WEEK TEN: 4-8 April 2016

For Your Information

• Worldwide GLOBE at Night 2016 Campaign is underway -- The fourth in the series of GLOBE at Night citizen-science campaigns for 2016 will continue through Friday, 8 April. 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 (Leo in the Northern Hemisphere and Crux in the Southern Hemisphere) with the seven magnitude/star charts of progressively fainter stars. Activity guides are also available. The GLOBE at night program is intended to raise public awareness of the impact of light pollution. The next series in the 2016 campaign is scheduled for 29 April-8 May 2016. [GLOBE at Night]
• Hydrothermal vent organisms -- You are invited to read this week's Supplemental Information...In Greater Depth that describes how geoscientists have investigated the deep-sea environment in the vicinity of hydrothermal vents that form along the oceanic ridges nearly 3000 meters below the ocean surface. Interestingly, a diverse and abundant community of marine organisms has been found to live in these extreme oceanic conditions.

Ocean in the News:

• Eye on the tropics -- Tropical cyclone activity was limited to the South Indian Ocean basin last week. Tropical Storm 17S developed at the start of the week approximately 830 miles to the south-southeast of Diego Garcia. Traveling toward the south-southeast, this weak tropical storm was ripped apart by strong wind shear, becoming a remnant low within 48 hours of formation. The NASA Hurricane Page has additional information and satellite imagery on Tropical Storm 17S.
• Current El Niño and its effects on ocean life are tracked -- A 15-minute podcast is available as part of NOAA Fisheries' "On the Line" series that includes interviews in which the Director of NOAA's Southwest Fisheries Science Center in La Jolla, CA and the Director of the Northwest Fisheries Science Center in Seattle, WA describe the current El Niño and how this event is affecting life in the ocean. [NOAA Fisheries Podcasts]
• Extent of Arctic's winter sea ice is smallest on record -- The National Snow and Ice Date Center (NSIDC) recently reported that on 24 March 2016 the Arctic sea ice extent had reached its annual maximum extent of 5.607 million square miles for the winter of 2015/16. NSIDC has declared this winter's maximum extent to represent a new record for smallest size in the satellite record that started in 1979, slightly smaller than the previous record minimum set during the 2014/15 winter. One of the biggest drivers of record-low minimum extent has been judged to be the onset of springtime melt. The occurrence of this year's maximum-extent date for Arctic sea ice is approximately 10 days later than normal. [NOAA Climate.gov News]
• Coast guard from US and Canada prepare for possible cruise ship catastrophe in Northwest Passage -- In anticipation of the scheduled maiden voyage of the luxury cruise ship Crystal Serenity from Seward, AK through the Bering Strait and the Northwest Passage before reaching New York City in August, coast guard officials from the US and Canada are planning for a possible cruise ship catastrophe in these remote waters on 13 April. The Crystal Serenity is expected to have 1700 passengers and crew on its 32-day voyage. Melting sea ice in the Arctic sea ice has led to more cruise ship activity in the regional waters. Ironically, this training is scheduled to take place a day before the 104th-anniversary of the tragic sinking of the SS Titanic following a collision with an iceberg on its maiden voyage. [The Guardian News]
• Sea Grant Program celebrates 50th anniversary -- NOAA's National Sea Grant College program, a network of 33 programs based at top universities in every coastal and Great Lakes state, Puerto Rico, and Guam, is celebrating its formation following President Lyndon Johnson's signing of the National Sea Grant College and Program Act in March 1966. In honor of its 50th anniversary, Sea Grant is organizing a year of outreach efforts to highlight how the program has successfully been "putting science to work for America's coastal communities." [NOAA Sea Grant 50th Anniversary News]
