Gov’t Scientists: “Something very unusual occurring in the Northeast Pacific” — “Unprecedented in historical record” — Extends “all the way across the Pacific to Japan” — Dramatically reduced productivity over 17,000 square kilometers — “Could send reverberations through marine food web” — “Who knows what will happen?” (MAP)
ENENews.com
September 17th, 2014
Fishletter Issue 335, July 24, 2014: There is a massive pool of warm water in the Gulf of Alaska, NOAA scientist Nate Mantua said in an email. It is unprecedented in the historical record, he added… the past year is way out of the historical range — “so who knows what will happen?”
NOAA Fisheries, Sept. 2014: Scientists across NOAA Fisheries are watching a persistent expanse of exceptionally warm water spanning the Gulf of Alaska that could send reverberations through the marine food web. The warm expanse appeared about a year ago and the longer it lingers, the greater potential it has to affect ocean life from jellyfish to salmon, researchers say. “Right now it’s super warm all the way across the Pacific to Japan,” said Bill Peterson, an oceanographer with NOAA… “For a scientist it’s a very interesting time because when you see something like this that’s totally new you have opportunities to learn things you were never expecting.” Not since records began has the region of the North Pacific Ocean been so warm for so long… The situation does not match recognized patterns in ocean conditions such as El Niño Southern Oscillation or Pacific Decadal Oscillation… “It’s a strange and mixed bag out there,” Mantua said… scientists noted that the observed warm temperatures are higher and cover more of the northern Pacific than the PDO typically affects… The cold near-shore conditions in the Pacific Northwest also don’t match the typical PDO pattern.
The Rest…HERE
