WEEKLY OCEAN NEWS

THANKSGIVING WEEK: 21-25 November 2005

Ocean in the News:

Earthquake near Indonesia does not produce tsunami -- A 6.2 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Sumatra on Saturday night (local time), not too far from the site of the magnitude 9 earthquake last December that produced the deadly tsunami. While a tsunami alert was issued locally following Saturday's earthquake, no immediate reports of a tsunami, casualties or damage were made. [CNN]
New tropical storm proves deadly -- Tropical Storm Gamma, the 24th named tropical cyclone of the 2005 hurricane season in the North Atlantic basin, was responsible for the deaths of at least six people in Central America last Saturday, primarily due to the flooding from torrential rain. By Sunday, this tropical storm had weakened to a tropical depression that could move toward Cuba. [CNN]
Review of NOAA's hurricane response -- As the extremely active North Atlantic hurricane season draws to a close, the role of all six of the line offices in NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) in providing information and assistance to those affected by the hurricanes has been featured. [NOAA Magazine]
Milestone reached by NASA's ICESat -- A laser altimeter instrument onboard NASA's Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) has fired its one-billionth laser shot toward the earth last week, precisely measuring the surface elevations of polar ice sheets, as well as clouds and topographic features. [NASA]
ENSO should not affect the nation's winter weather -- Scientists with the Climatic Prediction Center recently released their final updated 2005-06 winter outlook for the nation. Their revised outlook indicates projected ENSO-neutral conditions, or even weak La Nina conditions for the next six months should have little impact on the US this winter, extending from December 2005 through February 2006. They call for a better than even chance of above average temperatures for much of the western two-thirds of the nation, while the eastern third of the country should expect nearly equal chances of below or above average temperatures. Much of the nation should also experience nearly equal chances of below or above average precipitation, while only Florida and adjoining sections of coastal Georgia appear ot have a better than equal chance of drier conditions. [NOAA News]
Eye in sky protects endangered fish -- The radar system onboard the European Space Agency's Envisat satellite has been used to detect pirate fishing vessels that have been attempting to catch the endangered prehistoric Patagonian toothfish in the remote southern Indian Ocean. [ESA]
World's fish stocks could be threatened by climatic change -- The environmental group, WWF (World Wildlife Fund), recently warned that increased temperatures of the oceans, rivers and lakes could threaten fish populations already stressed by overfishing, pollution and habitat loss. [ENN]
A Pacific atoll to be studied -- A group of scientists from Hawaii and California will be launching a cooperative research project in a national wildlife refuge on Palmyra Atoll approximately 900 miles south of Honolulu, HI that will study the pristine coral ecosystem. [ENN]
Dutch reassessing their water defenses -- In response to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina upon New Orleans earlier this fall, Dutch governmental officials are beginning to reassess their strategies for coping with flooding of their low-lying country by storms of historic proportions. [ENN]
Dumping of chemicals into ocean probed -- The Armed Services Committee in the US House of Representatives is investigating the claim that the Army has dumped chemical weapons into the world's oceans. [ENN]
Advanced seafloor observatory unveiled -- Scientists at the University of Victoria are ready to test their seafloor observatory, VENUS (Victoria Experimental Network Under the Sea), on the floor of an inlet from the Strait of Georgia near Victoria, BC, which they claim will be the world's most advanced cabled observatory designed to monitor underwater conditions. [University of Victoria]
Offshore energy sources studied -- The Atlantic Energy Roundtable, consisting of Canadian industrial and labor leaders, along with officials from the federal and provincial governments, met recently and issued a policy statement that indicated its renewed commitment to the development of oil and gas resources offshore of Atlantic Canada in a sustainable and environmentally sound manner. [EurekAlert!]
An updated view of ancient earth -- An international team of researchers from Australia, the US and France have refuted the theory that early earth was covered by oceans, indicating that their research into ancient rocks in western Australia would suggest the possible formation of a continental crust sometime during the first 500 million years of earth history. [EurekAlert!]
Global and US Hazards/Climate Extremes -- A review and analysis of the global impacts of various weather-related events, including drought, floods, and storms during the current month. [NCDC]
Earthweek -- Diary of the Planet [earthweek.com] Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Historical Events:

