WEEKLY OCEAN NEWS

5-9 June 2017

DataStreme Ocean will return for Fall 2017 with new Investigations files starting during Preview Week, Monday, 21 August 2017. All the current online website products will continue to be available throughout the summer break period.

Items of Interest:

Celebrating National Ocean Month -- A Presidential Proclamation has designated June 2017 as National Ocean Month. NOAA's National Ocean Service has a web portal that provides links to a variety of websites containing facts, images and video designed to highlight both the beauty and importance of the nation's oceans and marine environment. [NOAA National Ocean Service]
World Environment Day -- This Monday, 5 June 2017, is World Environment Day (WED), a day that has been created by the United Nations in an effort to stimulate worldwide awareness of the environment and to enhance political attention and action. This observance was established initially by the UN General Assembly in 1972 to mark the opening of the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment. Various activities are being planned. (last year) This year's theme for World Environment Day is "Connecting People to Nature – in the city and on the land, from the poles to the equator." The host country is Canada. [World Environment Day]
See also http://www.greeningtheblue.org/event/world-environment-day
World Ocean Day is celebrated -- World Ocean Day or a "Celebration of the Sea" will be celebrated Thursday, 8 June 2017 in an effort to increase public awareness and to foster public involvement in the management of the ocean and its resources. Although this date was created at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, it had not been officially recognized by the United Nations until 2009. This year's theme is Our oceans, our future planet. The main conservation focus will be on plastic pollution prevention and cleaning the ocean of marine litter. A partial listing is provided for events across the US and other nations that will celebrate World Ocean Day. [The Ocean Project]
Early Sunrise -- Within the next week, many locations in the continental United States will experienced the date of earliest sunrise. While the longest daylight at each locale in the Northern Hemisphere will occur in over two weeks on the summer solstice (early Wednesday, 21 June 2017), the occurrence of earliest local sunrise occurs before this date because the apparent sun now "leads" the clock time. This time discrepancy, which now amounts to approximately 2 minutes, occurs because of a combination of factors that result from the earth moving more slowly in its elliptical orbit because the earth presently is near its farthest point from the sun (aphelion on 3 July 2017) and the effect of the tilt of the earth's spin axis (near the summer solstice). For reference, the latest sunsets of the year will occur later in June as the apparent sun slows and by the first week of July "lags" clock time by about 4 minutes.
National atmospheric research consortium issues statement on US withdrawal from Paris Climate Agreement -- Antonio J. Busalacchi, the president of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR), issued a statement last week in the wake of President Donald Trump's announcement that the US would withdraw from the Paris Climate Accord. In his news release, Dr. Busalacchi argued that research into climate change is more vital than ever. UCAR is a nonprofit consortium of 110 colleges and universities throughout the US and Canada providing research and training in the atmospheric and related Earth system sciences. [UCAR/NCAR AtmosNews]
An AMS Policy Statement issued on water resources in 21st century -- Claiming that "provision of adequate fresh-water resources for people and ecosystems will be one of the most critical and potentially contentious issues facing society and governments at all levels during the 21st century," the American Meteorological Society (AMS) has issued a policy statement designed to show its commitment to work with public, commercial and academic organizations at all levels, and to seek the support of national political leaders and international partners in pursuing sustainable solutions to the maintenance of water security. [AMS Policy Statement]
Orbiting solar observatory witnesses partial solar eclipse in space -- Instruments onboard NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) recorded a partial solar eclipse of the Sun on 25 May 2017 when the Moon passed in front of the Sun. During the lunar transit, which lasted for approximately one hour, the Moon covered approximately 89 percent of the Sun. (Note: On 21 August 2017, a total solar eclipse will be visible on Earth, with the path of the eclipse running from Oregon to South Carolina. However, SDO will only experience a partial eclipse of the Moon. EJH) [NASA Feature]
"Stories from the Blue" features boat captain in National Marine Sanctuary in American Samoa -- Peter Taliva'a, a boat captain for the National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa, is featured in the monthly series called "Stories from the Blue" that is produced by NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries. [NOAA National Marine Sanctuaries News]

