Weekly Ocean News

Weekly Ocean News

DATASTREME OCEAN WEEK EIGHT: 24-28 March 2014

Items of Interest:

A national portrait made on the 2014 Vernal Equinox from a geosynchronous satellite -- A visible satellite image of the contiguous United States was created from the sensors onboard NOAA's GOES East (or GOES-13) satellite less than 15 minutes before the occurrence of the Vernal Equinox last Thursday. [NOAA Environmental Visualization Laboratory]
Tsunami Awareness Week -- NOAA and the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program (a partnership between NOAA, the United States Geological Survey, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the National Science Foundation, and the 28 U.S. Coastal States, Territories, and Commonwealths) have designated this upcoming week (23-29 March 2014) as National Tsunami Awareness Week.
Tsunami awareness training exercises will be conducted for the states and territories along the Pacific that is called Pacific Tsunami Exercise (PACIFEX 14), for the Caribbean and the Northwestern Atlantic called CARIBE WAVE/LANTEX14 and for the Gulf of Mexico (LANTEX14) Open houses will be held at the National Weather Service's tsunami warning centers in Alaska and Hawaii, along with various community activities in coastal states. The Governor of Alaska has proclaimed next Thursday 27 March 2017 as Great Alaska Earthquake Remembrance Day in observance of the 50th anniversary of the series of devastating tsunamis that struck southeastern Alaska following several earthquakes. The entire week is also Tsunami Preparedness Week in Alaska. [Governor's Office for State of Alaska] Additional information is also available on the 50th anniversary of the Great Alaskan earthquake and tsunami of 1964. [NOAA Weather-Ready Nation]
Marine and tropical weather statements -- This week's Supplemental Information...In Greater Depth identifies those National Weather Service Forecast Centers that monitor the weather, prepare weather forecasts, and issue event-specific warnings or advisories for marine and coastal interests. The terminology used to identify the particular warnings, watches and advisories for marine interests and for tropical weather events is also discussed.
Worldwide GLOBE at Night 2014 Campaign is underway -- The third of a series of GLOBE at Night citizen-science campaigns for 2014 continues through this week (21-30 March). GLOBE at Night is a worldwide, hands-on science and education program designed to encourage citizen-scientists worldwide to record the brightness of their night sky by matching the appearance of a constellation (Orion or Leo in the northern hemisphere, and Orion and Crux in the southern hemisphere) with seven star charts of progressively fainter stars. In addition to the 21-30 March campaign, the other two remaining GLOBE at Night campaigns during the first five months of 2014 are on 20-29 April and 19-28 May. [GLOBE at Night]

Ocean in the News:

Eye on the tropics --- During the last week several tropical cyclones were found across the Southern Hemisphere:

In the western South Pacific basin Tropical Storm Mike formed at midweek approximately 860 miles to the east-southeast of Pago Pago, American Samoa. However, this tropical storm dissipated approximately 24 hours after formation. Additional information and satellite images on Tropical Storm Mike are available from the NASA Hurricane Page.
In the South Indian Ocean basin, the former Tropical Storm Gillian that had traveled across Australia's Gulf of Carpentaria, which is considered to be a part of the western South Pacific basin, reformed late last week south of the Indonesian island of Java after the remnants of the original system moved westward. Over the weekend, this new version of Tropical Storm Gillian had strengthened into a category 1 tropical cyclone on the Saffir-Simpson Scale as it traveled southward across the eastern South Indian Ocean. The NASA Hurricane Page has additional information and satellite imagery on Tropical Cyclone Gillian.