21 November 1987...Truk Island (Federated States of Micronesia at 7.4 degrees N, 151.7 degrees E) was struck by the rapidly intensifying Tropical Storm Nina, as winds gusted to 95 mph. Five died, and most buildings were destroyed. A storm of such intensity so close to the equator is somewhat unusual. (Accord Weather Calendar)
22 November 1992...Supertyphoon Gay generated gusts up to 120 mph on Guam in the western Pacific. Only one injury was sustained. Earlier, when at its peak approximately 1000 miles southeast of Guam, Supertyphoon Gay had sustained surface winds estimated to 185 mph with gusts to 225 mph. (Accord Weather Calendar)
23 November 1869...The clipper ship, the Cutty Sark, was launched at Dumbarton, Scotland. This three-masted and 212-foot long ship was one of the last clipper ships to be built and is the only one surviving to the present day, residing in a dry dock at Greenwich, England. (Wikipedia)
23-24 November 1981...Typhoon Irma, the worst in 10 years, struck north central Philippines (mostly Luzon) with winds to 139 mph and a storm surge of 16 feet. More than 236 people died, while 600,000 were made homeless. Entire provinces were left without power or communication. (Accord Weather Calendar)
24 November 1982...Hurricane Iwa lashed the Hawaiian Islands of Niihau, Kauai, and Oahu with high winds and surf. Winds gusting to 120 mph caused extensive shoreline damage. Winds at Honolulu gusted to 81 mph. Damage totaled 150 million dollars on Kauai, and fifty million dollars on Oahu. The peak storm surge on the south shore was six to eight feet. It marked the first time in 25 years that Hawaii had been affected by a hurricane. (The Weather Channel)
26 November 1703...Bristol England was damaged by a hurricane. The Royal Navy lost 15 warships.
26 November 1778...Captain James Cook of the British Royal Navy became the first European to discover Maui in the Sandwich Islands (later renamed the Hawaiian Islands). (Wikipedia)
26 November 1847...LT William Lynch, USN, in Supply sailed from New York to Haifa for an expedition to the River Jordan and the Dead Sea. His group charted the Jordan River from the Sea of Galilee to the Dead Sea and compiled reports of the flora and fauna of the area. (Naval Historical Center)
26 November 1888...A late season hurricane brushed the East Coast with heavy rain and gale force winds. The hurricane passed inside Nantucket and over Cape Cod, then crossed Nova Scotia. (David Ludlum)
26 November 1966...The world's first tidal power station was opened at Rance estuary in the French province of Brittany. This power plant, fitted with reversible turbines, generates 500 million kilowatt-hours annually. (Today in Science)
26-28 November 1898...The "Portland" storm raged across New England producing gale force winds along the coast and heavy snow inland. A foot of snow blanketed Boston, MA, and 27 inches fell at New London, CT. Winds at Boston gusted to 72 mph, and wind gusts to 98 mph were estimated at Block Island, RI. A passenger ship, the S.S. Portland, sank off Cape Cod with the loss of all 191 persons aboard, and Boston Harbor was filled with wrecked ships. The storm wrecked 56 vessels resulting in a total of 456 casualties. (26^th- 28^th) (David Ludlum) (The Weather Channel)
27 November 1703... The first Eddystone Lighthouse off the coast of Devon, England (approximately 14 miles southwest of Plymouth) was destroyed in the "Great Storm", and killed its builder Henry Winstanley. This first light was in an octagonal wooden structure built in 1698. The current structure is the fourth light to be constructed. The "Great Storm" is reported to have killed more than 8000 people. (Wikipedia) (Today in Science)
27-28 November 1905... Heavy snow and wind blasted the western Great Lakes with as much as seven inches of snow in northwestern Wisconsin and sustained winds of 42 mph were recorded at Duluth, MN for 29 straight hours and 65 mph winds for 13 continuous hours. Severe drifting resulted. Eighteen ships were destroyed or disabled on Lake Superior. The ship Mataafa was grounded and broke in two in Duluth harbor. Nine of the fifteen crew of the Mataafa froze to death despite running aground within 100 yards of the shore. (Accord Weather Calendar)

Prepared by AMS DS Ocean Central Staff and Edward J. Hopkins, Ph.D., email hopkins@meteor.wisc.edu
ã Copyright, 2005, The American Meteorological Society.