Until today, I didn’t actually know why the sky is blue, and now I do. You may think you know why the sky is blue, but perhaps you’ve been misled all these years? I was!

Pacific Northwest weather guru Cliff Mass has the story at his blog:

On Sunday a number of you noted the reddish color of the sky and the orange-red hue of the sun. I mentioned in my blog that day that this was the result of smoke from wildfires, blowing in from BC (the main origin) and eastern Washington.

But why does smoke cause the red coloration?

The reason? The scattering of light by small particles in the atmosphere–also known as Rayleigh Scattering. It also explains why the sky is blue!

The light from the sun contains all wavelengths and is essentially white. White light possesses contributions from all wavelengths (or colors) in the visible spectrum (see figure). On the shorter wavelength side there is blue and on the longer wavelength side there is red.

It turns out the small particles in the air (small compared to the wavelength of light) can scatter incoming light into various directions and that they scatter short wavelengths (purple and blue) much more than longer wavelengths (orange and red).

So the light coming in from the sun is white with all wavelengths, but the molecules in the atmosphere scatter blue light more than other wavelengths.

Read more; you know you want to…

Bob at Boat Bits is dead on with his post today, although I suspect he and I may disagree on our choice of anchors. The point is, THAT’S NOT THE POINT!

Whuh-huh?

Here’s what I mean: anchoring success is mostly about technique. That’s Bob’s point, and I agree. Having said that, I’m still pretty happy with my current anchor, one of them newfangled concave designs whose proponents have been vocal in the recent “anchor wars” you see on various cruising forums. As far as I can tell, it’s a great anchor, hype and hyperbole notwithstanding.

But I don’t expect the anchor to make up for my own shortcomings when it comes to selecting a suitable anchorage, laying out an appropriate amount of rode, settings it properly, and taking steps to detect and monitor a dragging situation. “Duh!”, as we used to say.

So let’s see what Bob has to say on this:

I’ve had more than a few emails requesting that I do more anchor reviews and I guess I should address that issue…

NO…

First, there is already too much talk about anchors in print and on the web plus anything that I’d add to the equation would simply piss most people off. Trust me, you don’t want to hear my views on new anchor designs…

That said, I will point out that at some point in time if you anchor you will drag as it is all part of the gig and whatever new anchor is the "hip" thing will not prevent it. You may, of course, get better at anchoring and this will make the act of dragging less likely, but at some point in time you WILL drag. Again, it is just part of the gig and you will have to learn to live with it.

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Over at Three Sheets Northwest, Marty McOmber has this story about a recent boating get-together. The “gear and gadgets” angle is a natural fit for Navagear, however:

It is quite possibly the world’s most powerful portable blender.

And when Scott Anderson fired up the five-horsepower bow thruster turned margarita maker on Saturday, the party officially got underway at Signature Yachts’ first annual all-fleet rendezvous.

More than 100 people aboard 40 boats spent the weekend at Port Ludlow checking out other vessels, swapping stories and generally having a great time at one of the most picturesque harbors on Puget Sound.

But it was Anderson’s Frankensteinesque blending machine that stole the show. The owner of CSR Marine looked at the clear tube and blades of a bow thruster and saw not just a device to help maneuver boats, but something that could crush bags and bags of ice and blend gallons of lime juice, sugar and lots of tequila into a very tasty drink.

It didn’t take long for a crowd of rendezvous participants to gather around the giant blender, sample its wares and generally kick off a great event.

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Cliff Mass’s wonderful weather blog has this item today, which discusses the weekend’s weather patterns, but also mentions a project that regional mariners ought to be aware of:

Please help researchers evaluate how to communicate weather forecast information. The survey will take you only 20 minutes to complete. Survey data will be used to improve weather forecast products designed for boaters. If you own a boat and would like to participate, please click on the link below. Thank you.

Click to take the survey

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Ben at Panbo has this item about yet another innovative product from Digital Yacht. This outfit continues to impress me with its thoughtful product offerings.

