Weather Analysis for the Equator

We made good progress into last night. It is 92°F (33.3°C) in the cabin so I had a salt water shower and then freshwater rinse in the cockpit after sunset. It was hugely refreshing.

I have been looking at some of the data that is available now to mariners in anticipation of crossing the Equator and getting through the Doldrums, or the ‘Pot au Noir’ as the French call it. There are satellite photographs spanning the globe taken at different wavelengths to show different things. There is Advanced Scatterometry, which is a real-time satellite based radar to give wind direction and strength. There are the standard hand drawn maps by the expert meteorologists at NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). Our barograph can help place us relative to the GRIB files that we have been using for our routing.

Fortunately, we have adequate speed access to the Internet to get these with our Fleet Broadband 250 and Iridium OpenPort. The satellite photos are updated every hour, the ASCAT is per 24 hours. When I studied with Jean-Yves Bernot we looked at all of these tools and how best to use them in combination at the Equator. Clearly the latest photographs will help, and an indication of the ASCAT, even though its not hourly as the photos are, may help confirm or not the GRIB files.

Last night I also took my first stab at a haircut. Essentially, go to the stern, and start snipping away trying to make it all the same length, that’s a good start. It feels much better to have it a bit shorter in this heat also. We’ll see after I do round 2 in the next few days how it looks. Of course being alone on the boat, that doesn’t really matter to me!

We have some new birds with us today, I think they are terns, that fly about 50′ above the water, looking for prey, and then will dive dramatically into the water for lunch or dinner when its spotted.

Position
5° 01’S x 31° 25’W
Course
4° True
Speed
8.5 knots
Log
24,799nm
True Wind Speed
12 knots
True Wind Direction
150°
Sails (click for diagram)
Mainsail (1 reef), Genoa
Air Temperature
85°F / 29.4°C
Sea Temperature
85°F / 29.4°C