# "Hovering" Ship Photographed **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 5, 2021, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284 "2021-03-05T18:11:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/1 "2021-03-05T18:11:10Z")
I’m struggling to get my head around the explanation for the incredible photo in this article. > **['Hovering ship' photographed off Cornish coast by walker](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-56286719)** > > An illusion called "superior mirage" caused the vessel to look like it was hovering above the sea. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/2 "2021-03-05T18:18:35Z")
This is an example of atmospheric refraction, and specifically “looming”, where the light reflected from the ship to your eyes is refracted into an ark making the ship appear to be floating above the water. In reality, the ship is at or over the horizon and the water it sits on is at such an angle to the incident light that it is not visible even though light from it is being refracted as well, making the ship appear to be floating in thin air. You can see that the ship ends at the waterline (no keel) and if you had high enough resolution in the image you should see waves moving up and down at the boundary. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/3 "2021-03-05T18:19:14Z")
> **[Fata Morgana (mirage)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fata_Morgana_(mirage))** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > > A Fata Morgana (Italian: \[ˈfaːta morˈɡaːna\]) is a complex form of superior mirage visible in a narrow band right above the horizon. The term Fata Morgana is an Italian translation of "Morgan the Fairy" (Morgan le Fay of Arthurian legend). These mirages are often seen in the Italian Strait of Messina, and were described as fairy castles in the air or false land conjured by her magic. > Fata Morgana mirages significantly distort the object or obj... [![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/89/Fada_morgana_graphnn.JPG) ](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/89/Fada_morgana_graphnn.JPG) ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/4 "2021-03-05T18:23:57Z")
Thanks that makes a bit more sense. There looks to a be a patch of water where a ship might have blocked the wind well in front of the horizon, but perhaps that patch is caused by rocks. So that ship is in fact beyond (or at) the horizon not where that patch of calm water is? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/5 "2021-03-05T18:25:20Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > the light reflected from the ship to your eyes is refracted into an ark Is the ark run by NOAA? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/6 "2021-03-05T18:32:44Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > > [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > > > the light reflected from the ship to your eyes is refracted into an ark > > Is the ark run by NOAA? - Who else would predict 40 days and 40 nights of rain? ---
**Author:** ![gdave](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gdave/32/3683_2.png) [@gdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gdave)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/7 "2021-03-05T18:34:32Z")
> [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](#): > > There looks to a be a patch of water where a ship might have blocked the wind well in front of the horizon, but perhaps that patch is caused by rocks. Yeah, it looks to me like there are _almost_ entirely submerged rocks “underneath” the ship, which makes it look like we’re seeing the ship floating in air, a gap of air, and then the ship’s wake in the water beneath it. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/8 "2021-03-05T18:58:00Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > the light reflected from the ship to your eyes is refracted into an ark An ark Ark ARK Goddamn autocorrect keeps insisting that “arc” should be “ark”. Clearly, I’ve been writing too much about Indiana Jones movies lately. > [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](#): > > Thanks that makes a bit more sense. There looks to a be a patch of water where a ship might have blocked the wind well in front of the horizon, but perhaps that patch is caused by rocks. So that ship is in fact beyond (or at) the horizon not where that patch of calm water is? Yes, exactly. The light is being bent over the horizon. This happens particularly over the ocean (and to a lesser extent over large deserts) because of a temperature inversion caused by heating or cooling of the air from the surface causing large temperature and relative humidity gradients resulting in dramatic refraction of light traveling through the air. In an extreme case, you can get a [_Fata Morgana_](https://www.farmersalmanac.com/fata-morgana-mirage-28630) where the image can also change in size and configuration rapidly. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/9 "2021-03-05T19:05:39Z")
