Whirlybird Windex

[jaschrumpf]

I was single handing a couple of weeks ago, and while on a starboard tack in 10-15 winds I happened to look up at the windex and noticed it was rapidly spinning in circles! This doesn't help much, but who really needs the windex to know where 10-15kts are coming from, anyway.

I marveled at the phenomenon for a while, and kept an eye on it to see if it would stop and under what conditions it did. It kept it up for the remainder of that tack, and when I came about it stopped twirling and resumed its duty.

Obviously, some kind of vortex was coming up off the main. Or, it may be the fact that the windex (new this year) might not be sticking up above the masthead far enough, and the turbulence up there got hold of it.

What does the commentariat think?

[Minnewaska]

Has it worked properly since? Could it be bent or missing a fin?

[WDS123]

typically induced by waves

[jaschrumpf]

Originally Posted by Minnewaska

Has it worked properly since? Could it be bent or missing a fin?

Yes, it's working fine. It only does this every once in while, not regularly.

[svHyLyte]

"Wing tip" vorticies similar to those that come off the tip of the wing of an aircraft in some circumstances. With the yacht heeled the horizontal component of the tip vortex can cause a windex to spin.

[weinie]

Sailing in the Bermuda Triangle?