New Global Forecasts of Marine Heatwaves Foretell Ecological and Economic Impacts
Published:21 Apr.2022 Source:NOAA Fisheries West Coast Region
Researchers have developed global forecasts that can provide up to a year's notice of marine heatwaves, sudden and pronounced increases in ocean temperatures that can dramatically affect ocean ecosystems.
The forecasts described in the journal Nature could help fishing fleets, ocean managers, and coastal communities anticipate the effects of marine heatwaves. One such heatwave, known as "the Blob," emerged about 2013 in the northeast Pacific Ocean and persisted through 2016. It led to shifting fish stocks, harmful algal blooms, entanglements of endangered humpback whales, and thousands of starving sea lion pups washing up on beaches.