Tracking the "Blob"

Sea surface temperature anomalies in July, 2015 from the NVS Climatology App.

Love it or hate it, you've probably noticed the record breaking warm, dry summer we've been experiencing in the Pacific Northwest.  One of the contributing factors is a large mass of warmer than average water off the coast in the NE Pacific, nicknamed the "blob" by UW meteorologist and State Climatologist Nick Bond.  The region's weather is closely tied to the NE Pacific, where wind is typically cooled as it travels over the ocean's surface before reaching our shores. The sea surface temperatures of the "blob" are up to 7°F warmer than what is typically seen, which results in warmer air temperatures throughout the region.

Last week, NANOOS Executive Director Jan Newton joined other scientists from five NANOOS member institutions UW, WA Dept. of Ecology, WA Dept. of Health, King County, and NOAA (NWFSC & PMEL), and others for a multi-agency media day at Shilshole Marina in Seattle to discuss the anomalous conditions in the Pacific Northwest, known as the "blob," and its effects on Puget Sound.  Using a variety of presentation aids, from the NVS Climatology App to tours aboard UW's R/V Barnes and Ecology's R/V Skookum, the group explained to reporters the abnormal conditions including high temperatures, salinity, low dissolved oxygen, and HABs in historically unaffected areas.

Check out the King 5 video, the KOMO radio clip, and article from the Seattle Times and UW Today.

You can also track the extent and patterns of the "blob" using the NANOOS Visualization System (NVS) Climatology App, which compares current water temperature with previous years using data from satellites and buoys offshore, along the coast and in Puget Sound.

Sea surface temperature anomalies and buoys off Washington and Oregon coasts.

Water temperature (°C) at the NDBC Cape Elizabeth buoy off the Washington coast. The dark blue line is the mean, magenta is +/-1σ, red is 2σ, black is this year's QC'd data and cyan is current raw data.