Sargassum seaweed inundated the shores of Le Gosier on the French islands of Guadeloupe in November 2022. As predicted a month ago, sargassum amounts in the Gulf of Mexico decreased in June 2023, but the magnitude of the 75 percent decrease is beyond expectation, researchers said. Sargassum is a lifeline for fish nurseries, hungry migratory birds and sea turtle hatchlings seeking shelter in its buoyant saltwater blooms. While the exact timing is difficult to predict, major impacts are expected throughout the next few months. If you haven't heard of the great Atlantic sargassum belt, or even if you have, chances are high that you'll see it pop into your news feed at least once this summer. Lapointe agreed, framing it another way: "I remember seeing The Blob as a movie when I was a kid and it scared the you-know-what out of me. Hu said 2023 will be another major sargassum year, possibly surpassing 2022. Planning to spend some time at the beach but want to check out the latest conditions? Researchers expect this year will bring another massive bloom, choking local ecosystems and tourism economies. Currents from the water and the wind all impact where this organism gets moved around, said Rosen. No. This method reveals where the seaweed is and how dense it is becoming. The total quantity of the floating masses of seaweed is "expected to increase over the next few months, withimpacts of beaching events in the (Caribbean) and (Gulf) worsening accordingly," the University reported. A massive sargassum bloom that stretches from near the coast of Africa through the Caribbean Sea and into the Gulf of Mexico has decreased in volume compared to its January girth, offering a "glimmer of hope" that it won't be the monster record-breaker scientists originally thought.. 2 min read. It also serves as a primary nursery area for a variety of commercially important fish like mahi mahi, jacks and amberjacks, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The authors of the coastal phytoplankton study, Lapointe and other researchers have found the following: "We can't really say which particular beach at which particular time," Barnes said. As it rots, sargassum gives off a substance called hydrogen sulfide, which smells like rotten eggs. PDF Outlook of 2023 Sargassum blooms in the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of All rights reserved. Monthly maps of Sargassum density in the tropical Atlantic from March 2022 to March 2023. If you have news tips, please send them to kmiller@pbpost.com. News 6 Chief Meteorologist Tom Sorrells talked to one of the researchers studying the sargassum belt back in April on Talk to Tom. Watch that episode below. Algae are ok. As long as they dont get too bad they affect the aesthetics and our health, said Professor Rosen. A study found that a 5,000-mile-long Sargassum seaweed clump off of Florida's east coast has been carrying floating plastics that hold the bacteria. Once the seaweed washes up on the beach, it begins to rot in the sun, releasing a pretty fowl smell and producing hydrogen sulfide gas, which can cause breathing difficulties in people. Giant seaweed patch expected to hit Gulf coast beaches | WFLA Because of the continued decreases of sargassum in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, and because theincreases in the central west Atlantic appear to have slowed down, researchers predict the sargassum amount in theGulf of Mexico will remain minimal. The. Massive seaweed blob landing on Key West is disrupting Florida - CNN She was reported missing June 26 and was found in a Boston-area state park. The seaweed clumps were first seen washing up on Florida's East Coast from the Atlantic Ocean in May, making shorelines "undesirable" and making it "difficult to get into the water." People remove Sargassum in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, in April, 2022. 'The smell is really pungent': Mountains of seaweed cover Mexico's Caribbean coast's tourist hotspots, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Sargassum seaweed soils Space Coast beaches at record levels - ClickOrlando The Seaweed Blob Is Heading to a Beach Near You | WIRED National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Florida beach live webcams show surf, waves, sargassum seaweed conditions, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. 'The sargassum season for Florida is gone': Mysterious seaweed Large accumulations of the seaweed have been a recurrent problem in the Caribbean, in the Gulf of Mexico and in the tropical Atlantic since 2011, according to the NOAA. By the end of June, there was very little sargassum in both the Gulf of Mexico and western Caribbean Sea, which was expected to be good news for many coastal residents. At the start of the animation, small patches of Sargassum are scattered across the waters of the Caribbean Sea and the tropical Atlantic. Florida's monthslong hit from a giant blob of seaweed that smells like rotten eggs may be over sooner than what was previously thought. A massive sargassum bloom that stretches from near the coast of Africa through the Caribbean Sea and into the Gulf of Mexico has decreased in volume compared to its January girth, offering a "glimmer of hope" that it won't be the monster record-breaker scientists originally thought. Sargassum Tracker. What's causing it? [] This blob of seaweed is scarier. Here's what you should know By Jackie Wattles and Kristen. People remove Sargassum in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, in April, 2022. Sargassum is a type of leafy, rootless and buoyant algae that bunch up in islands and floats around the ocean. For the next few months, USF scientists predict the sargassum amount in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea will either continue falling or remain stable. Sargassum is a genus of brown macroalgae or seaweed that is commonly found throughout the world, but abundantly so in a patch of the Atlantic Ocean called the Sargasso Sea. Subscribe to The Dirt for a weekly