Flying Ship Off Rehoboth Beach

That crazy mirage type thang is happening, Fata Morgana

Love the crazy stuff you see at the coast. Fata Morgana being one of my favorites. We have an inversion layer off Rehoboth Beach.

This phenomenon is called Fata Morgana, a type of mirage.   This floating ship image is created by layers of warm to colder air that pile up or layer from a pressure system.  Usually the wind mixes these layers up and you don’t get this reflection of an image.  

This floating ship is created by an inversion layer, due to the colder air at the bottom of the layer and the warmer air on top.  Usually the colder air is on top of these “layers”.  The particles in the warmer layer are less dense and images will travel through them faster and easier.  The light path or reflection you see is bent, and makes the ship appear to be in the air.  Because the warmer air on the top of these layers or inversions projects the image first. Therefore making it appear that the ship is floating in the air or flying as it moves across the distant horizon.
Sometimes you can see this on the beach web cams.