Sailing into boiling water

[Ry]

The worlds oceans are closer to freezing than boiling.

The effects of boiling and freezing are substantially different, boiling being much more volatile.

 

[Edgewood]

Because cold just doesn't do that. Canada and Russia don't get hurricanes and tropical storms, but India, Southeast USA, etc (where the water is much hotter), do.

Actually, eastern Canada does get Hurricanes. Not as often as the southeastern US does mind you, but we do get them. Halifax got nailed by Hurricane Juan in 2003.

 

[Ourph]

How is it a frozen sea doesn't cause vast weather problems and threaten the end of civilization?

Heat adds energy to the system. Wind, precipitation, waves, etc. are all forms of energy dissipation. The more energy to dissipate, the more violent the dissipation mechanisms are.

Cold certainly has effects, but adding energy to the system isn't one of them (at least, not directly).

 

[Ry]

Actually, eastern Canada does get Hurricanes. Not as often as the southeastern US does mind you, but we do get them. Halifax got nailed by Hurricane Juan in 2003.

Right, but Juan started near the equator, not from the arctic. As did Hazel, which hit Ontario back in 1954.

 

[Nyeshet]

Heat adds energy to the system. Wind, precipitation, waves, etc. are all forms of energy dissipation. The more energy to dissipate, the more violent the dissipation mechanisms are.

Cold certainly has effects, but adding energy to the system isn't one of them (at least, not directly).

That suggests that if the polar regions were nearly frozen solid during the winter months then even a 'balmy' 60 at the equator could be enough for hurricane formation (due to temperature differences). Hmm, a hurricane with the occasional ice berg tossed in for added excitement sounds interesting . . .

But it should be the topic of another post, as it is rather far afield from this one. Sorry.

 

[Gooba42]

Why is the ship made of wood?

Modern yachts are sometimes made of concrete. Wouldn't a soften stone or some similar enable a stone ship to be crafted? Totally watertight and if the temperature change is fairly gradual more or less immune to the heat...

Anyway, more on topic...

No, the air wouldn't be breathable. The steam would displace all the breathable air. The heat, if sustained, would warp the wood as well as kill the crew, not to mention melting all of the sealant. The boiling water's density would drop, making the ship less buoyant but not necessarily sinking it outright but definitely make it drag in the water and move more slowly. The area of unpredictably wild winds would probably be impossible to sail through even if the crew and ship could survive and navigate under the above conditions.

All in all, you're probably better off convincing someone to cast extended versions of water breathing and protection from elements on you before trying to swim it.

 

[Darklone]

It's a real tough choice what would happen first, the crew suffocating/dying from burns in their lungs or the ship sinking due to missing buoyancy. I'm sure though that the pitch will be last to be softened.