Author: aooscjanzen

Ph.D. Physical Oceanography

Could the high sea surface temperatures experienced during the recent “Blob” event of the past few years become a view into the future?

This week is the Alaska Marine Science Symposium. Many talks referred to the “Blob” and it’s aftermath. Yereth Rosen of ADN wrote this story on a Keynote address by Nick Bond, who gave an overview of the Blob and what we have learned about its impact, providing some clues to what a future warmer ocean may mean. Continue reading Could the high sea surface temperatures experienced during the recent “Blob” event of the past few years become a view into the future?

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Glacier Bay Monitoring Program reveals possible Blob related temperature effects later than other areas in the Gulf of Alaska

“…..Glacier Bay didn’t strongly “feel” The Blob in the first couple summers after its onset (2014-2015). But last year’s El Nino seems to have exacerbated ocean warming, and at least in the main lower trunk of Glacier Bay mid-summer water temperatures have been significantly warmer in 2016.” For more on this story, visit NPS Glacier Bay. Continue reading Glacier Bay Monitoring Program reveals possible Blob related temperature effects later than other areas in the Gulf of Alaska

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How do the excessively warm sea surface conditions of 2013-16 compare to the past? (1926)

Since mid-2013 Alaska has been excessively warm, and this has been most emphatically the case over the western Gulf of Alaska, Alaska Peninsula and the Bering Sea regions. But how does this compare to the past? For the first half of the 20th century, 1926 stands out as the warmest calendar year in Alaska.  This is apparent when looking at the available station data as … Continue reading How do the excessively warm sea surface conditions of 2013-16 compare to the past? (1926)

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Rick Thoman: 2016 is globally the 2nd warmest October on record

This image comes from Richard James at Prescient Weather. It shows the  standardized sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies for October 2016. According to Brian Brettschneider’s rankings, this is globally the second warmest October (behind only last year). Given that last year we had a full-blown El Nino underway and this year, we have a weak La Nina (Aug-Sep-Oct ONI Index at -0.7), the fact that … Continue reading Rick Thoman: 2016 is globally the 2nd warmest October on record

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How does the 1977 climate event and related California drought of that period compare to the “Blob” event from 2013?

I asked Nate Mantua of NOAA’s Southwest Fisheries Science Center to comment on the 1977 California Drought event in relation to the more recent “Blob” event of 2013. “The 1977 drought is very well known in the Pacific climate research community, and in the water resources world in CA-OR-WA because it was so extreme. Like our recent west coast drought, the proximate cause was a remarkably … Continue reading How does the 1977 climate event and related California drought of that period compare to the “Blob” event from 2013?

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Pacific Anomalies Workshop II Report Is Published and Available to the Public

The Pacific Anomalies Workshop II, which was held in Seattle, Washington in January 2016 has a published report summarizing the current understanding of the “Blob” and its impact on the marine ecosystem along the US Pacific coastline, from Alaska to the Baja Peninsula. This report is available for download or viewing online to the public. PAWS II Workshop Report from January 2016   Presentations and video … Continue reading Pacific Anomalies Workshop II Report Is Published and Available to the Public

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