Weekly Ocean News

DATASTREME OCEAN WEEK TWO: 29 January-2 February 2007

Ocean in the News

(Thurs.) Input to ocean fisheries research plan sought -- In accordance with the federally mandated Magnuson-Stevens Act, the NOAA Fisheries Service is seeking public comment on its research direction and priorities for the next five years, as originally specified through the agency's "Strategic Plan for Fisheries Research" in 1998. [NOAA News]
(Thurs.) Vietnam has oil spill -- An oil spill has blackened the resort beaches of central Vietnam extending out to sea. The source is unknown as authorities investigate. [ENN]
(Thurs.) Another invading species reaches Lake Superior -- The Environmental Protection Agency's Mid-Continent Ecology Laboratory reported that another invasive aquatic species, the quagga mussel, was discovered in Duluth (MN)-Superior (WI) Harbor at the western end of Lake Superior. This new invader resembles the zebra mussel, which has spread rapidly in North American lakes over the past two decades and cost billions of dollars. [US Water News Online]
(Thurs.) Aquatic virus detected in Lake Huron -- Officials with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources recently reported that viral hemorrhagic septicema, a rapidly spreading and fish-killing aquatic virus, has been found in Lake Huron, arriving possibly with ballast water from international ships traveling the Lake. [ENN]
(Tues.) "Smoking gun" report to be released soon -- The first phase of the report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) written by more than 600 scientists from 154 countries is being released in Paris next week. Several of the participants call this report as providing evidence that human activity is the "the smoking gun" responsible for the observed increases in global temperature during the latter 20th century. [USA Today]
- The IPCC panel report indicates that rising sea levels due to melting of glaciers and the polar ice caps due to increased global temperatures would threaten low-lying land areas, such as several Pacific Islands, Bangladesh, Florida, Shanghai and Buenos Aires. [USA Today]
- However, some scientists disagree with the projections given in the report concerning the rise in sea level. [USA Today]
(Tues.) Ocean temperature data are available -- The NOAA National Oceanographic Data Center recently announced that its long-term archive of global, high resolution ocean temperatures as obtained by the array of international satellites will be made available online for use by all. Currently, this archive, developed as part of the GODAE (Global Ocean Data Assimilation Experiment) High Resolution SST Project, is available from 2005 to present, but ultimately, the record should extend back to 1981. [NOAA News]
(Tues.) Submarine to space by phone -- Last Friday (26 January 2007) scientists in the submersible vehicle Alvin in the waters on the East Pacific Rise were scheduled to make a phone call to an astronaut on the International Space Station to discuss their respective observations. [NASA Earth Observatory]
(Tues.) Deep sea fauna found under Antarctic ice shelf -- Deep-sea cucumbers and stalked feather stars were found in the shallow waters under the former Larsen ice shelf off the Antarctic Peninsula by the current Polarstern expedition conducted by the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research. [EurekAlert!]
A rare tropical cyclone traverses eastern South Pacific -- A visible image from NOAA's GOES-11 satellite reveals Tropical Cyclone Arthur moving southeast across the South Pacific to the east-southeast of Samoa Island last Wednesday. This cyclone, a low pressure system that is the South Pacific counterpart to a North Atlantic hurricane, took an unusual eastward track from near the International Date Line across a region of the Pacific that rarely experiences tropical cyclones because of relatively cold surface waters. [NOAA OSEI]
Recovery plan for Puget Sound chinook is approved -- After five years of preparation, the NOAA Fisheries Service recently approved a comprehensive plan as required by the Endangered Species Act that is designed to recover threatened Chinook salmon in the Puget Sound region of western Washington State. [NOAA News]
Extent of contamination in Chesapeake Bay sediments is quantified -- NOAA officials recently unveiled a new online report detailing the results of a chemical contamination investigation made by NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science researchers of the sediments in the mainstem and major western tributaries of Chesapeake Bay, the nation's largest estuary. [NOAA News]
International cleanup of Great Lakes pondered -- The U.S. and Canadian governments are currently considering updating and strengthening the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, initially approved in 1972 and revised significantly in 1987. This agreement commits the two countries to "restore and maintain the chemical, physical and biological integrity" of the Great Lakes, the world's largest surface freshwater system. [US Water News Online]
Atmospheric haze and ocean sediments detected from high above India -- A visible image obtained from the MODIS sensor onboard NASA's Terra satellite shows atmospheric haze over northern sections of India and Bangladesh, along with sediments in the coastal waters of the Indian Ocean to the south of these two nations. [NOAA OSEI]
Hypothesis explains how fish conquered the ocean -- Scientists at Norway's University of Bergen hypothesize that bony fish were able to conquer the ocean during the late Cretaceous and early Paleogene periods (65 million years ago) by duplicating their yolk-producing genes and filling their eggs with an aqueous solution. [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.

