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"Shortly after the Bremen and Caledonian Star incidents, the Europeans launched a satellite that scanned the world's oceans In three weeks' time, the satellites picked out ten waves like the ones that nearly sank the two ships"

"Has anyone been able to figure out the cause of these killer waves?"

"So with a principle in quantuer equation It's a bit cos can appear and disappear with no apparent reason 'Vaood nay froe s in the first place"

"From what you've said, every ship whose hull is built to withstand seas based on the Linear Model could s

uffer the same fate as the Southern Belle"

"Oh, it gets better than that, Kurt Much better"

"I don't understand"

"The Southern Belle's designers incorporated the newer data on giant waves into their work The Belle had a covered forecastle, a double hull and strengthening of the transverse bulkheads to prevent flooding"

Austin stared at the scientist for ahis words carefully, he said, "That would er than ninety feet"

Adler gestured toward his coe showed a series of wave lines and measurements

"There were actually two giant waves, one hundred and one hundred twelve feet high, to be exact We captured their pictures on satellite"

Adler had expected his dramatic pronouncement to make an impression, but both men responded with expressions of intense interest rather than the gasps of disbelief that he had expected Adler knew he had done well in coaxing a favor from Rudi Gunn when Austin turned to his friend and, withouta beat, calmly announced:

"Looks like we should have brought our surfboards"

5

Big Mountain, Montana