• New web tools examine predator-prey relationships and ecosystem trends in Alaska -- NOAA Fisheries' Alaska Fisheries Science Center has recently made available two new web tools that use data collected from the stomachs of Pacific cod in the waters of the Bering Sea and around the Aleutian Islands. The goal is to obtain information on cod, which are predators of octopus. The predator-prey relationship and ecosystem trends in these waters can be examined using these web tools. [NOAA Fisheries Alaska Fisheries Science Center News]
• Scientific examination of how oil spills may affect whale baleen resumes -- Scientists with NOAA's Office of Response and Restoration and other research centers conducted a series of three-week long experiments last fall and winter designed to investigate the potential impacts of oil and dispersants on whale baleen. (Whale baleen is a filter-feeder system inside the mouths of several species of whales.) The researchers conducted their trials in a 2.6 million-gallon saltwater tank at Ohmsett, a national oil spill research facility along the New Jersey coast. These experiments represent the first since a few studies that were conducted in the 1980s. [NOAA Office of Response and Restoration]
• Methods for improving "red tide" forecasts found -- Marine scientists at the University of South Florida and their colleagues claim that thy have identified reasons why the harmful algal bloom (HAB) or "red tide" is worse in some years than in others in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico off the west coast of Florida. One of the factors that appears to be responsible is the Gulf of Mexico Loop Current that can bring new nutrients onto the West Florida Continental Shelf when the current interacts with the shelf near the Dry Tortugas. Tracking the position of the current could help improve the forecasts of the HAB along the Florida coast. [University of South Florida Research News]
• Comparing the "Blob" with previous "marine heatwaves" -- Scientists from the University of Washington compared the size and magnitude of the large patch of warm water dubbed the "Blob" by the Washington State Climatologist that resided in the North Pacific off the Pacific Northwest coast from 2013 to 2015 with other similar "marine heatwave" features in the North Pacific and North Atlantic Oceans since 1950. Claiming that these marine heatwaves are analogous to atmospheric heatwaves, they found that their analysis of ocean surface temperatures since 1950 indicates the number of marine heatwaves in these two ocean basins have occurred regularly, but have become more common since the 1970s, as global temperatures have increased. However, they also note that the larger, more intense and longer-lasting a marine heatwave is, the less frequently it will occur. [University of Washington News]
• Most severe bleaching of Great Barrier Reef is documented -- After a variety of surveys made from aircraft and ships, members of Australia's National Coral Bleaching Taskforce have concluded that the current coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef is the worst, mass bleaching event in its history, with the overwhelming majority of reefs being ranked in the most severe bleaching category. This coral bleaching has been the result of elevated ocean temperatures. [ARC Centre of Excellence Coral Reef Studies Media Release]
• An All-Hazards Monitor -- This Web portal provides the user information from NOAA's National Weather Service, FAA and FEMA on current environmental events that may pose as hazards such as tropical weather, fire weather, marine weather, severe weather, drought and floods. [NOAA/NWS Daily Briefing]
• Earthweek -- Diary of the Planet [earthweek.com]