Fisheries science and education enhanced in the Northeastern States -- A partnership has been formed between the NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth School for Marine Science and Technology that is intended to train future generations of scientists in the fields of quantitative fisheries and ecosystem science across the Northeastern States. [NOAA Fisheries News]
Top issue for NOAA Fisheries remains reducing bycatch -- Late last week, Eileen Sobeck, Assistant Administrator for NOAA Fisheries released a statement in which she explained that reducing bycatch in US fisheries remained a top issue for her agency. She also noted some recent success in reducing the bycatch during the last several years. [NOAA Fisheries News]
Comments solicited on regulations to protect marine mammals -- During the last week NOAA Fisheries announced that comments were being sought through late April 2014 on a proposed rule requiring the United States Navy to implement protective measures designed to reduce the chances of harming marine mammals during training and testing activities around the Mariana Islands and on the high seas of the Pacific Ocean. [NOAA Fisheries News]
Review of global weather and climate for February 2014 -- Using preliminary data collected from the global network of surface weather stations, scientists at NOAA's National Climatic Data Center have determined that the combined global land and ocean surface temperature for February 2014 was 0.41 Celsius degrees above the 20th century (1901-2000) average, which tied February 2001 for the 21st highest February temperature since comprehensive global climate records began in 1880. The average global ocean surface temperature for February 2014 was the seventh highest on record, while the global land surface temperature for this past month tied February 1943 as the 44th highest on record.
Furthermore, the three-months running from December 2013 through February 2014 that constitute meteorological winter in the Northern Hemisphere (and meteorological summer in the Southern Hemisphere) had the eighth highest three-month average temperature on record. The global ocean temperature for these last three months tied the corresponding months in 2005 for the sixth highest on record, while the land surface temperature was the tenth highest since 1880. [State of the Climate/NCDC]
Seasat images from 35 years ago still have research value -- A research scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory recently noted that satellite images obtained 35 years ago from NASA's Seasat satellite still have importance to the scientific community and that these images have been digitally processed, cataloged and made available at the Alaska Satellite Facility on the campus of the University of Alaska-Fairbanks. The NASA Seasat satellite was launched in June 1978 as the first polar-orbiting satellite in a sun-synchronous orbit designed for remote sensing of the Earth's oceans and the first to have a synthetic aperture radar mounted onboard. However, a power failure on the space craft ended its mission after only 105 days of operation. The 1978 data set has value for oceanographic and climate studies especially in subpolar and polar latitudes. [NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory News]
Chemical signals from plankton affect ocean ecosystem and global climate -- Researchers from the University of California, Davis report that phytoplankton can release a chemical signal called dimethyl sulfide when consumed by grazing crustaceans, especially krill. The emitted dimethyl sulfide attracts far-ranging seabirds that help maintain a healthy ocean ecosystem, through the fertilization of the Southern Oceans with iron compounds. The dimethyl sulfide also forms atmospheric sulfur compounds promoting cloud formation and the modulation of planetary climate. [University of California, Davis News]
Wind-borne dust led to iron fertilization of Southern Ocean during Pleistocene Ice Age -- A team of researchers from Princeton University, Switzerland, Taiwan and the United Kingdom have determined that wind-borne dust with high concentrations of iron compounds was dropped into to the Southern Ocean surrounding Antarctica during the last Pleistocene Ice Age, leading to iron fertilization of these waters of the Subantarctic zone that caused plankton to thrive. The resulting plankton growth eventually led to the removal of substantial amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere during the Ice Age. [News at Princeton University]
New statistical models for ocean forecasting could increase accuracy of long-range weather and climate forecasts -- Researchers at the University of Missouri claim that their application of complex statistical models to prediction of ocean circulation patterns has increase the accuracy of ocean forecasting especially in the prediction of events such as El Niño and how the ocean plays a role in the storage of the planet's storage of heat and carbon. Using a statistical "Bayesian hierarchical model," the researchers helped improve the prediction of sea surface temperature extremes and wind fields over the ocean. They claim that the forecasts could have an effect on the prediction of major atmospheric weather events that include hurricanes and drought. [University of Missouri News Bureau]
An All-Hazards Monitor -- This Web portal provides the user information from NOAA on current environmental events that may pose as hazards such as tropical weather, drought, floods, marine weather, tsunamis, rip currents, Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) and coral bleaching. [NOAAWatch]
Earthweek -- Diary of the Planet [earthweek.com] Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Concept of the Week: Loss of Louisiana's Coast

