SARGASSUM SUB-REGIONAL OUTLOOK BULLETIN – MAY 2020 VOL 1
CARICOOS-Virgin Islands
Outlook of 2020 Sargassum blooms in the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico* April 30th, 2020, by University of South Florida Optical Oceanography Lab
The maps below show Sargassum abundance, with warm colors representing high abundance. In April 2020, the Sargassum amount continued to increase across the central Atlantic. Large amount of Sargassum was observed in the Central West Atlantic (CWA, i.e., the region east of the Lesser Antilles in the maps below) and the Central East Atlantic (CEA)…. Read More
Outlook of 2020 Sargassum blooms in the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico* – March 2020
In March 2020, the Sargassum amount increased significantly across the central Atlantic. Large amount of Sargassum was observed in the Central West Atlantic (CWA, i.e., the region east of the Lesser Antilles in the maps below) and the Central East Atlantic (CEA). Large amount also appeared in most of the eastern Caribbean (up to 67oW… Read More
Coral Disease continues spreading across St. Thomas Reefs
Special contribution from Sonora Meiling,sonora.meiling@students.uvi.edu A deadly coral disease, identified on the coral reefs of St. Thomas in January 2019, continues to spread across the island. First seen at Flat Cay, just south of the St. Thomas airport, what researchers at the University of the Virgin Islands believe to be stony coral tissue loss disease… Read More
Outlook of 2020 Sargassum blooms in the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico* February 29th, 2020, by University of South Florida Optical Oceanography Lab
The maps below show Sargassum abundance, with warm colors representing high abundance. In February 2020, the Sargassum amount continued to increase across the central Atlantic. Although the bloom magnitude is still lower than in some previous bloom years (2015, 2018, 2019), it is higher than in other years, and considerable amount of Sargassum is observed… Read More
US Caribbean Partners Meeting with the NOAA Office for Coastal Management and NOAA Southeast and Caribbean Regional Team
St. Croix, VI, was the venue for a partners meeting in late June with NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management (OCM, SE & Caribbean Team) and NOAA’s Southeast and Caribbean Regional Collaboration Team (SECART). This was the first time either group had met in the USVI and provided a long overdue opportunity to meet with and… Read More
Three graduate students have been identified as recipients of the 2020 IOOS/CARICOOS/OCOVI Vembu Subramanian Award
The goal of the Vembu Subramanian Award is to advance the IOOS priorities – coastal preparedness, response, recovery, and resiliency; advancing coastal intelligence; and place-based conservation in the spirit of Vembu Subramanian’s devotion to humanity, appreciation of nature and love of science. The award honors the memory of the late Vembu Subramanian, noted oceanographer and… Read More
Outlook of 2020 Sargassum blooms in the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico* January 31st, 2020, by University of South Florida Optical Oceanography Lab
The situation in January 2020 has changed dramatically from December 2019. Although the Sargassum amount in the Central West Atlantic (CWA, i.e., the region east of the Lesser Antilles in the maps here) is still low as compared to some bloom years in history (2015, 2018, 2019), there isconsiderable increase from December 2019. In the… Read More
A Major Swell Event to Impact the Caribbean
A very large wave event with deep water wave heights of 10-13 feet and wave periods of 14-16 seconds will be affecting our region starting Saturday night, peaking Sunday morning, and continuing to generate large waves through Monday. This event could generate breaking waves of 15-20 feet or more as well as coastal erosion and… Read More
CARICOOS Board of Directors fully engaged in securing continued support for meeting high priority coastal data and product needs.
On November 7, 2019 the CARICOOS Board of Directors met with the system’s technical and administrative leadership to discuss and agree on approaches to follow towards a comprehensive stakeholder need assessment and prioritization process. Said need assessment is essential for the design of the proposal requesting support for the upcoming five-year funding cycle. CARICOOS’s Board,… Read More