The picture tells a lot: Digital Yacht’s new AIS200N2K is the first AIS receiver I know of with NMEA 0183, NMEA 2000, and USB outputs. But get this: it can also multiplex 0183 input and gateway it to N2K, "so that traditional data such as depth, position, speed and wind, which is available in NMEA 0183 format, can be converted to N2K within the unit."  All for $519!  The press release doesn’t say what’s coming out of the USB port, but I suspect it’s an 0183 mix of AIS target data and 0183 inputs.  Maybe someone from Digital Yacht or its US and EU retail arm Cactus Marine can elaborate in comments, because I may lose my Internet connection any moment now…

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Tom Tripp’s OceanLines has this story:

Motion sickness, to quote Dr. Patricia S. Cowings, of NASA’s Ames Research Center, “won’t kill you — you just wish it would.” She and a colleague have discovered that a regimen of biofeedback training is more effective than even the powerful anti-nausea drugs given to NASA astronauts — some 50 percent of whom suffer from airsickness during spaceflight. An MSNBC blog piece by Chris Tachibana cites the publication of this new research by Cowings and Dr. William B. Toscano in the Journal of Clinical Pharmacology.

Motion sickness has been a serious concern for NASA for a long time. The debilitating affliction can compromise the potential accomplishments of a spaceflight that is on a strict timeline with no allowance for downtime or sudden crew shortages. But I guess it should all make us feel better that half of all the people with The Right Stuff still get “seasick.”

The biofeedback technique discovered by Cowings and Toscano involves learning to control heart rate and sweating, principally using breathing techniques combined with high-tech biofeedback. It’s more than just relaxation, the techniques actually lower heart rates and diminish sweating, which have the effect of stopping nausea.

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Navagear has been mostly silent on the piracy issue. For one thing, piracy just isn’t something most recreational boaters will ever encounter in their entire lives, newsworthy headline-making exceptions notwithstanding.

Second, Navagear has nothing worthwhile to say about it; if there’s one thing the world does NOT need, it’s more uninformed opinion by well-meaning folks who don’t know what they’re talking about!

But that doesn’t mean I’m not interested, so when Bob over at Boat Bits posted this item, I figured I would take a few minutes to see what these “best management practices” recommended:

The Maritime Security Centre, Horn of Africa has published a pamphlet "Best Management Practice 3: Piracy off the Coast of Somalia and Arabian Sea Area"…
Not exactly warm and fuzzy stuff but it just might come in handy if you plan to be in the area in the foreseeable future.

You can download it here.

And you know what? This is a fascinating document! Here are a couple of highlights I found noteworthy. Please note: These are presented arbitrarily and out of context.

Define the ship’s AIS policy: The Master has the discretion to switch off the AIS if he believes that its use increases the ship’s vulnerability. To provide Naval forces with tracking information within the Gulf of Aden it is recommended that AIS transmission is left on, but is restricted to ship’s identity, position, course, speed, navigational status and safety-related information. Outside of the Gulf of Aden, in other parts of the High Risk Area, the decision on AIS policy is again left to the Master’s discretion, but current Naval advice is to turn it off completely.

If the AIS is switched off it should be activated at the time of an attack.

Where navigationally safe to do so, Masters are encouraged to practice manoeuvring their ships to establish which series of helm orders produce the most difficult sea conditions for pirate skiffs trying to attack, without causing a significant reduction in the ship’s speed.

Pirates generally board vessels with little in the way of equipment other than personal weaponry. It is important to try to deny pirates the use of ship’s tools or equipment that may be used to gain entry into the superstructure of the vessel. Tools and equipment that may be of use to the pirates should be stored in a secure location.

Razor wire (also known as barbed tape) creates an effective barrier when carefully deployed. The barbs on the wire are designed to have a piercing and gripping action. Care should be taken when selecting appropriate razor wire as the quality (wire gauge and frequency of barbs) and type will vary considerably. Lower quality razor wire is likely to be less effective. Three main types of razor wire are commonly available – Unclipped (straight strand), Spiral (like a telephone cord) and Concertina (linked spirals). Concertina razor wire is recommended as the linked spirals make it the most effective barrier. Razor wire should be constructed of high tensile wire, which is difficult to cut with hand tools.

It is recommended that warning signs of the electrified fence or barrier are displayed – inward facing in English/language of the crew, outward facing in Somali.

This looks handy. On my boat, the available spaces are so unique that I’d probably build my own custom pockets to fit just right. But on a lot of boats, something like this might work fine, look good, and not require the four hours I would have to spend building it!

