I’ve been waiting to write this post for a long time. The problem was, up until now I just didn’t know of a good example of charismatic mega turbulence. Normally, the turbulent eddies that mix the world’s oceans are really small, ranging in size from 10’s of millimeters to at most 100’s of meters. When you compare these eddies to the size of the ocean, which is on average 3 km deep and thousands of kilometers wide, turbulence occurs on relatively tiny scales. So even though these turbulent vortices are super cute, they certainly can’t be classified under the mega category.
But now, giant turbulence your time has finally come! *insert mad cackling and background lighting strikes here*
In the Strait of Georgia, which lies between mainland Canada and Vancouver Island, super fast tidal currents flow over sills and bumps. Deep, cold, dense water is forced up and over theses ridges, which then plummets back downward into slower moving water below. The plunging water is arrested by the sluggish water below and has no other choice but to come up in the form of huge blobs of water known as boils!

She’s going from suck to blow! This boil may look like a eddy that’s about to suck you down, but it’s really a giant blob of water that has risen to the surface. [source: http://www.eos.ubc.ca/~rich/research.html]
![[source: Figure 4 from Marmorino et al.]](http://www.deepseanews.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/remotesensing-05-03239-600x370.jpg)
Peeping at the boils from afar with GeoSat-1 satellite imagery. Zoomed in images in panels (b) and (c) show they form just downstream of the ridge (red bathymetric contours).[source: Figure 4 from Marmorino et al.]

In nearby Knight Inlet, the Canadian Coast Guard vessel Vector has been commandeered by scientists chasing an internal wave crest that has escaped from the local sill. [source:http://www.eos.ubc.ca/~rich/knight/index.html]
But you don’t need a satellite or a boat to see charismatic mega turbulence, you can head on over to Deception Pass to see if for yourself. Deception Pass is narrow constriction at the north end of Whidbey Island in Washington state with whipping tidal flows and a bumpy bottom. Even better, there is a walkable bridge spanning it so you can safely look down at the fluid action while staying completely dry. Or if you dare (and are experienced), you can rent a kayak or paddleboard and experience this wicked turbulence in situ! While some may prefer their charismatic mega features to be of the cetacean kind, I would rather hang with out with my mega turbulence any day of the week. And who knows, maybe one day someone will be lucky enough to see both together!
SOURCES:
Rick Pawlowicz’s research page http://www.eos.ubc.ca/~rich/research.html