Concept of the Week: The Birth of Surtsey, A Volcanic Island

In early November 1963, cod fishers plying the waters of the North Atlantic south of Iceland observed what appeared to be smoke or steam emanating from the distant ocean surface. They were witnessing the beginnings of a volcanic eruption that ultimately would give birth to a new island later named Surtsey after Surtur, the fire giant of Norse mythology. Surtsey is located at 63.4 degrees N, 20.3 degrees W or 33 km (20 mi) south of the coast of Iceland. Volcanic activity was nothing new to the fishers who lived on the nearby volcanic Westman Islands (Vestmannaeyjar). These islands as well as the main island of Iceland straddle the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a divergent tectonic plate boundary where hot molten lava wells up from Earth's mantle, cools and solidifies into new oceanic crust.

The eruptions that produced Surtsey began on the ocean floor, some 130 m (427 ft) below sea level. The accumulating lava, cinders, and ash first emerged from the sea on 15 November 1963. Over the next 3.5 years, episodic eruptions built an island that eventually covered 2.5 square km (1 square mi) and attained a maximum elevation of 171 m (560 ft) above sea level. The initial eruptions were explosive as hot magma interacted with cold seawater producing dark jets of ash and steam that shot up to 200 m (656 ft) above two main volcanic vents. At this time, clouds of ash and steam rose into the atmosphere to altitudes perhaps as great as 10 km (6.2 mi). Subsequent eruptions were much more peaceful, consisting of quiescent flows of lava. When the eruptions ceased in early June 1967, a cubic kilometer of ash and lava had built up on the ocean floor with 9% of this volcanic material above sea level.

No volcanic activity has occurred on Surtsey since 1967 and geologists consider the volcanic island to be extinct with little risk of future eruptions. Nonetheless, Surtsey remains off limits to visitors except for scientists who must obtain permission from the Icelandic government. The island offers scientists a unique opportunity to study not only the geology but also the establishment of plants and animals on the island, a process known as ecological succession. For example, by 1987, some 25 species of higher plants were growing on the initially barren island and 20 species of birds were nesting there.

Unless volcanic activity begins anew, the future is not bright for Surtsey. Some geologists predict that in a hundred years or so the island will be reduced to scattered stacks of rock. The island is composed of basaltic rock that is particularly vulnerable to weathering and erosion, ocean waves are eroding its shores, and the island is gradually sinking into the sea. Scientists reported a total subsidence of about 1.1 m (3.6 ft) between 1967 and 1991. Compaction of the volcanic material and the underlying sea-floor sediments are likely causes of the subsidence. For a NASA topographical image of Surtsey, go to http://denali.gsfc.nasa.gov/islands/surtsey/. This image was obtained using a scanning airborne laser altimeter.

Concept of the Week: Questions

The volcanism responsible for the formation of Surtsey was associated with a [(divergent)(convergent)] plate boundary.
At present on Surtsey, erosive forces [(are)(are not)] prevailing over volcanic activity.

