WEEKLY OCEAN NEWS

18-22 July 2016

DataStreme Ocean will return for Fall 2016 with new Investigations files starting during Preview Week, Monday, 22 August 2016. All the current online website products will continue to be available throughout the summer break period.

Items of Interest:

• Hurricane awareness week in New England -- During week of 18-22 July 2016, several coastal New England states will observe Southern New England Hurricane Awareness Week.
• Zenithal Sun -- Residents of Hawaii's Big Island will experience a noontime sun that would be directly overhead during this week (22-23 July). This occurrence of a zenithal sun is one of the two times during the year when the noontime sun is directly overhead to residents of Hilo and elsewhere on the Big Island. The other time when the Big Island experienced a zenithal sun was in mid May [US Naval Observatory, Data Services]
• Rare "lunar photobomb" captured by NASA's DSCOVR spacecraft -- During a nearly three and one-half hour span during the late night hours of 4 July and the early morning of 5 July 2016, the EPIC (Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera) instrument onboard NASA's Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) spacecraft captured natural-color images of the "far side" of the Moon as it passed between the sunlit Earth and the DSCOVR satellite orbiting approximately one million miles from Earth around the sun-Earth first Lagrange point. This photobomb, or the unexpected appearance of an unintended object into the camera's field of view, was captured only one other time (on 16 July 2015) [NASA Goddard Space Flight Center]

Ocean in the News:

• Eye on the Tropics -- During the last week, tropical cyclone activity was limited to the North Pacific Ocean basin during the last week:
• In the eastern North Pacific basin, Hurricane Celia strengthen to become a category 2 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Scale as it traveled to the west and west-northwest during the first half of last week. Weakening to a tropical storm on Wednesday, Celia continued westward and entered the Central Pacific basin early Friday as it crossed the 140-degree West meridian of longitude, which marks the boundary between eastern and central North Pacific basins. As of Sunday morning (Hawaiian Standard Time), the remnant low of former Hurricane Celia was located approximately 440 miles to the east-northeast of Honolulu, HI. This remnant low was expected to dissipate by early this week. The NASA Hurricane Page has additional information and satellite imagery on Hurricane Celia.
  Early last week a tropical depression formed nearly 300 miles off Manzanillo on the western coast of Mexico, before strengthening into Tropical Storm Darby by midweek as it traveled generally westward. By Wednesday afternoon, Darby had intensified to become the third hurricane of 2016 in the eastern Pacific. During the later part of the week Hurricane Darby slowly intensified before unexpectedly strengthening to a major category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Scale on Saturday afternoon. By Sunday afternoon Darby had weakened to a category 1 hurricane as it was located approximately 1200 miles to the west-southwest of Cabo San Lucas at the southern tip of Mexico's Baja California Peninsula. For additional information on Hurricane Darby along with satellite imagery, consult the NASA Hurricane Page.
  Last Friday morning Tropical Depression 6E formed approximately 370 miles off Manzanillo, Mexico and then intensified to become the fifth named tropical cyclone, Tropical Storm Estelle, by Friday evening. Over the weekend, Estelle strengthened slowly as it continued its travels toward the west-northwest. As of Sunday afternoon, Tropical Storm Estelle was located approximately miles to the southwest of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico as it was forecast to become the fourth eastern Pacific hurricane of the year by early Monday. A satellite image of Tropical Depression 6E (before becoming Tropical Storm Estelle) along with additional information is available on the NASA Hurricane Page.
  
