PMEL in the News
Sailboat-Like Drone Helps NOAA Study the Arctic Ecosystem
Drones are changing the way we look at coastlines. In a conference call on Thursday about the use of drones in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Jessica N. Cross, an oceanographer at NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, talked about the use of Saildrone, a sailboat-sized, commercially produced UAV in monitoring populations of fish and other information about the changing oceans in the Arctic.
Summer’s cool in the PNW, but the blob lives on
Remember the blob? It’s a patch of warmer than normal water out in the Pacific Ocean that’s still lingering despite cool weather systems. Although it was a wet winter in the Pacific Northwest and summer has been relatively cool so far, Washington climatologist Nick Bond says the blob is still quite warm.
NWS Alaska supports NOAA research campaign
NWS Alaska team is providing decision support to a group of NOAA researchers studying upper-ocean changes in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas. Meteorologists with the Alaska Sea Ice Program (ASIP) and the Alaska Aviation Weather Unit (AAWU) are helping NOAA research scientists and pilots make informed decisions about where to fly and where to deploy ocean observing instrumentation for the Arctic Heat Open Science Experiment.
Studies Testing Kelp as Local Fix for Acidifying Seawater
Scientist Joth Davis unspooled 150 feet of line holding thousands of tiny spores of kelp into Hood Canal in Washington state, while Brian Allen dove underwater and affixed the line to a buoy. Submerged about 10 feet underwater, the bull kelp seedlings will eventually form thick, slimy ribbons of brown seaweed and in the process take up carbon dioxide and other nutrients.
Ocean forecast offers seasonal outlook for Pacific Northwest waters
By now we are used to the idea of seasonal weather forecasts – whether to expect an El Niño ski season, or an unusually warm summer. These same types of climate models are now being adapted to make seasonal forecasts for the region’s coastal waters.