Historical Events

29-30 January 1966...A hurricane that struck Samoa was responsible for 50 deaths, destroyed more than one-third of the homes and damaged the remainder. As many as 50,000 people were left homeless. Swains Island was leveled by the hurricane. Winds gusted to 100 mph at Pago Pago. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
29 January 1983...A series of Pacific coast storms finally came to an end. The storms, attributed in part to the anomalous ocean-atmosphere phenomenon, "El Niño," produced ocean swells 15 to 20 feet high that ravaged the beaches of southern California. Much of the damage was to homes of movie stars in the exclusive Malibu Colony. (The Weather Channel)
30 January 1790...The Original, the first boat specialized as a lifeboat to rescue people from stormy seas was tested on the River Tyne. This 30-foot long self-righting craft went out to shipwrecks for 40 years, saving hundreds of lives. William Wouldhave and Lionel Lukin both claimed to be the inventor of the first lifeboat. (Wikipedia) (Today in Science History)
30 January 1997...Surf up to 12 feet, with sets to 15 feet, pounded the north and west shores of Hawaii. A wave swept 8 people into the ocean at Keane Point on Maui. Four tourists who were taking pictures of the waves drowned. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
1 February 1788...A patent for a steamboat was issued by the state of Georgia to Isaac Briggs and William Longstreet. The patent was the only one ever to be issued by Georgia, and first in the U.S. for a steamboat. Much development had to follow before the steamboat would be commercially viable. (Today in Science History)
1 February 1838...A U.S. patent (No. 588) was issued for the screw propeller to John Ericsson, (1803-89), a Swedish American engineer, who later designed and built the Monitor for the Union Navy in the War of the Rebellion. (Today in Science History)
1 February 1811...The Bell Rock Lighthouse was lit for the first time eleven miles off the east coast of Scotland. Using 24 lanterns, it began flashing its warning light atop a 100-foot white stone tower. As the oldest sea-washed lighthouse in existence, it was built by Robert Stevenson on a treacherous sandstone reef, which, except at low tides, lies submerged just beneath the waves. In the centuries before, the dangerous Bell Rock had claimed thousands of lives, as vessels were wrecked on its razor-sharp serrated rocks. (Today in Science History)
1 February 1953...An intense low-pressure system (966 millibars or 29.52 inches of mercury) swept across the North Sea. Wind speeds at Aberdeen, Scotland exceeded 125 mph. A storm surge of 13 feet, aided by a high spring tide, breached the dams in as many as 100 places along the Zuider Zee in The Netherlands, flooding 3.95 million acres or one-sixth of the country. More than 1800 deaths were attributed to drowning and 50,000 people were evacuated. In addition, this storm was responsible for the loss of 100,000 poultry, 25,00 pigs and 35,000 cattle. (The Weather Doctor) (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
2-3 February 1952...The only tropical storm of record to hit the U.S. in February moved out of the Gulf of Mexico and across southern Florida on the 3rd; it also represents the earliest reported formation of a tropical storm on record in the Atlantic basin. The storm produced 60-mph winds, and two to four inches of rain. (2nd-3rd) (The Weather Channel)
2 February 1976...Groundhog Day Storm, one of the fiercest Maritimes storms ever battered the Bay of Fundy region around Saint John, New Brunswick with winds clocked at 118 mph, generating 39 foot waves with swells of 32.5 feet. (The Weather Doctor)
3 February 1488...The Portuguese navigator Bartholomeu Diaz landed at Mossal Bay, Cape of Good Hope, the first European known to have landed on the southern extremity of Africa. He was also the first known European to have traveled this far south and round the Cape. (Wikipedia)
3 February 1880...Date of a terrific gale on the New Jersey coast. Six vessels came ashore with 47 persons on board--all but two survived. Nineteen USLSS crewmen won Gold Life-Saving Medals during the wreck of the George Taulane. (USCG Historian's Office)
3 February 1943...The torpedoing of the transport Dorchester saw USCGC Comanche and Escanaba respond. The crew of the Escanaba used a new rescue technique when pulling survivors from the water. This "retriever" technique used swimmers clad in wet suits to swim to victims in the water and secure a line to them so they could be hauled onto the ship. Although Escanaba saved 133 men (one died later) and Comanche saved 97, over 600 men were lost, including the Four Chaplains. (USCG Historian's Office)
3 February 1953...The French oceanographer Jacques-Yves Cousteau published his most famous and lasting work, The Silent World, which was made into a film three years later. (The History Channel)