• In the western North Pacific Ocean basin, Tropical Depression 3 formed late Sunday (local time) over the waters of the East China Sea several hundred miles to the east-southeast of Taiwan. This system was relatively short lived as it traveled to the north-northwest and began dissipating by early Monday approximately 350 miles to the south-southeast of Okinawa.
• La Niña watch continues -- ENSO (El Niño/Southern Oscillation)-neutral conditions were observed during June 2016 as sea surface temperatures (SST) across central and eastern sections of the equatorial Pacific were at near or below-average levels. In addition, atmospheric conditions across the tropical Pacific also suggested ENSO-neutral conditions where neither El Niño or La Niña conditions are found. Many of the predictive models used by forecasters with NOAA's Climate Prediction Center (CPC) and the International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI) indicate that La Niña conditions are favored to develop during August -October 2016, with about a 55 -60 percent chance of La Niña during the Northern Hemisphere's fall and winter 2016-17. Therefore, the forecasters continued their La Niña watch as of late last week. A detailed El Niño/Southern Oscillation Diagnostic Discussion with supporting maps and charts is available from CPC.
  One of the researchers with IRI has posted an easy to read blog describing the current ENSO-neutral conditions and providing some insight as to the possible development of La Niña conditions later this year. [NOAA ClimateWatch Magazine]
• Unmanned systems help transform earth science -- NOAA scientists and their colleagues in other research institutions are using remotely controlled unmanned aircraft and watercraft to collect large quantities of observational data from the nation's wildlands and waterways, which then can be used to 1.) track changes in the Arctic on the high seas; 2.) check whale health from the air and 3.) map marshes where humans should not venture. [NOAA News]
• An observing network for North American Great Lakes is certified -- During the last month, NOAA certified the Great Lakes Observing System (GLOS) as a Regional Information Coordinating Entity, which signifies that this observing network is collecting and making real-time and historical environmental and ecological data publicly available according to internationally approved high standards. GLOS is the regional association for the Great Lakes observing network for collecting data from a network of federal, state, academic and private institutions as part of the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS®). The "GLOS Data Portal" provides weather and lake data, such as dissolved oxygen and turbidity, from point surface observations and satellite observations. Model forecasts for lake levels, waves and ice thickness are also available. [NOAA National Ocean Service News]
• Algae blooms in Lake Erie monitored by citizen scientists -- A group of general aviation (GA) pilots functioning as volunteer citizen scientists have been assisting a senior scientist at NASA's Glenn Research Center by monitoring water quality along Lake Erie's coastline and interior waterways in northern Ohio and southeastern Michigan, which can be used to alert lakeshore communities in these two states of ensuing algal bloom along the coast waters.. Images obtained from GPS-enabled cameras mounted on the undersides of the pilots' aircraft are posted on a website maintained by Cleveland State University. [NASA Glenn Research Center News]
• Efforts of whale entanglement response teams are highlighted -- NOAA Fisheries recently posted a feature story describing the valiant efforts made by whale entanglement response teams associated with the NOAA Fisheries National Entanglement Response Program and their state and local partners. These teams that are situated along the nation's coasts help whales escape the fishing gear and nets that entangle them in a potentially life-threatening grip. [NOAA Fisheries Feature Stories]
• Report on national deep sea coral research program released -- NOAA Fisheries recently released a new 62-page Congressional report entitled "Deep Sea Coral Research and Technology Program: 2016 Report to Congress" in which the scientific research and management efforts of deep-sea coral habitats conducted by the agency are highlighted. The report covers the U.S. regions of Alaska, the continental West Coast, Pacific Islands, the Southeast, and the Northeast. [NOAA Habitat Conservation]
• Springtime Arctic clouds can play a role in determining autumnal sea ice extent -- Using surface-based observed surface radiative fluxes and the derived cloud radiative forcing (CRF) from Barrow, AK between 1993 and 2014, researchers from the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory (ESRL) and Science and Technology Corporation (STC) have found that clouds in spring appear to be an important factor in predetermining autumn sea ice concentrations. In low sea ice years enhanced positive CRF (increased cloud cover enhancing long wave forcing) in April is followed by decreased negative CRF (decreased cloud cover allowing a relative increase in shortwave forcing) in May and June. The opposite is true in high sea ice years. [NOAA Climate Program Office News]
• NOAA Administrator addresses the need to tackle America's water challenges with science -- Dr. Kathryn Sullivan, the NOAA Administrator, wrote a blog early last week addressing the state of the nation's water supply, especially in light of the occurrence of extreme weather events. She identified several future water challenges that include dangerous flooding, rising sea levels, punishing drought and algae outbreaks. [NOAA News]
• 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]

