PMEL in the News
Dispatches from Oceans ’16: Exploring Other Oceans
How autonomous underwater vehicles are fundamentally changing the way humans are exploring the ocean was the focus of the first plenary session at Oceans ’16.
‘Son of a Blob’ springs to life in Pacific
The Blob, a news-making patch of unusually warm ocean surface water from late-2013 through autumn 2015, was reborn this month. The ocean warmed quickly. As recently as July, “The northeast Pacific off our coast was slightly above normal, but nothing exceptional,” University of Washington meteorologist Cliff Mass noted Sunday in his popular blog.
A Market-Roiling La Nina Is Dividing World Weather Forecasters
A meteorological clash of nations is confounding the world’s commodity markets. Global weather agencies can’t agree on whether to expect a La Nina event in coming months. The U.S. has backed off its prediction, Australia remains watchful, while Japan has decided La Nina is already here. Disagreements arise because each nation has different standards for measuring the weather.
Warm water 'blob' off northwest coast returns
There is an ominous presence in the waters off the Pacific Northwest and it has the potential to play havoc with ocean wildlife and could interfere with your winter plans. "The Blob," a mass of warm water floating off the coast of northern Oregon, Washington, British Columbia and Alaska, is back, writes University of Washington atmospheric science professor Cliff Mass.
Oceans Are Absorbing Almost All of the Globe’s Excess Heat
Ocean temperatures have been consistently rising for at least three decades. Scientists believe that global sea surface temperatures will continue to increase over the next decade as greenhouse gases build up in the atmosphere.