The Sargassum Watch System (SaWS) is designed to use satellite data and numerical models to detect and track pelagic Saragassum in near-real time. USF scientists use NASA satellite images to track Sargassum, a brown seaweed. This summer's Sargassum already has set a record. Hu, C., B. AccordingtoReportur,theamountofsargassumfloatingintheCentralAtlanticOceaninNovember2022increasedtoanastounding6milliontonsbyDecember2022. Also, Macao beach and Uvero Alto beaches are other excellent options if you want sargassum-free beaches. And researchers warn that this seasonal so-called Sargassum storm is likely to get worsebefore easing up, as all the excess weeds at sea wash in with the winds and currents, often wrapped in a filamentous brown algae that's only making things worse. Help support our local journalism, subscribe today. Seasonal seaweed strikes back: Tons of seaweed washes up on the Space Coast. Playa del Carmen SEAWEED Crisis [2022]: A Detailed Guide!! It is produced thousands of miles away in the Sargasso Sea, but it washes up on the shores of Caribbean countries due to ocean currents. Punta can is located on the Atlantic ocean so the water is cooler and rougher. Its current biomass is estimated to be from 1.7 . But in mass quantities, it chokes life from canals, clogs boat propellers, and is a killjoy at the beach, piling up several feet deep like a rotting bog emitting hydrogen sulfide as it decomposes. The eyesore can also threaten tourism. Over 46 thousand tonnes of sargassum seaweed are expected to be deposited across Cancun and the Mexican Caribbean in the next week. This is very rare in history, said USF oceanography professor Chuanmin Hu, about the rapid growth. Hus Optical Oceanography lab at USF measures the sargassum by satellite and has images dating back decades. February 17, 2022. Remote Sens., 44, 36193625. It's too early to know how much seaweed will reach Florida's beaches, but it has shown up in varying degrees and. Bayahibes beaches are more relaxed than Punta Canas, with fewer tourists and far fewer vendors trying to sell you souvenirs. Marine Science Home | USF St. Pete | Search, Satellite-based Sargassum Watch System (SaWS). Bayahibe, a beautiful resort town about an hours drive from Punta Cana, offers pristine beaches free of seaweed all year. He was part of a team of scientists that discovered the worlds largest sargassum bloom in the Atlantic Ocean, dubbing it the Great Atlantic Sargassum belt. . "The month of June in 2022 had a record high Sargassum amount compared to any previous year," said Chuanmin Hu, a professor with the University of South Florida's Oceanography Lab. "The Sargassum amount will likely continue to increase in the following months, more Sargassum will be found in the (Gulf. However, once it reaches the beach, it begins to rot. The University of South Florida's December . Pratices for Determing Volumetruc Data of Fresh Sargassum Wracks, A quantitative investigation of the role Sargassum accumulation plays in inhibiting sand erosion on Galveston Islands West-end Beaches, Investigation of the Impact of Beach Raking on Beach Accretion/Erosion: West End Beaches of Galveston Island, Texas 2007/ 2008, Advanced prediction of the Intra-Americas Sargassum Season through Analysis of the 1 Sargassum Loop System Using Remote Sensing Technology, Development and implementation of In other words, with its seaweed-free beaches, relaxed setting, and world-class all-inclusive resorts, Bayahibe is an excellent alternative to Punta Cana. Monitoring Sargassum distribution and abundance in the ocean in a timely fashion is of great importance for studying ocean ecology, helping fishery management, and forecasting Sargassum beaching events. University of South Florida scientists said January was the second consecutive month that the amount of seaweed doubled, reaching 8.7 million tons, which is enough to fill about 3,000 Olympic size pools. A sargassum forecast released this week by the University of South Florida said the amount of sargassum in the Central West Atlantic and Caribbean Sea is higher than previous years, which means . The maps below show Sargassum abundance, with warm colors representing higher values. Please be aware that turbidity and sea state strongly affects visibility, and that most likely there are additional narrower and/or smaller mats out at sea. Beachgoers have been reporting mounds of seaweed washing up on the shores of South Florida and scientists say record amounts are choking the coasts of the Atlantic and the Caribbean. B. Barnes, B. Murch, and P. Carlson (2014), Satellite-based virtual buoy system (VBS) to monitor coastal water quality, Optical Engineering, 53, 051402. doi: 10.1117/1.OE.53.5.051402. Punta Cana SEAWEED Problem [2023]: Everything You Need To Know!! In December 2022, the overall Sargassum quantity in the central Atlantic Ocean reversed its continuous decline in previous months. Jamaica Seaweed Problem [2023]: Everything You Need To Know!! Hardy, R. F. (2014). Gower, J., C. Hu, G, Borstad, and S. King (2006), Ocean color satellites show extensive lines of floating Sargassum in the Gulf of Mexico, IEEE Trans. Nests below the high tide line are usually marked by sea turtle monitors so the rakes can avoid them. As of 2017, the SEAS Program has performed forecasting for all of the Gulf Coast, Mexico, Grand Cayman, Jamaica, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and various Caribbean Islands, in order to aid local coastal zone management efforts by providing publicly available data regarding the windrows whereabouts. By the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the University of South Florida (USF) Status: Jan 24-30, 2023 Since 2011, large accumulations of Sargassum is a recurrent problem in the Caribbean Sea, in the Gulf of Mexico and tropical Atlantic. Sargassum season arrives in late May or June and sticks around through hurricane season, which ends Nov. 30. Dr. Chuanmin Hu works at the University of South Florida and has been tracking