Creating additional storage space aboard just got simpler.  Accon Marine’s Quick Store System protects small items while onboard by simply fastening to previously installed drink holders.

These convenient pouches are constructed from durable, breathable and water-repellent, vinyl-coated polyester mesh fabric.  Incorporating antimicrobial properties, mold and mildew growth aren’t a concern.

The lightweight Quick Store System also features Sunbrella® acrylic binding and UV-resistant thread, enabling long-term usage.  Low-maintenance, the pouches are easy to clean and dry quickly.

Designed in neutral colors, they easily blend into the décor.  Single, double and triple pocket styles are available.

The system employs hook and loop fasteners to attach to Accon’s stainless steel drink holders, helping boaters add and move storage to where they need it.  The drink holders install with two #10 screws and can be removed in a moment.

Prices for Accon Marine’s Quick Store System start at $25.53.

Panbo’s Ben Ellison has this item about some clever canvas hardware. I like what I see!

Did "strapless bimini" get your attention?  Well, it does involve some sexy hardware, and the finished strapless product, as seen on this local sloop, has a certain elegant attraction.  The trick is that those 1" strut tubes seen under the port and starboard edges of the canvas each contains an internal hinge that lets the whole deal fold aft, but they also have a 10" section of 1 1/8" tube that slides and locks over the hinge, rendering them rock stiff.  (But maybe enough with the double entendres?)  I have not tried this hardware myself, yet, but have been watching the manufacturer, Gemini Marine Products, perfecting it for years…

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Sandra has this item at the SmartPlug blog. Somehow, I feel confident she won’t mind me republishing it in its entirety here at Navagear!

Let me “add value” a bit by saying that I’ve been using my SmartPlug for a few months now, and I LOVE IT! Because of the fires it’s prevented? Um…not really. I never had a fire with the old plug, so who’s to say? No, my satisfaction with the SmartPlug design is based on pure everyday ergonomics. I’ve written about this before, so suffice to say I have not been disappointed.

On with Sandra’s post:

The SmartPlug Dual Configuration 30 Amp Cordsets [C30503 & C30253] are arriving soon (July 2010) and are packed full of new features to protect your boat and provide you with that extra piece of mind!  Anticipated to hit the shelves in July 2010, the SmartPlug cordset offers a new solution to the problems of marine shore power.  It’s safer, easier to use and much more reliable than any marine cordset available today.  We’ve put a lot of time and thought into how best to improve upon the existing problematic standard and make a product that you can feel good about purchasing.  Here are some of the key features:

• No Adapters Needed
  • The SmartPlug Dual Configuration cordset was designed to protect the boatside end of the shore power connection first, while allowing for integration with older twist-type connections on the marina end.   Simply install a SmartPlug 30 Amp Inlet on your boat and plug the SmartPlug end of the cordset into it.  The dockside end of the cord connects directly to the older twist-type marina connections.

SmartPlug 30A Dual Configuration cordset with SmartPlug Inlet

• It’s Weatherproof
  • Water intrusion leads to corrosion, and corrosion leads to electrical arcing and overheating.  SmartPlug’s fully molded cordset – along with its weatherproof face seal on the boatside end – eliminates moisture intrusion.

Weatherproof face seal

• Tinned Copper Wire
  • SmartPlug Cordsets are the first to use tinned copper wire (10/3) for the ultimate in corrosion resistance and durability.  Tinned wire is considered the premium choice for the marine environment as it lasts up to 10 times longer than non-tinned wire.  In fact, marine industry experts recommend the use of tinned wiring throughout the boat for these same reasons.

SmartPlug cord with tinned copper wire

• Sleeved Design
  • One of the primary causes of failure in the old twist-type design is that the electrical pins bear any weight or tension on the cord.  This is of greatest concern on the boatside end of the shore power cable where most of the movement occurs.  The SmartPlug’s sleeve design means that the body of the connector bears that tension, rather than the electrical pins, keeping those points of electrical contact secure.

Sleeved Design

• Multi-Point Locking System
  • Locking side levers on the connector – along with the SmartPlug Inlet’s locking cap – ensure a rock solid connection on the boatside end.

Multi-Point Locking System