The internet loves a good old optical illusion, and we've seen all sorts of weird and wonderful examples over the past few months. But while most are digital creations, every now and again an example appears out in the wild – and these incredible 'floating' ships might just be the most mind-boggling phenomenon we've seen.
Last week, a walker was stunned to see a boat hovering above the water in Cornwall, and a photo of his discovery quickly went viral. And as if that wasn't enough, a second example of the rare illusion has just emerged. At this rate, 'ability to capture floating ships' might need introducing as a criteria for our best cameras list.
David Morris spotted the illusion in Cornwall (Image credit: David Morris)
According to the BBC, David Morris was "stunned" when he noticed a giant tanker floating above the water (above) as he looked out to sea from a house in Falmouth. But it turns out the effect is an example of a rare optical illusion known as a 'superior mirage' (we were rather hoping for 'Floaty McBoatFace').
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“Superior mirages occur because of the weather condition known as a temperature inversion, where cold air lies close to the sea with warmer air above it," according to David Braine, a BBC meteorologist. "Since cold air is denser than warm air, it bends light towards the eyes of someone standing on the ground or on the coast, changing how a distant object appears."
So, in short, cold air + warmer sea = floating ships. A second superior mirage was spotted by Facebook user Dave Medlock this week, who shared an image of an apparently levitating cruise liner in Devon (below).
A second sighting of a floating boat (Image credit: Dave Medlock on Facebook)
We've been flummoxed by illusions in the past, including rotating cubes that aren't actually rotating, and falling people who aren't actually falling, but this real-world example might just be the best we've seen. Indeed, if we do happen spot a floating boat on our travels any time soon, there are probably a few things we'll shout involuntarily before realising, "ah, yes, that's a superior mirage".
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Daniel John is Design Editor at Creative Bloq. He reports on the worlds of design, branding and lifestyle tech, and has covered several industry events including Milan Design Week, OFFF Barcelona and Adobe Max in Los Angeles. He has interviewed leaders and designers at brands including Apple, Microsoft and Adobe. Daniel's debut book of short stories and poems was published in 2018, and his comedy newsletter is a Substack Bestseller.