Ocean in the News:

Eye on the tropics --- Tropical cyclones were found in the North Indian Ocean and eastern North Pacific Ocean basins during the last week:

In the North Indian Ocean basin, Tropical Cyclone 2B, which became Cyclone Mora as it traveled toward the north-northeast across the northern Bay of Bengal over the previous weekend, intensified to become a category 1 tropical cyclone as it approached the coast of Bangladesh at the start of last week. Cyclone Mora made landfall near Chittagong, Bangladesh by the midpoint of last week. Once onshore, Mora rapidly weakened and then dissipated within 24 hours of making landfall. Torrential rain, strong winds and a storm surge accompanied Mora. As many as nine people were killed by falling trees in Bangladesh. Additional information and satellite images associated with Cyclone Mora are available on the NASA Hurricane Page.
In the eastern North Pacific basin, a tropical depression, identified as Tropical Depression 2E (TD2E) formed early Wednesday morning approximately 250 miles to the southeast of Acapulco, Mexico. Traveling to the north-northeast toward the coast of Mexico, TD2E strengthened to become Tropical Storm Beatriz on Thursday afternoon. Beatriz was the second named tropical cyclone of 2017 in the eastern North Pacific basin. As of late Thursday evening, Tropical Storm Beatriz made landfall approximately 20 miles north of Puerto Angel, Mexico. Within the next 12 hours, Beatriz weakened to a tropical depression and then to a remnant low as it traveled farther inland. However, torrential rainfall accompanying Beatriz was producing flash flooding in southern Mexico. As many as five fatalities were reported in Mexico due to Beatriz. (Reuters) Consult the NASA Hurricane Page for satellite images and additional information on Tropical Storm Beatriz.

