Story behind this wave.....
In early December 2009, Super Typhoon Nida was dying in the North Pacific (that's her in her prime below). She was a real beaut - 175 mph winds, lots of energy. Some of that energy ended up in what could be a record-setting wave in Hawaii.
NIDA
As Nida lost steam, another system called "97W" was beginning to organize just below her. Both storms are visible here:
What happened next created what some predicted would be the biggest waves Hawaii had seen in 40 years.
As Nida lost her mojo, her energy was absorbed into 97W creating a massive low-pressure system similar to a nor'easter. Before the storm fell apart, it pumped out a huge swell that landed in Hawaii three days later, on the morning of Dec. 7. The result was a wave that only two surfers were both brave enough and in a position to catch.
By the way - when they ask if this is the biggest wave ever caught, they're talking about paddling into a wave without the use of a jet-ski. In other words, this isn't the biggest wave ever ridden...that likely happened on Cortes Bank in January of last year (that wave was judged to be 77 feet high) and was caught with the towing abilities of a jet-ski.
But the wave you see above *could* be the biggest wave ever ridden by simply catching it via paddling with your arms and legs. This video is an entry in Billabong's annual big wave competition, so we'll probably hear from them this summer on exactly how big they think the wave was.
*Thanks to NASA for the images and NASA's Rob Gutro for an explanation on the storm systems.
Holy Hell...
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