It may be one of the most alluring and lovely things to do in an ocean or other body of water, but it’s also one of the riskiest.

In case you were wondering, the creation of a square wave, also known as a cross sea, occurs when two or more waves come together to produce a square pattern that typically resembles a checkerboard.

“The conditions are quite common in the ocean and occur when a windsea, and a swell, or two swell systems, coexist,” the European Space Agency (ESA) stated in 2010. “A large percentage of ship accidents occurred in crossing sea states,” according to a 2004 study.

In the end, the cross seas create wind patterns that are peculiar and surges that can reach a height of ten feet. This increases the difficulty of navigating the ocean for both boats and swimmers.

Therefore, even though it is highly rare, if someone did locate this, they would have to avoid using a boat to get out or even swimming in the extremely dangerous waters. Instead, take use of the opportunity to relax on the sand and bide your time until the weather improves sufficiently to venture outside.

While square waves can be very beautiful, they can also be very dangerous.

There are a few spots with square waves. These are usually seen where two seas or other large bodies of water merge with a landmass. The waves often refract over the entire peninsula at different angles, resulting in a square wave. One such instance is the French island of Re. One of the greatest places to see crossed sea waves is the island, which is located directly off the French coast of La Rochelle.

Another coastal spot where one can see these kinds of waves is Cape Reinga in New Zealand. It is the northernmost point of the country, located where the Pacific and Tasman Seas converge.

The sight of square waves is really attractive. It follows that the fact that thousands of people visit the island’s lighthouses—especially those on the Isle of Re—and that these sites are well-liked tourist attractions is not surprising. However, one needs to watch it from a safe distance. How many of us have actually seen square waves in action? It may seem odd that waves crossing at different angles would draw so many people.

Surprisingly, two opposing surges are frequently seen in shallow waters, such those off the Isle of Rhe and off Tel Aviv, Israel. Scientists believe that square waves are an example of the Kadomstev-Petviashvili equation in action. A nonlinear wave motion is typically explained by the formula that follows.

It often provides an explanation of the interactions between different weather systems.