real estate roundup. A correlation in some regions between changes in sea surface temperatures and ocean circulation. It chases away tourists, beach goers. Winds, currents and even small storms can influence where the sargassum moves. A number of variables will determine if the Sargassum bloom could strike the Southwest Florida Coast, alongside the eastern shoreline, the Caribbean, or Cuba. USF has activelyused satelliteimaging to map the locations of the seaweed since the early 2000s, in order to spread awareness about the impacts of the bloom along our coastlines. What to know about the sargassum seaweed blob hitting Florida : NPR Sargassum is a brown seaweed that floats in the ocean and currently is washing up on many Florida beaches in large amounts. Meet the sargassum belt, a 5,000-mile-long snake of seaweed circling Florida. We're using more fertilizer, burning biomass, cutting down forests and increasing wastewater from cities, all of which sends ammonium, nitrate and phosphate down major river systems. All about sargassum: satellite images, forecasts and outlooks. The Sargassum bloom is expected to increase in size, with the quantity likely peaking in June or July. However, sargassum did increase in the central western Atlantic. If you're a beachgoer, you probably won't have much to worry about, though you might not want to get too close. During summer, predominant easterly sea breezes can push it to shore. Sargassum Mystery: Threat of washing up on Florida beaches minimal PREVIOUS IMPACT OF SARGASSUM BLOOMS IN SWFL: Massive algae bloom brings large amount of seaweed to Florida beaches. What is sargassum? Here's why seaweed is piling up along Florida - NPR In March, the blob made landfall at numerous Florida beaches, covering them in seaweed. The exact drivers of the growth are still a bit "shrouded in mystery," says Brian Lapointe, a research professor with Florida Atlantic University, who's been studying sargassum for over 40 years. These rafts of sargassum can stretch for miles and serve as a valuable habitat for a range of marine creatures, offering food, shelter and breeding grounds. Although sargassum can be a good thing in the open ocean, providing habitat for fish, turtles and many other creatures, there can be too much of a good thing. Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. However, sargassum did increase in the central western Atlantic. Very little sargassum was found by the end of June in the Straits of Florida and along the east coast of Florida, according to the University of South Florida.. TAMPA, Fla. A massive bloom of brown seaweed, thousands of miles wide and visible from space, is making its way toward the Gulf of Mexico. Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands could get hit pretty hard, Barnes said. Scientists have also been tracking sargassum in great detail. Aliza Chasan is a digital producer at 60 Minutes and CBS News. Berry-like structures found throughout the plants web of appendages and branches called pneumatocysts are filled with oxygen that enables the plant to float along the surface of the water, allowing it to freely drift with the surrounding currents. ), "Given the complexity of its motion, growth, and decay, it is not possible to forecast the timing of beaching," NOAA said. The field of study is young, but "we're finding [sargassum] can contain heavy metals, including arsenic. An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that the estimated weight of the great Atlantic sargassum belt is 10 billion tons. Recent data has researchers predicting that the blob will continue to be "minimal" in the Gulf through September, and will only have a "moderate" amount of sargassum in the Caribbean Sea through August before decreasing further. Big, stinky blob of algae takes aim at Florida beaches. "If you have beautiful tourist beaches, you don't don't want to have seaweed decaying on your beaches," said Dr. Jane Caffrey, a professor in the UWF's Center for Environmental Diagnostics and Bioremediation. Help support our local journalism, subscribe today. If theres anything living on the ocean bottom like a coral or a seagrassthey receive a huge blanket of dead Sargassum, they cannot breathe. It's April 2023 report does not bode well for beaches in the path of a massive bloom. Check beach webcams for sargassum. This is an ongoing story. ET Source: Teresa Wood/Coral.Org "There's a concern that, through leaching, that could impact groundwater.". The Florida Department of Health warned the seaweed could contain large amounts of such heavy metals as arsenic and cadmium. As evidence that necessity is breeding invention, private companies, too, have experimented with using sargassum as food, fertilizer, biofuel, construction material and medicinal products. A desalination plant on St. Croix became so clogged with seaweed that local electrical-generating capacities were threatened. Home News Florida 5,000-mile seaweed bloom heading toward South Florida. Ex-GOP congressman Denver Riggleman now working with Hunter Biden, Teen who vanished 8 years ago while walking dogs is found alive, 4 shark attacks reported off New York shores; 50 spotted at one beach, Attorney who challenged Trump's 2020 election loss gives up law license. It used to be that sargassum rafts were disparate, sporadic bodies, causing little disruption to beach-going. It has fairly high concentrations of the toxin," he said. Giant floating bloom of Sargassum seaweed will likely be largest ever But it's the decreasing amount of sargassum in the Gulfthat has stunned researchers the most. But now giant clumps of the 13m-ton morass labeled the Great Atlantic sargassum belt are washing up on Florida's beaches, scientists are warning of a real-life threat from the piles of . Though Texas and the Gulf Coast of Florida have always experienced such . But scientists say very little sargassum was found in the Straits of Florida and along the coast by the end of June. Meet some of CTs best young inventors. Key West already saw a lot