Bight of Bonny (IMAGE) Washington University in St. Louis Caption The source for one component of seismic noise appears to be the Bight of Bonny, a large, shallow bay off the west coast of Africa. When long-period water waves hit the continental shelf in the shallow bight, they are converted to seismic waves. Traditionally explorers defined a bight as a bay that could be sailed out of on a single tack in a square-rigged sailing vessel, regardless of the direction of the wind. This was possible only if the bay was slightly receding. Credit Wikipedia Commons Usage Restrictions None License Licensed content Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.