Excellent picture of this illusion. Never seen one so clear of such a large man made object. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/10 "2021-03-05T19:30:49Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > Goddamn autocorrect keeps insisting that “arc” should be “ark”. But you set up “did NOAA build the ark” quite beautifully, perhaps a unique opportunity for which I shall be eternally grateful. > [@TriPolar](#): > > Never seen one so clear Yes, obviously we know the phenomenon is real, but this is _so_ good it’s almost suspicious. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/11 "2021-03-05T20:09:52Z")
Holy moly. Usually, if I know it’s an illusion, I can force my brain to see through it. But not this one; no matter how closely I look, I can’t see this as anything but a ship flying 20 or so feet off the surface of the water. Like Nick Fury licensed the helicarrier technology to Maersk Sealand. ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/12 "2021-03-05T20:20:32Z")
People saying this is a false horizon which isn’t quite the same as a Fata Morgana (or is it?), with the patch of water under the ship merely appearing to be the same colour as the sky. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/13 "2021-03-05T20:28:54Z")
> [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](#): > > Holy moly. Usually, if I know it’s an illusion, I can force my brain to see through it. But not this one; no matter how closely I look, I can’t see this as anything but a ship flying 20 or so feet off the surface of the water. Like Nick Fury licensed the helicarrier technology to Maersk Sealand.  The only tell I notice that it’s a mirage (besides it being up in the air) is that the atmospheric perspective seem off–it’s more foggy like it would be further away than it appears. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/14 "2021-03-05T22:47:45Z")
A mirage. Uh huh. Sure. That’s what _They_ want you to believe. d&r ---
**Author:** ![Chad\_Sudan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chad_sudan/32/4509_2.png) [@Chad\_Sudan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chad_Sudan)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/15 "2021-03-05T23:18:33Z")
So… is this the Philadelphia Experiment, or just the result of budget cuts in the extraterrestrials’ Earth-exploration program? ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/16 "2021-03-05T23:19:49Z")
Talk about coincidences. Yesterday’s episode of the _Stuff To Blow Your Mind_ podcast was about Fata Morgana. The completed episode is still on my phone right now. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2021, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/17 "2021-03-06T00:07:39Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > Excellent picture of this illusion. Never seen one so clear of such a large man made object. Just do a google image search for [fata morgana mirage](https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1280&bih=620&ei=mcZCYO-1N4SQsAXM9ZWQAQ&q=fata+morgana+mirage&oq=fata+m&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQAxgBMggIABCxAxCDATIICAAQsQMQgwEyCAgAELEDEIMBMggIABCxAxCDATICCAAyAggAMgUIABCxAzICCAAyAggAMgIIADoECAAQA1DsCViQE2DRKGgAcAB4AIAB8QGIAYMHkgEFMC41LjGYAQCgAQGqAQtnd3Mtd2l6LWltZw&sclient=img) to find many pics, some of them rather amazing. There are some of whole city skylines with skyscrapers! ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2021, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/18 "2021-03-06T01:14:56Z")
Yes, looking at images of Fata Morganas, there is some evidence that this type of very clear floating boat image is actually a false horizon, not a mirage. The example below is not a mirage (reflections from parts of the ship in the smooth water) and it doesn’t take much imagination to see how a bit of haze can make the horizon completely obscured, add in a very smooth calm area of ocean and you could get something like the OP. [![](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/9c/44/4a/9c444a9662a3853c220edc50974d65dc.jpg) ](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/9c/44/4a/9c444a9662a3853c220edc50974d65dc.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2021, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/19 "2021-03-07T02:03:13Z")
[This article](https://www.metabunk.org/threads/debunked-fata-morgana-or-mirage-hovering-boat-images-false-horizon.9112/) agrees that this type of image is a false horizon and not a Fata Morgana. A real Fata Morgana shows distortion and inversion of the object. In this case there is neither. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2021, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284/20 "2021-03-07T02:30:53Z")
Well that does explain why this image is so clear. > [@Senegoid](#): > > Just do a google image search for [fata morgana mirage](https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1280&bih=620&ei=mcZCYO-1N4SQsAXM9ZWQAQ&q=fata+morgana+mirage&oq=fata+m&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQAxgBMggIABCxAxCDATIICAAQsQMQgwEyCAgAELEDEIMBMggIABCxAxCDATICCAAyAggAMgUIABCxAzICCAAyAggAMgIIADoECAAQA1DsCViQE2DRKGgAcAB4AIAB8QGIAYMHkgEFMC41LjGYAQCgAQGqAQtnd3Mtd2l6LWltZw&sclient=img) to find many pics, some of them rather amazing. There are some of whole city skylines with skyscrapers! Some of those must be false horizons, [as this one surely is because the horizon is actually visible](https://www.farmersalmanac.com/fata-morgana-mirage-28630). [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hovering-ship-photographed/937284.md?page=2)