According to the Louisiana Coastal Wetlands Conservation and Restoration Task Force, Louisiana has been losing its coastal wetlands (bayous, marshes, and swamps) to the waters of the Gulf of Mexico at an alarming rate of about 65 to 100 square km (25 to 38 square mi) per year for the past several decades. This loss adversely affects fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico and makes the coastal zone more vulnerable to storm surges such as that produced by Hurricane Katrina in August 2005. Since the early 1930s, the state's coastal wetlands have shrunk by an area equivalent to the state of Delaware. According to USGS estimates, an additional 1800 square km (700 square mi) could be lost by mid-century. The price tag for reversing this trend, restoring some marshes, and protecting the remaining 15,000 square km (5800 square mi) of wetlands could top $14 billion and take decades to complete. Many people argue that the value of Louisiana's coastal wetlands is well worth the expense.

As much as 75% of the fish and other marine life in the northern Gulf of Mexico depend on Louisiana's coastal wetlands. The wetlands are a nursery for commercially important catches of shrimp, crawfish, blue crab, and oysters. It is a food source for larger fish including yellow fin tuna, red snapper, and swordfish. In 2003, about three-quarters of the nation's fish and shellfish catch by weight came from Louisiana's waters. In addition, the wetlands are a stopover for millions of birds migrating between North and Central/South America. Furthermore, wetlands and associated barrier islands protect the ports, buildings, and other coastal zone structures from storm surges. Wetlands are particularly important in buffering the levees surrounding New Orleans, much of which is below sea level.

Many factors contribute to the loss of Louisiana's coastal wetlands. Thousands of kilometers of pipelines transporting oil and natural gas through the marshes plus the extensive network of navigation channels allow saltwater to intrude the wetlands. Increased salinity of the originally fresh or brackish waters kill wetland grasses, shrubs, and other vegetation that anchor soil in place. The canals also allow tidal currents to flow farther inland, accelerating erosion of wetland soils. The most important factor, however, is the consequence of flood control structures (levees) constructed along the banks of the Mississippi River. Levees constrict the flow of the river so that waters and suspended sediment discharge rapidly into the Gulf. Deprived of a continuous input of sediments and vegetation-supporting nutrients, existing sediments compact, wetlands subside and Gulf waters invade the wetlands. With the anticipated continued rise in sea level due to global climate change (discussed in Chapter 12 of your textbook), erosion of Louisiana's coastal wetland may accelerate in the future.

Plans to reverse the loss of Louisiana's coastal wetlands (the Coast 2005 plan and the Louisiana Coastal Area plan) seek to restore the structure and function of coastal wetlands. One proposal is to breach some levees along the lower Mississippi. This partial diversion of the Mississippi would increase the supply of sediments to the wetlands. Closing or installing locks on some navigation canals would reduce saltwater intrusion. In addition, dredged sediment would be used to re-build wetlands and restore barrier islands.

Concept of the Week: Questions

The most important factor contributing to erosion of Louisiana's coastal wetlands is [(saltwater intrusion)(levees along the banks of the Mississippi River)].
Global climate change that is accompanied by a rise in sea level is likely to [(accelerate)(have no effect on)] the rate of erosion of Louisiana's coastal wetlands.

Historical Events:

