sun consists of many gases with helium and hydrogen being the dominant gases. Energy from the sun possesses power some call solar energy while others call it solar power. Energy from the sun is free, unlimited and inexhaustible.

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Proving we can control weather is an ongoing source of work and discussion among scientists, meteorologists and astrophysicists across the world. Most countries have a Weather Modification Programme organised to find ways to create changes in weather patterns. Their goal is to change the direction and activity of storms, control rain amounts and start and end rain.

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Solar power converts the sun’s rays into electricity. Through solar technologies man has succeeded in harnessing solar power through the development of solar power towers, photovoltaics, solar engines, solar troughs, solar dishes and more.

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Few people have not experienced the power of a thunderstorm. It takes little effort to recall the sound of roaring thunder and lightning flashing across the sky. Power outages often ravage a city as people struggle to close their windows and doors against the onslaught of water and wind beating against the windowpanes.

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