Earlier this month there was an area off the Oregon coast where the
seafloor was littered with piles of dead sea life (typically slow-moving sea life, like crabs, worms, jellyfish – but no dead fish were found).  This is the fifth year in a row that this has happened in the area, so scientists have a pretty good bead on what’s happening.

The phenomenon is referred to as a hypoxic "dead zone".  Scientists believe that dead zones are caused by coastal upwelling, a natural process by which changes in ocean currents cause deep water to rise to the surface. When the oxygen level of the upwelling deep water is too low, it can suffocate any sea life in the area.

Dead zones have been observed near other coasts, as well, including Peru, Namibia and India.  Researchers are still working to understand the seasonal and geographical patterns of Oregon’s dead zone.  There is speculation that global warming is causing changes in ocean currents, which, in turn, create the dead zones.  My guess is that they’ll need to gather some more data before we can draw any conclusions.

Next time you paddle through a patch of icy, cold water and say, "Man, upwelling gives me the chills,"  stop for a minute and think . . .  are you cold because the water temperature dropped suddenly or are those goose bumps caused by the silent cries of all those poor, defenseless crabs, gasping for their last breath . . .

Here are some links if you want to read more on the topic.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/08/040810091946.htm 

http://www.voanews.com/english/AmericanLife/2006-08-29-voa32.cfm 

UPDATE: 9/1/06

It’s been reported that large algae blooms can cause dead zones.  The algae blooms are often attributed to raw nutrients (fertilizer, treated sewage, etc) being dumped into the water.  latimes.com has a good graphic.    Link

If I could go back and do college all over again, I’d give some serious thought to doing it like Alexandra Cheney.  Wheaton College granted her a $25K fellowship to travel to some of the world’s finest surf destinations (Polynesia, Australia, Japan, Costa Rica, Brazil and South Africa).  Her mission is to study the intersection of surf culture and environmental stewardship.

"Surfers feel a unique spiritual tie with water, out of which emerges their fight to protect the oceans,” Cheney explained to the Thomas J. Watson Foundation. ”Without surfers as advocates, many coastlines would succumb to the destruction brought on by commercial shipping, underwater demolition and extractive fishing. By examining wave-riding cultures and defining their component traditions and rituals, I seek to explore how surfers feel their connection with the water and how that bond translates into worldwide oceanic preservation.”

I would be so stoked to do a project like this one.  The fantasticness of the traveling and surfing aside, it’s a great topic for research – one that is often the focus of my own musings.  Really looking forward to seeing what she finds. 

Link

Our buddy, Ed, has been on a boat in the Mentawai Islands for the past 10 days, undoubtedly surrounded by incredible waves.  Ed demonstrates his broceanography skills par excellence with this little shot of perfection that he chased down somewhere off the beaten path.

Here’s a link to a larger version of the pic.

Although this story is a bit dated, I feel it deserves a mention.  It’s a surfboard with a built-in wirelss tablet pc, so surfers can surf (the internet) while they’re out in the water.

From the looks of it, the whole thing was more of a gimick to demonstrate wireless technology.  Two years have passed since the product’s unveiling and I haven’t seen any further developements,  but still it goes to show that they can do anything with computers.  

Link

There’s no telling how accurate their numbers are, but the IWGA estimates the global population of recreational surfers to be around 20 million people.  There are roughly 2.5 million surfers in the United States alone, the majority being on the Pacific coast. 

Link

Here’s a cool video that shows tidal movement at Black’s beach over time.

http://cil-www.coas.oregonstate.edu/ncex/blacky.c1.small.mov 

Double Crown records has some podcasts of cool traditional surf guitar instrumentals (Dick Dale style music).

Check ‘em out http://www.dblcrown.com/podcasts.html 

You should be able to stream the podcasts in your browser.
I’ve listened to most of them.  So far I think show #13 is my favorite. 

We went to the premier of Secret Machine at La Paloma Theater in Encinitas.  The movie is pretty well put together. 

I don’t see what Sonny Miller was on about Globe actually having a secret machine that makes surf movies.  All of those shenanigans that were reported in the media may have been a ruse to get people’s attention.  I didn’t see anything that looked like a machine made it.  The only point at which you’ll have trouble suspending disbelief is when you see some of the rides and aerials these guys pull off.

The movie’s got some really great footage of the Hobgoods, Taj Burrow, et al destroying waves in spots like the Mentawai, Tavarua, Baja, California, France, to name a few.  The soundtrack’s decent and overall the movie isn’t too commercialized.

I give it a solid shaka.  It’s worth picking up a copy of the DVD – you’ll definitely want to watch it multiple times.

Underwater gliders are helping oceanographers remotely collect real-time information about water currents, pollution and ocean organisms.  They’re currently patroling the waters off the coast of California. 

Here’s a link to the project portal and a regularly updated video depicting the gliders movements.

Link

Here are a couple of links to an interesting study of the deep canyons that make the waves at Black’s so special.

http://scrippsnews.ucsd.edu/article_detail.cfm?article_num=591

http://science.whoi.edu/users/elgar/NCEX/ncex.html