Waterspouts - don't get caught in one of these!

7:01 AM Wed 14 Apr 2010 GMT

'P1010534.JPG' John Hodgson Click Here to view large photo

Waterspouts and their land versions are common in the Caribbean and tropical waters of the area, but here are some photos taken by cruising sailor John Hodgson while he was cruising in Turkey recently.

The photos were taken while sailing near Taslik Burnu, a promontory between Finike and Antalya on the southern coast of Turkey - this is a well known haunt for cruising sailors.

John describes how he was enjoying the show until 'I just managed to avoid being caught up in one, as you can see a new one began to form astern of us about 1 mile away where we had just sailed.'

P1010537.JPG - John Hodgson Click Here to view large photo

About waterspouts:
The waterspout is essentially a tornado over water, often weaker than a tornado, but extremely dangerous to encounter. Contrary to popular belief that waterspouts suck up water, the water seen in the main funnel cloud is actually water droplets formed by condensation.

While many waterspouts form in the tropics, locations at higher latitude within temperate zones also report waterspouts, such as Europe and the Great Lakes. Waterspouts have a five-part life cycle: formation of a dark spot on the water surface, spiral pattern on the water surface, formation of a spray ring, development of the visible condensation funnel, and ultimately decay.