Weather for the Mariner Review

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Weather for the Mariner ReviewThe date on this book - over twenty years ago - on a technical subject immediately suggests that it probably is dated and has been superseded by better books. I took a chance and bought it anyway. It still is in print from the Naval Institute Press and that Press didn't seem to have anything comparable in print. Am I ever glad that I did. There are many books on understanding weather at sea but none as informative as this one.
The discussions of clouds, low and high pressure systems, convection, wind shear, and even hurricanes are as thorough as you will find. Pressure differences and Coriolis force - force due to the earth's spinning on its axis - are fundamental building blocks for the book's explanation of weather.
If you want to understand the weather and will be using that knowledge at sea, this is a great book. This book provides explanations of why weather develops, why the trade winds blow the way that they do and what to look for in weather developments.
For example, Kotsch explains why daily showers happen over land during the day in areas such as Atlanta and why similar showers happen at night in areas such as the Virgin Islands. While not exactly earth shattering, I had noticed this big difference and wondered why it was different. Kotsch explains why you can use ocean swells to see where low pressure systems are, why wind direction changes over the course of the year in low-latitude areas such as the Virgin Islands and much more.
The book was written as a textbook for use at the Naval Academy. You might be concerned that the book presupposes that the reader knows physics, but it does not. I unfortunately have forgotten the physics that I learned in high school, so I would have noticed if Kotsch took a lot of physics for granted.
A major hole that I noticed because of the book's age is the discussion of how information about weather is acquired. Satellites are of course more important than in the 1980s and the system of bouys used to track the weather is much more extensive than in the 1980s. These deficiencies are not in terms of the understanding of weather though and are not a large part of the book.
Perhaps the major deficiency for understanding the weather is the tentative discussion of hurricanes - they are much better understood now. No doubt a meteorologist could find more deficiencies, but I have not noticed errors that affect my practical understanding of the weather.
As you can tell, I recommend this book very highly. It may not be the book for you though. If you are looking for rules of thumb to memorize about the weather, you will not like this book. Also, if you are looking for a simple overview, this is not the book for you. An overview of the basics that was informative for me was Weather at Sea by David Houghton.Weather for the Mariner Overview

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Weather at Sea Review

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Weather at Sea ReviewThis American edition of Weather At Sea is in a different and better category than the original British edition on which it is based. The book is about twice as long as the original, and the added detail is all North American related. The explanations of such weather elements as Adiabatic Lapse rate are as good as any I've read. For understanding and using the weather in the kind of sailing most of us do, i.e., mostly alongshore with an occasional short foray offshore, I can know of no better single volume. Even though published in the 1988, it still up to date and just plain good. What it does not do is delve into the kind of modern techniques in which I, personally, have little interest, e.g., faxes, 500 Mb charts, GRIBS, etc. A fine little book. It''s a pity it's no longer in print.
But it can be bought quite inexpensively both new and second hand.Weather at Sea OverviewThis book clearly explains the basic principals that govern the weather. The concepts have been made easy to understand, letting you get the most from weather maps and forecasts, along with teaching you to predict the weather.


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Mariner's Weather Review

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Mariner's Weather ReviewThis is truely a gem! For those who are going to sea or those who are weather enthusiasts, this book should be in your library. My wife and I sailed across the Pacific and were helped immensely by Crawford's book. It is well written for both the unfamiliar reader as well as those wanting an in depth understanding of what makes weather happen and what to expect while it's happening. With almost every page having diagrams or photographs, Crawford takes the reader through an explanation of the atmosphere, introducing the reader to the whys and wheres of winds, the role that heat plays in meteorology, discussions of clouds, fogs, ice, and fronts. He discusses weather instruments and weather charts. The book is directed toward the mariner, both professional and cruiser. Though his book is not layed out specifically with generalities first, followed by increased specifics and details, it is not difficult for the reader to get the general gist of what the author is trying to convey, without having to sort through pages of confusing details. At the same time, those who are hungry for the intricacies of meteorlogical phenomina will have a hard time putting the book down: for them it will be like a compelling novel, and their sleep schedule will likely suffer as a result.
I am surprised to find that I am the first to review this fine book, because I regularly give it as a gift, and well received it has been!Mariner's Weather OverviewWeather disturbances occur in the atmospheric sea towering overhead and since all of us, even astronauts, live on the bottom of that sea we should know a lot about weather. But what we usually experience are only the swirls and eddies at our location.A meteorologist interprets data received from widespread observers so his view is broader. Yet since he doesn't actually experience theatmosphere they report his perceptions can be uncertain. And an airman's view is also less real. Weather disturbances are so dangerous to him that he tries to avoid them by flying above or around but not through them. By contrast a mariner's encounter with weather is more tangible. During one voyage he might leave Puget Sound in winter, a week later be standing watch in the Tropics and within another week be off Australia in its summer. But this book is not entitled Mariner's Weather to suggest it is primarily for mariners; nor does it flaunt the jargon of meteorology. In ordinary language it sifts decades of experience gained by mariners coping with atmospheric swirls and eddies all over the world at all times of the year. The result is a commonsense book for everyone ...and that could be why it is so well received.

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Heavy Weather Avoidance and Route Design Review

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Heavy Weather Avoidance and Route Design ReviewThis book forms an excellent basis for a "mental model" of upper level 500 mb contour charts and their relevance to surface weather, The initial explanatory chapters suffer from some murkiness in terminology: Are we talking about temperature, pressure, pressure surfaces, pressure "lines" etc.? But a careful reading will sort these terms out and will clarify the terminology in the reader's mind. The dynamic, three dimensional nature of the earth's atmosphere presents a difficult modelling problem for both the presenter and the mariner trying to derive information from the presentation that is useful to him. I would recommend this book as a worthy addition to any professional library, both for the commercial and the recreational mariner. It is both a good off-season study for the recreational boater and a practical on-board reference aid in interpreting weather information received.
The later chapters on weather routing and storm analysis are particularly valuable.
AHD61, Master 1600 Ton (oceans) and LCDR USN (Retired) (Submarine Service)
Heavy Weather Avoidance and Route Design OverviewThe 500Mb chart is the key that unlocks the three-dimensional nature of the atmosphere and helps answer the mariner's two most important weather questions: will the system intensify, and where is it headed?
In Heavy Weather Avoidance, Chen and Chesneau merge the seamanship of a master mariner and the forecast expertise of a senior meteorologist, providing readers with double-barrel exposure to what actually goes on in the atmosphere and on the sea s surface. Many weather texts offer an academic look at weather systems, complete with model algorithm derivations and equations depicting heat transfer. These fundamentals may be the cornerstone of the science, but commercial mariners and recreational sailors are more concerned about the implications of volatile weather rather than its fluid dynamics. From start to finish the authors have cut to the chase, creating a readable text brimming with useful graphics. It s focused on the root cause of how and why bad weather develops and where it s likely to go. There's enough theory provided for a reader to get a feel for how air mass energy transfer works, but just as the theoretical aspect takes on a mission of its own, there s a shift to more practical self-forecasting and storm avoidance wisdom. Captain Ma-Li Chen shares his well-tested routing strategy and describes how it factors in the use of the 500 Mb chart. His game plan includes a sector analysis of short wave troughs, breaking them into four distinct zones and prioritizing the relative safety of navigating through each region. (From the foreword by Ralph Naranjo, Technical Editor Practical Sailor Magazine (Past Vanderstar Chair, U.S. Naval Academy)

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