• 18 July 1986...Videotapes, taken by the deep-sea Alvin submersible, showing SS Titanic's remains were released. Looking like huge stalagmites, rusticles ("rust icicles") are a byproduct of the bacteria slowly converting the iron in the hull. The colony of iron-eating bacteria flourishes in the anaerobic (without oxygen) environment inside the hollow multi-layered rusticles while on the outside, porous layers support oxygen-dependent bacteria. In this eerie way, there is still life on the Titanic as the ship lies deep on the ocean floor. (Today in Science History)
• 18-19 July 1979...A 30-foot high tsunami wave leveled four Indonesian villages on the Sunda Islands during the night. The wave swept 1500 feet inland, causing 589 deaths among the sleeping villagers. A landslide from Mount Werung (Lomblen Island) caused the tsunami. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 18-22 July 1997...Hurricane Danny, the only hurricane that made landfall in the continental US in 1997, moved inland into coastal Alabama at a snails pace. Radar storm total estimates of 43 inches over Mobile Bay. A torrential 32.52 inches of rain fell on 19-20 July at Dauphin Island Sea Lab, establishing a 24-hour maximum precipitation record for Alabama. (NCDC) (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 19 July 1843...The first all-metal liner, the SS Great Britain, was launched from Bristol, England. Designed by I. K. Brunel, the SS Great Britain was the first of the great steamships. She was the world's first screw-propeller driven (and first iron-hulled) steamship to cross the Atlantic (1845). The six-masted, single-screw, 3,270-ton vessel is 322 feet in length overall and carried a crew of 130 including 30 stewards for her 360-seat dining room. As the world's biggest ship of the time, she embarked on a varied career, first as a luxury liner carrying passengers to New York and Melbourne, then as a ferry carrying troops to the Crimea and India, and finally as a cargo ship, before being abandoned in the Falkland Islands in 1886. She was brought back to Bristol on this day in 1970, where she is now being restored by volunteers to her original appearance at the Great Western Dock in which she was built. (Today in Science History)
• 19 July 1886...A hurricane from the Gulf of Mexico crossed Florida causing great damage from Cedar Keys to Jacksonville. This was the third hurricane in one month to cross the Florida peninsula. (David Ludlum) (Intellicast)
• 19 July 1897...LT Robert E. Peary, USN, departed on a year long Arctic Expedition that made many important discoveries, including one of largest meteorites, Cape York. (Naval Historical Center)
• 19 July 1994...Hurricane Emilia was the first of three Category-5 hurricanes to develop in the Central Pacific in 1994 as unusually warm sea temperatures prevailed south of Hawaii. Sustained winds reached 160 mph. (Intellicast)
• 20 July 1964...Four Navy divers entered Project SEALAB I capsule moored 192 feet on the ocean floor off Bermuda for an 11-day experiment. On the 22^nd they submerged and then surfaced on 31 July 1964. (Naval Historical Center)
• 20 July 1985...Treasure hunters found the Spanish galleon Nuestra Senora de Atocha, which sank approximately 40 miles off the coast of Key West, FL, in 1622 during a hurricane. The ship contained over $400 million in coins and silver ingots. (InfoPlease.com)
• 22 July 1986...Hurricane Estelle passed 120 miles south of the Hawaiian Islands creating a ten to twenty-foot surf. The large swells resulted from a combination of high tides, a full moon, and 50-mph winds. The hurricane also deluged Oahu Island with as much as 6.86 inches of rain on the 24th and 25th of the month. (Storm Data)
• 22-23 July 1996...A strong storm system centered south of Tahiti in the South Pacific was responsible for eight-foot surf along the south shores of Hawaii's Oahu Island. Water safety personnel rescued 95 people from the high surf. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 23 July 1715...Boston Light, the first lighthouse in America was authorized by the Boston Light Bill for construction at Little Brewster Island, MA. This light, located on Little Brewster Island to mark the entrance to Boston harbor, has guided ships since its lantern was first lighted just before sunset, on 14 Sep 1716. In the 1600s, treacherous rocks caused countless loss of lives. False signal fires lit in the wrong places by "wreckers" lured ships aground to plunder. Boston Light was blown up by the British in 1776, but rebuilt in 1783 by Governor John Hancock. The lighthouse was also the last remaining staffed station in the U.S. (Today in Science History)
• 23 July 1788...A weather diary kept by George Washington recorded that the center of a hurricane passed directly over his Mount Vernon home. The hurricane crossed eastern North Carolina and Virginia before moving into the Central Appalachians. Norfolk, VA reported houses destroyed, trees uprooted, and crops leveled to the ground. (David Ludlum)
• 23 July 1958...USS Nautilus (SSN-571) departed Pearl Harbor, Hawaii for the first submerged transit of the North Pole. (Naval Historical Center)
• 23 July 1982...The International Whaling Commission decided to end commercial whaling by 1985-86. (Wikipedia)
• 24 July 1609...A fleet of ships carrying colonists to the New World met with a hurricane near Bermuda, resulting in much loss of property but little loss of life. (Northern Indiana NWSFO)
• 24-25 July 1979...Claudette, a weak tropical storm, deluged southeastern Texas with torrential rains. The Houston suburb of Alvin received 43.00 inches, a 24-hour precipitation record for not only the Lone Star State, but for the U.S. Freeport reported a total of 30 inches. Total damage from flooding was over $400 million. On the 27^th, a van loaded with people on their way to a church camp stopped on Texas Highway 7 due to a flooded bridge just west of Centerville. A truck rammed the van, pushing it into the flooded creek, resulting in five people drowning. (Intellicast) (David Ludlum) (NCDC) (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 24-26 July 1996...Although thousands of miles from southern California, an intense South Pacific storm south of Tahiti produced seven to ten foot surf with some sets up to 12 feet along the southern California coast. Lifeguards participated in more than 500 rescues along the beaches. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)

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