of Sargassum Seaweed by 3/5/2023. Help support our local journalism, subscribe today. The seaweed set a record in the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt in March, but the university said the overall quantity in the belt which stretches from west Africa to the Gulf of Mexico remained roughly the same in April, probably because of persistent clouds. Huge seaweed blob on way to Florida is 'like a Stephen King movie'. Sargassum begins to rot after about 48 hours on land, releasing irritants like hydrogen sulfide, a hazard to anyone with respiratory issues like asthma. Because of the continued decreases of sargassum in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, and because theincreases in the central west Atlantic appear to have slowed down, researchers predict the sargassum amount in theGulf of Mexico will remain minimal. However, sargassum . His hypothesis is that it has to do with how humans are altering the nitrogen cycle. Sargassum has beached itself along Pensacola shores for a very long time. 'The sargassum season for Florida is gone': Seaweed blob shrinks By the end of June there was very little Sargassum in the Gulf of Mexico and western Caribbean Sea two areas that send the seaweed along Floridas east coast on the Gulf Stream. 01:59. A record abundance of the seaweed was seen on satellite images in the Caribbean in April, the University of South Florida's Optical Oceanography Lab said in a monthly update released this week. Florida Today 0:00 0:33 Substantial s argassum is expected in June in both the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, according to the May report from the University of South Florida. Updated: 8:23 AM EDT March 15, 2023. What is certain is 2023 will be a major sargassum year," Hu said. Here are severalwebcamsaround the state. Sargassum, a smelly seaweed, may be coming soon to a Gulf beach near you. The floating mass, which stretches across the Atlantic Ocean from Africa to Florida, saw even more alarming growth this winter. Algal bloom-favorable seasons in temperate seas have increased with warmer temperatures. The 2023 sargassum seaweed forecast is looking pretty bleak what started invading Florida beaches this week has spread across the Atlantic. But if sargassum moves closer to the coast, the seaweed can wreak havoc on local ecosystems, smothering coral reefs and altering the water's pH balance. Sargassum Monitoring - Official Maps & Forecasts Sargassum Monitoring Activity since 2018 - Daily Updates - Sea-Life We are committed to preserve the coastal fauna and flora. By the end of June, there was very little sargassum in both the Gulf of Mexico and western Caribbean Sea, which was expected to be good news for many coastal residents. While sargassum has clogged beaches and annoyed beachgoers across South Floridas coast this spring entire Facebook groups are dedicated to monitoring the seaweed the mass in the Atlantic is still decreasing in size, according to scientists from the University of South Florida. Barnes and Lapointe both say that this year is already on track to break records. Since 2011, the sargassum has reached epic proportions each summer, fluctuating from year to year and place to place. As tensions with that country continue to rise, Norah O'Donnell boarded the USS Nimitz to report on the U.S. Navy's readiness. It can move extremely quicklydepending on ocean and gulf currents. The legend values range from 0% to 0.5% and greater, referring to the percent of the ocean surface covered by Sargassum. Last year: 'The smell is really pungent': Mountains of seaweed cover Mexico's Caribbean coast's tourist hotspots. The brown seaweed, which can carry flesh . In the Caribbean Sea, most sargassum was located around the Lesser Antilles and along the southern coasts ofHispanola, Jamaica and Puerto Rico. April 12, 2023 In 2023, NASA observed the largest-ever seaweed bloom for the month of March, in the Atlantic Ocean. This trend may continue in the next 2-3 months, which should be good news to the residents living in the Florida Keys and east coast of Florida, said the report. He has linked the surge in sargassum to flow from the Mississippi River, extreme flooding in the Amazon basin, as well as to the mouth of the Congo where upwelling and vertical mixing of the ocean can bring up nutrients that feed the blooms. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Researchers expect this year will bring another massive bloom, choking local ecosystems and tourism economies. Hydrogen sulfide can irritate the eyes, nose and throat. "This trend may continue in the next 2-3 months, which should be good news to the residents living in the Florida Keys and east of Florida as well as the west coast of the Caribbean Sea," researchers said. Related news stories Seaweed on Florida beaches continues to decline, Spectrum News, 6/28/2023 The monstrous seaweed bloom is just one more example of a growing global invasion of macro and microscopic algal blooms thriving on an increasing supply of nutrients such as nitrogen in freshwater and marine ecosystems. Christopher Columbus wrote about sargassum during his voyage to North America. In addition to the unsightly piles of sargassum along the coast, some species produce toxins that affect the food chain or deplete the oxygen in the water when they start to decay, causing fish kills and the die off of other marine species. Miami-Dade County's spending on seaweed cleanup has risen from $2.8 million during the 2020 sargassum season to $3.9 million during last year's season. Outside of the rotting algae creating a severe and poor smell, the size of the sheet could impact local wildlife. Sargassum may not stop stinking up beaches in South Florida anytime soon, but the mass in the Atlantic is reducing in size, so you dont have to cancel your trip to the beach not yet, anyway. Last year was a record-breaker for the total amount of sargassum, with it reaching a peak of 22 million tons in July.
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