[freddie_mercury]

The linked article includes a chart showing the vessels movements mapped down to every few minutes. Looking at that picture it is hard to imagine its path is caused by drifting. It is clearly moving in a circle. You can't tell from the static map in the article but if you check other marine vessel tracking websites you can see that it is moving in a counterclockwise circle at a fairly steady rate.

I suppose that could be caused by an anchor and drifting but it seems more likely to me (as an uninformed idiot, though I've been in anchored boats before and don't remember them moving in circles because of it) that it is under power (albeit not very much).

[theresistor]

Swinging about an anchor under the force of wind or currents would tend to make a circular arc.

[dmurray]

Normally back and forth on the downwind or down-current side of the circle, though. The chart shows it completing several circles.

[windows_tips]

The chart shows most of the data points on a small portion of the arc.

[theresistor]

Reversals are completely normal for cyclic tidal currents or sea breeze / land breeze cycles.

[poooogles]

Same for tides.

[dghughes]

Huge heavy ships need many kilometers to stop and then to get back up to speed more time and burn lots of fuel. If there was a possibility the ship was going to be allowed to dock in a certain window of time it would make sense to just keep sailing.

I see it like big rig trucks who don't want to stop at stop signs since the need a lot of energy and rowing through gears to get back up to speed.

Just my wild Saturday morning pre-coffee theory.

[EdwardDiego]

> Looking at that picture it is hard to imagine its path is caused by drifting. It is clearly moving in a circle

Eddies are a thing.

https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/eddy.html