sargassum over a decade. Information from the Optical Oceanography Laboratory of the University of South Florida indicates that Sargassum in the Caribbean Sea has increased by more than 100% since December 2021. . Mar. Also, the majority of Punta Cana is protected by seaweed barriers designed to prevent sargassum from reaching the beaches. Of particular importance are the two customized data products, namely the floating algae index (FAI) to detect floating algae and other materials on the ocean surface, and the color index (CI) to trace ocean circulation features. Hu said 2023 will be another major sargassum year, possibly surpassing 2022. Sargassum removal from Texas beaches during earlier, less severe inundations was estimated at $2.9 million per year and Florida's Miami-Dade County alone estimated recent removal expenses of $45 million per year. One mystery this year is the proliferation of the sargassum in the winter months when it usually sees its growth spurt in spring and summer, said Hu, noting that his team has not tied warmer water temperatures to larger blooms. References: USF Sargassum Watch System, Cancun Sargassum Conditions: Forecast for 2022 It is obvious now that this will be the worst sargassum season in five years. Sargassum: Erosion and Biodiversity on the Beach, Spatial Sciences Laboratory, Dept. USF expects the trend of increasing Sargassum seaweed in the ocean to slow this month but with the possibility of ramping back up after that. Joaquin Trinanes Oceanography 28(3):810, Sargasso Sea Commission (link: http://www.sargassoseacommission.org/publications-and- news/worldwide-sargassum), The Journey of the Sargassum forum (link: http://ambergriscaye.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/506457/the-journey-of-the-sargassum.html). It may be remotely connected to everything including climate change and human activities, but the most plausible theory is that prior to 2011, in the year of 2010, there was a stronger than usual wind and surface ocean current that brought some Sargassum from the Sargasso Sea to the tropic Atlantic, said Hu. According to the study, our waste canturna critical nursery habitat into toxic algae dead zones, "with catastrophic impacts on coastal ecosystems, economies, and human health.". Ive never seen it like this. Currently, SaWS covers the entire Intra-Americas Sea, western Tropic Atlantic, and Bermuda. These events can cause significant economic, We will continue to closely monitor Sargassum coverage, with more updates provided by the end of January 2023. Remote Sens. Continuous and improved monitoring and. To help accomdate for Quintana Roo South and Tulum forecasts. Sargassum has leafy tubular branches and berries. Are You Living Paycheck to Paycheck? Scientists are concerned. Summer 2022 sargassum blew past previous records for June; July dropped a tad and August is pending, but the University of South Florida, which tracks sargassum, says there's so much sargassum floating in the open waters right now that we can expect what they call "beaching" for at least a couple more months. Example video title will go here for this video. endobj The Galveston Daily News printed an honorable memorial for Robert after his passing. x}[s"?#!pL8n;%Q%K>o|D+IvDL|}~jO_.jgnybvm&suo7oooyb3fc71dv.3w7;ji}aNuw}N?z>sp'@5Ho\]nyyH{>OqVF>= dw'1@8f@kwg@~+l~os#c%?R+4)/0otWoy6;{6F,y-bno@Yn?jt|+"[| LaPointe spoke in September to the Palm Beach Town Council after sargassum piled up several feet deep at the north end of the island south of the Lake Worth Inlet, also known as the Palm Beach Inlet. Floating algae often appears in images as slicks over the relatively homogeneous background in the FAI imagery, while ocean circulation patterns may be inferred from the various eddy and plume features in CI imagery. The bulletins started in early February 2018, and they are meant to give an outlook of Sargassum bloom probability in certain regions in the upcoming months, based on bloom conditions in previous months, and previous years. FAU researchers have shown seasonal Sargassum in Florida and elsewhere in the tropical Atlantic have grown worse in recent years because of increasing nitrogen and phosphorus from discharges. According to the Oceanographic Institute, which works in conjunction with the . The berries are filled with air and other gases; they float and help sargassum drift at the ocean surface, where it grows. Childrens Parks and Playgrounds in the Cayman Islands, earlier warning of a growing bloom of sargassum, 3 women arrested in illegal gambling raid, MYSCH Hosts Reception for Winning CARIFTA 2022 Teams, Rotting seaweed ends sargassum-removal trial, Sea of sargassum: Invasion spreads in North Sound, Expected increase in sargassum poses threat to nesting turtles, Millions of tons of sargassum blossoming in Atlantic, Iguanas run riot as rugby title race reaches halfway point, Three hurt as dump truck, rental car collide, Lawless seas? Anegada changed to Puerto Rico East and northern image added. Notifications can be turned off anytime in the browser settings. FAU researchers have shown seasonal Sargassum in Florida and elsewhere in the tropical Atlantic have grown worse in recent years because of increasing nitrogen and phosphorus from discharges from the Congo, Amazon and Mississippi rivers, atmospheric deposition from Saharan dust, and biomass burning of vegetation in central and South Africa. So, the best way to ensure a sargassum-free vacation in Punta Cana is to either stay on one of Punta Canas seaweed-free beaches, such as Bayahibe or Macao beach or to do some research and stay in hotels that are successfully tackling this issue. Since 2011, large accumulations of Sargassum is a recurrent problem in the Caribbean Sea, The year 2022 was particularly bad, as a large amount of sargassum seaweed landed on the shores of many Caribbean countries, ruining their pristine white sand beaches and spoiling the holidays of many tourists. 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