Atlantic hurricane season outlook is updated -- At the start of June, Philip Klotzbach and fellow hurricane forecasters at Colorado State University, issued their updated June forecast for the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season that contained changes to their April forecast. They increased their outlook for the number of named tropical cyclones (hurricanes and tropical storms with sustained surface winds of at least 39 mph) from 11 in their April outlook to 13 in June and the number of hurricanes (maximum sustained winds of 74 mph or higher) from four to six. The number of anticipated major hurricanes (category 3 or higher on the Saffir-Simpson Scale) would remain at two. This update effectively changes the anticipation from slightly-below average activity to near average activity for the season. A near-average probability for major hurricanes making landfall along the United States coastline and in the Caribbean is also anticipated. This change in their outlook is due to indication that the odds of a significant El Niño in 2017 have diminished slightly and that portions of the tropical Atlantic have anomalously warmed over the past two months. [The Tropical Storm Project]
One week ago, scientists with NOAA's Climate Prediction Center released their outlook for the Atlantic hurricane season that indicates a 45 percent chance of an above-normal season, a 35 percent chance of a near-normal season, and only a 20 percent chance of a below-normal season in 2017. They foresee 11 to 17 named tropical cyclones, including five to nine of these tropical cyclones becoming hurricanes. As many as four of these hurricanes could become major hurricanes. [NOAA News]
A meteorologist with NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center wrote an article for the ClimateWatch Magazine that examines some of the background information that his fellow forecasters used to make their 2017 hurricane season outlook for the North Atlantic. [NOAA Climate.gov News]
Forecasters at the United Kingdom's Meteorological Office have recently produced their own forecast of the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season, suggesting a season with slightly above normal activity. These forecasters predict that a 70 percent chance that 10 to 16 named tropical cyclones forming, with a most likely value of 13. The forecasters feel that between six and ten hurricanes could form, with eight being the most likely value, which is one two the long-term average number. They base their estimates on the Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE) index, which measures the number of storms and their combined strength. Tropical Storm Arlene, which occurred in April 2017, is not included in this prediction as it formed outside the therefore outside the forecast period (June-November).
New radar unit tested near the atmosphere-ocean interface -- NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory has developed a new airborne radar instrument called "DopplerScat" that is capable of simultaneously measuring ocean currents and winds near the atmosphere-ocean interface. DopplerScat is a spinning radar that "pings" the ocean's surface, allowing it to take measurements from multiple directions at the same time. A scatterometer detects the reflection of the radar signal from the ocean's surface, with the amount of backscattered signal used to calculated wind speed and direction. Recently, DopplerScatt was used in a scientific research project off the US Gulf Coast called the Submesoscale Processes and Lagrangian Analysis on the Shelf (SPLASH) campaign, which was focused on tracking oil spillage and leaks. [NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory News]
Upgraded NOAA's "Adopt a Drifter" website is launched -- The NOAA Climate Program Office's Ocean Observing and Monitoring Division recently updated the website for its "Adopt-a-Drifter Program," which is designed to get K-16 teachers and students from the US and abroad to engage in activities and communication about ocean climate science. To participate in the program, NOAA invites a school, aquarium, museum, or other educational institution from the US to partner with a school or educational institution abroad to mutually adopt an instrumented drifting buoy (drifter) that will be launched from a ship at sea. [NOAA Climate Program Office News]
Early season projection of harmful algal bloom on Lake Erie -- Researchers from NOAA's National Ocean Service (NOS) and National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) along with the National Center for Water Quality Research at Ohio's Heidelberg University recently released their early season projection of the occurrence of harmful algal bloom especially on western Lake Erie. Although the discharge and bioavailable phosphorus loadings from the Maumee River were relatively low in March and April, heavy May rains across the watershed resulted in large phosphorus loads from the Maumee River have created a total spring load that now exceeds some of the loads of previous mild bloom years in the lake. The final seasonal forecast will be made by the research team in early July. [NOAA NCCOS News]
The federal flood insurance program is being drowned by rising seas and coastal storms -- An article published by Yale University's School of Forestry & Environmental Studies describes how sea level rise and more severe coastal storms, such as tropical cyclones and midlatitude winter storms, are causing major coastal flooding that is overwhelming the nations coastal communities, causing billions of dollars in damage and ultimately bankrupting the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). However, rebuilding occurs in many of these communities following coastal flooding events, despite the warnings from experts that even more properties will soon be underwater from projected increased sea level and more coastal storms. [Yale University Features]
Improving the forecasts "in the gap between weather and climate" -- A research scientist at Colorado State University wrote a guest article for the ClimateWatch Magazine in which she describes her NOAA-funded research into improving forecasting of the state of the atmosphere at lead times ranging from two weeks to two months, or "in the gap between weather and climate." She notes that for relatively short lead times of less than one week, a knowledge of the initial state of the atmosphere is most important, but extending the lead time to between one and four weeks, knowledge of such properties of the land surface as soil moisture, snow cover and vegetation becomes important, while at lead times beyond one month, the ocean state that includes sea surface temperature variations associated with El Niño becomes the main determinant of future climate conditions. [NOAA News]
New study casts new light on future of a key Antarctic glacier --Scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the University of California at Irvine have conducted an experiment using a coupled model that employs two separate computer models, one that simulates the Antarctic ice sheet and the other that models the Southern Ocean, in an interactive way. The scientists found that the melt rate of West Antarctica's Thwaites Glacier appears to be not quite as rapid as previous studies have indicated. Data from NASA's Operation Icebridge and other airborne and satellite observations were used in the numerical model simulations and as a verification check of the model's output statistics. [NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory 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]

Historical Events:

5 June 2001...Though Tropical Storm Allison barely reached tropical storm status, the very slow movement of the storm along the Texas coast resulted in incredible amounts of rain. Over 40 inches of rain fell near Houston, and two feet of rain drenched southern Louisiana. It was the nation's costliest tropical storm to date. (National Weather Service files)
6 June 1882...More than 100,000 inhabitants of Bombay, India were killed as a tropical cyclone that developed over the Arabian Sea pushed huge waves into the harbor. (Wikipedia)
7 June 1914...The first vessel, the Alliance, passed through the Panama Canal. The 51-mile long canal, which links the Pacific and the Atlantic Oceans across the isthmus of Panama, was officially opened on 15 August 1914. (Today in Science History) (Wikipedia)
7 June 1924...The Oil Pollution Act was passed. It was enforced by the Coast Guard.
Protection of halibut in the North Pacific Ocean was placed under Bureau of Fisheries (Coast Guard- enforced since 1926). (USCG Historian's Office)
7 June 1972...Richmond, VA experienced its worst flood of record as rains from Hurricane Agnes pushed the water level at the city locks to a height of 36.5 feet, easily topping the previous record of thirty feet set in 1771. (The Weather Channel)
7-10 June 2001...Tropical Storm Allison made landfall along the Texas Gulf Coast near Galveston early on the 6^th and drifted northward before becoming stationary as a depression later in the day near Lufkin. Later, it began to drift back southward, moving offshore over the Gulf late on the 9^th at nearly the same place as it had made landfall. Allison caused disastrous flooding across the Upper Texas Gulf Coast, especially in the Houston area where a storm total of 36.99 inches fell at Port Houston. Twenty-three people lost their lives in Texas. Damage in the region amounted to $5 billion, which included 45,000 homes, 70,000 vehicles and 2000 businesses. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
8 June 1937...Observation of the total eclipse of the sun was made by a U.S. Navy detachment commanded by Captain J. F. Hellweg, USN, which was participating in the National Geographic Society - United States Navy Eclipse Expedition at Canton Island in the Phoenix Islands, Pacific Ocean. USS Avocet was assigned to this expedition. (Naval Historical Center)
8-9 June 1990...The Norwegian tanker Mega Borg released 5.1 million gallons of oil some 60 nautical miles south-southeast of Galveston, TX, the result of an explosion and subsequent fire in the pump room. Two crew members were killed. Coast Guard units fought the resulting fires and recovered spilled oil. (Information Please) (USCG Historian's Office)
8 June 1992...The first World Ocean Day was celebrated, coinciding with the Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Wikipedia)
9 June 1534...The French navigator Jacques Cartier became the first European explorer to discover the river that he named the St. Lawrence in present-day Quebec, Canada. (The History Channel)
9 June 1966...Hurricane Alma made landfall over the eastern Florida Panhandle near Alligator Point during the evening-- the earliest land-falling hurricane on the U.S. mainland on record. Peak sustained winds were near 90 mph. Highest winds reached 125 mph and lowest pressure 970.2 millibars (28.65 inches of mercury) were reported at the Dry Tortugas on the 8th. (Intellicast) (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
9 June 1990...San Diego, CA set a new record rainfall amount on this date, as 0.38 inches of rain fell breaking the old record of 0.13 inches established in 1892. Moisture from the remains of Hurricane Boris was responsible for this rare rain event. (Intellicast)
10 June 1909...The International Distress Call (SOS distress signal) was used for the first time in an emergency. The Cunard liner SS Slavonia used the signal when it wrecked off the Azores. Two steamers received her signals and went to the rescue.
11 June 1644...The Florentine scientist, Evangelista Torricelli described in a letter the invention of a barometer, or "torricellian tube." (Today in Science History)
11 June 1764...The Sandy Hook Lighthouse, at the south point of the entrance to New York Harbor, was first lighted. Today, its octagonal tower, built by Mr. Isaac Conro of New York City with money collected by a group of New York merchants, is the oldest original light tower still standing and in use in the United States. (USCG Historian's Office)
11 June 1770...The British explorer Captain James Cook discovered the Great Barrier Reef off Australia when he ran aground. (Information Please)
11 June 1847...The English naval officer and an Arctic explorer Sir John Franklin died in Canada while attempting to locate the Northwest Passage.