24 March 1955...The first seagoing oil drill rig (for drilling in over 100 feet of water) was placed in service by the U.S. company C.G. Glasscock Drilling Co. The rig was able to drive piles with a force of 827 tons and pull a pile with the force of 942 tons. (Today in Science History)
24 March 1989...The tanker Exxon Valdez grounded on a reef in Prince William Sound, AK, spilling 10.1 million gallons of crude oil, resulting in the worst oil spill in U.S. history. Coast Guard units responded and prevented the entire cargo from spilling, cleaned up the oil which did spill, and conducted an investigation into the causes of the accident. The spill provided the impetus for the passage of the Oil Protection Act in 1990. (US Coast Guard Historians Office)
25 March 2000...A rouge wave near Shelter Cove, CA swept a lady from a Canadian school group into the ocean. Four members of the group tried to rescue her, but were overcome by the waves and currents. A fishing vessel and the US Coast Guard rescued two of the rescuers. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
26 March 1845...Joseph Francis of New York City patented a corrugated sheet-iron lifeboat. (Today in Science History)
26 March 1946...The International Ice Patrol resumed after being suspended during World War II. (US Coast Guard Historians Office)
26-28 March 2004…The first ever confirmed hurricane in the South Atlantic Ocean, named Catarina, struck the coast of the Brazilian states of Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul with heavy rains and winds, before dissipating over land late on the 28th. (The Weather Doctor)
27 March 1513...Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon sighted Florida (and the continent of North America) for the first time, mistaking it for another island. (Wikipedia)
27 March 1827...At the age of 18, Charles Darwin submitted his first report of an original scientific discovery to the Plinian Society in Edinburgh, Scotland. Darwin had made several discoveries about the biology of tiny marine organisms found along the Scottish coast. (Today in Science History)
27 March 1899...The first international radio transmission between England and France was achieved by the Italian inventor G. Marconi.
27 March 1930...The first US radio broadcast was made from a ship at sea.
27-28 March 1964...The most powerful earthquake in US history, the Good Friday Earthquake, rocked south central Alaska, killing 125 people and causing $311 million in property damage, especially to the city of Anchorage. The earthquake in Prince William Sound, which had a magnitude of 9.2 on the Richter scale, caused some landmasses to be thrust upward locally as high as 80 feet, while elsewhere land sank as much as 8 feet. This earthquake and submarine landslides also created a tsunami that also produced extensive coastal damage. A landslide at Valdez Inlet in Alaska generated a tsunami that reached a height of 220 feet in the inlet. A major surge wave that was approximately 100 ft above low tide caused major damage to Whittier (where 13 died) and other coastal communities in Alaska. The first wave took more than 5 hours to reach the Hawaiian Islands where a 10-foot wave was detected, while a wave that was 14.8 feet above high tide level traveled along portions of the West Coast, reaching northern California 4 hours after the earthquake. Nearly 10,000 people jammed beaches at San Francisco to view the possible tsunami, but no high-amplitude waves hit those beaches. Tsunami damage reached Crescent City in northern California. Tens of thousands of aftershocks indicated that the region of faulting extended a distance of about 600 miles. The Alaska Tsunami Warning Center was established because of this disaster, with a mission to warn Alaskan communities of the threat from tsunamis. [See the 1964 Prince William Sound Tsunami page from the University of Washington.] (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar) (US Coast Guard Historians Office)
27 March 1980...Waves to 20 feet and winds to 58 mph in the North Sea southwest of Stavanger, Norway led to the collapse of an oil rig accommodation platform. The deaths of 123 of the 212 people on the platform were the world's worst drilling catastrophe. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
28 March 1848...USS Supply reached the Bay of Acre, anchoring under Mount Carmel near the village of Haifa, during expedition to explore the Dead Sea and the River Jordan. (Naval Historical Center)
28 March 1910...Henri Fabre became the first person to fly a seaplane after taking off from a water runway at Martigues near Marseilles, France. (Wikipedia)
29-31 March 1848...An ice dam at the neck of Lake Erie and the entrance to the Niagara River between Fort Erie, ON and Buffalo, NY caused by wind, waves and lake currents stopped flow of water over Niagara Falls for 30 hours, commencing during the late hours of the 29^th. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar) (The Weather Doctor)
29 March 1910...The world's largest oceanographic museum was opened in Monaco through the generosity of Prince Albert I of Monaco, a great oceanographer, statesman, and humanitarian. This museum, a part of the Oceanographic Institute, has a grandiose facade overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. (Today in Science History)
29 March 1914...The Canadian Pacific liner Empress of Ireland, which had departed Quebec the previous day for Liverpool, collided with the Norwegian collier Storstad in the fog along the St. Lawrence River, sinking with the loss of 1024 passengers and crew.
29 March 1985...The Nantucket I was decommissioned, ending 164 years of lightship service. (USCG Historian's Office)
30 March 1923...The Cunard liner Laconia arrived in New York City, becoming the first passenger ship to circumnavigate the world, a cruise of 130 days. (Today in Science History)