Concept of the Week: Solving the Mystery of Seamount Ecosystems

The United States Commission on Ocean Policy reports that less than 5% of the ocean floor has been explored. This is beginning to change as scientists and engineers develop and apply new technologies to investigate deep ocean waters and the sea bottom (refer to Chapter 13 in your DataStreme Ocean textbook). Consider, for example, the effort to obtain a better understanding of seamount ecosystems.

A seamount is a submarine mountain of volcanic origin (now extinct) that rises more than 1000 m (3300 ft) above the ocean floor. Usually a seamount summit is 1000 to 2000 m (3300 to 6600 ft) below sea level. They occur as isolated peaks, chains (e.g., Emperor Seamounts in the North Pacific; New England chain in the North Atlantic), or clusters. The term "seamount" was first applied in 1936 to the Davidson Seamount located off the coast of Southern California. Scientists estimate that perhaps 30,000 dot the ocean floor with as many as two-thirds located on the Pacific Ocean bottom. However, fewer than one thousand seamounts have been named and only a handful of seamounts has received detailed scientific study.

In recent years, discovery of unique life forms on seamounts has spurred scientific interest in seamount ecosystems. Many nations, including the United States, Australia, and New Zealand, are supporting scientific cruises to observe and collect specimens from seamount ecosystems. Seamount ecosystems are unusually productive and are home to unique species. Some seamount surveys have found that certain seamount species are endemic, that is, they live on only one seamount or a few nearby peaks. For example, up to one-third of all species living on some seamounts off New Caledonia are endemic while up to half of the invertebrates and fish on the Nazca seamount off Chile are endemic. In the northeast Pacific, large-scale eddies may transport larval fish from coastal environments to isolated seamounts located out at sea. Furthermore, some scientists argue that seamounts may function as stepping stones that allow for migration of species over lengthy periods--perhaps over millions of years. In addition, some seamounts may serve as aids to navigation for fish that migrate over long distances. For example, hammerhead sharks may use the magnetic field surrounding seamounts to find their way.

The recent effort to survey and explore seamount ecosystems has reached new urgency with the realization of the devastating impact of commercial fish trawlers on those ecosystems. In some cases, trawling has striped off most marine life (e.g., coral gardens) from the surface of seamounts leaving behind mostly bare rock. Typically, trawled seamounts have only half the biomass and considerably fewer species than undisturbed seamounts. Scientists anticipate that a better understanding of seamount ecosystems will help make the case for their conservation and inform the most effective strategies for their protection. Australia is one of the first nations to protect seamount ecosystems, establishing the Tasmanian Seamount Marine Reserve in 1999. The reserve covers 370 square km (140 square mi) and includes more than a dozen seamounts.

Concept of the Week: Questions

1. Seamounts are extinct submarine volcanoes that occur primarily in the [(Atlantic) (Pacific)(Southern)] Ocean.
2. Commercial fish trawling has [(little if any)(a devastating)] impact on seamount ecosystems.

Historical Events:

• 4 April 1581...The famous English navigator, Francis Drake, completed his circumnavigation of the world (1577 to 1580) and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth I. (Wikipedia).
• 6 April 1894...President Grover Cleveland authorized enforcement of the Paris Award concerning the preservation of fur seals in Alaska. (USCG Historian's Office)
• 6 April 1909...The American explorer, Commander Robert E. Peary, USN, along with assistant Matthew Henson, and four Eskimos reported reaching the geographic North Pole; however, navigational errors may have meant that they were a few miles away from the exact pole. (Naval Historical Center) (The History Channel)
• 6 April 1913...USRC Seneca, a derelict destroyer (whose mission was to locate and destroy abandoned wrecks that were still afloat and a menace to navigation), inaugurated the Revenue Cutter Service's participation in the International Ice Patrol. (USCG Historian's Office)
• 8-10 April 1958...A global 48-hr precipitation record was established at Aurere, La Reunion Island, when 97.1 in. of rain from a tropical cyclone fell on the Indian Ocean island. (The Weather Doctor)
• 8-14 April 1984...Intense Tropical Cyclone Kaimsy crossed and re-crossed the northern portion of Madagascar. Winds exceeding 112 mph destroyed 80 percent of Antseranana and Mahajanga. Rainfall from this system totaled 27.99 in. Eighty-two people were killed and 100,000 were made homeless. Damage was greater than 150 million US dollars. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar) (The Weather Doctor)
• 9 April 1770...The English explorer Captain James Cook discovered Botany Bay on the Australian continent.
• 10 April 1877...The first of two great coastal storms struck the Virginia and North Carolina coasts. The Oregon Inlet was widened by three-quarters of a mile. The "entire topography of country is materially altered," according to a description of the altering of sand dunes at Cape Hatteras, NC. (Intellicast)
• 10 April 1998...Northeast winds at 40 mph on the 9^th and 10^th combined with high levels of Lake Erie produced waves to 14 ft along the lakeshore in Ottawa and Sandusky Counties in Ohio. Much damage resulted, along with the destruction of 10 houses. Bulldozers were needed to clear the debris from roads. Downtown Port Clinton streets were flooded. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)

Return to DataStreme Ocean's RealTime Ocean Portal

Prepared by DS Ocean Central Staff and Edward J. Hopkins, Ph.D.,
email hopkins@aos.wisc.edu
© Copyright, 2016, The American Meteorological Society.