What is a pororoca wave?

What is a pororoca wave?

The Pororoca (Portuguese pronunciation: [pɔɾɔˈɾɔkɐ], [poɾoˈɾɔkɐ]) is a tidal bore, with waves up to 4 m (13 ft) high that travel as much as 800 km (500 mi) inland upstream on the Amazon River and adjacent rivers. Its name might come from the indigenous Tupi language, where it could translate into “great roar”.

What does pororoca mean in English?

tidal bore
Definition of pororoca : a tidal bore especially at the mouth of the Amazon.

What causes pororoca?

Known as the Pororoca, the wave is created when the tide pushes up the river, against its natural current. When the tide is at its peak, the bore is at its strongest. While the tidal bore can happen every day, September and March are the months when it is at its most powerful.

Where is pororoca located?

Amazon
Pororoca is considered one of the longest surfable waves in the world. This tidal bore is located in the huge Amazon and can only be surfed twice a year.

Does the Amazon river have waves?

“In the Amazon, the wave never ends.” The nearly endless wave is called the pororoca in Brazil, and is an example of a tidal bore. Tidal bores happen around the world in places where high tides push sea water into narrow spaces like the mouths of rivers. The tide rushes in in a single, tumultuous wave.

What are waves in river called?

An upstream river wave is a phenomenon that looks similar to tidal bores, but is caused by ocean swells instead of tides. Similar to tidal bores, they form in the ocean and travel up the river. The Urumea river is an example of a well-known upstream river wave.

How are tides caused?

Tides are very long waves that move across the oceans. They are caused by the gravitational forces exerted on the earth by the moon, and to a lesser extent, the sun. When the highest point in the wave, or the crest, reaches a coast, the coast experiences a high tide.

What is the Solway BORE?

Tidal bores are also known to occur from the Solway Firth into the River Eden in Cumbria, which can reach around 1 metre in height. In October 2020 large tides saw tidal bores occur on the River Whampool and River Eden in Cumbria.

author

Back to Top