Underwater Gulf Temps

[Doug_Kiesling]

I just got back from a scuba diving vacation in the Gulf, and the under water temps are very warm. The average temp around the Dry Tortugas at 85 feet under water was 85F. The crew said that the normal temps for that depth where we were diving should have been in the lower 70s that deep.
This could be another very brutal cane season.

Oh yeah and hauling the Sony PD-170 around under water is like trying to move a 55 gallon drum. It is a beast but I was able to get some cool video.

 

[rdale]

Ice age?

 

[Doug_Kiesling]

Ice age?
[/b]

Huh? How do you get ice age out of 10-15 degree above normal below sea surface temps?

 

[rdale]

A joke. If the media gets a hold of this - they'll be screaming "Bush Kills Fish" from the global warming...

 

[Doug_Kiesling]

A joke. If the media gets a hold of this - they'll be screaming "Bush Kills Fish" from the global warming...
[/b]

Yeah maybe since some people always try to blame acts of nature on people when they should blame nature and it is a fact of life.

But at 114 feet it is 81F

Here is my dive log.

 

[Jim Leonard]

Sea-surface temperatures( SST's) are only a part of the puzzle for tropical cyclones. The sst's in the GOM every summer and fall are more than warm enough to support a major hurricane. There are many other reasons that go into supporting an intense storm. One main ingredient is light shear in the deep layer of the atmosphere, another is a deep warm moist inflow from the deep tropics. Hurricane "Hugo" reached category 5 strength at longitude 54W some 400 miles east of the Lesser Antilles over an ocean temperature of 83 to 84 degrees. Hurricanes that have a tight low level center with an strong outflow channel especially if it is connected to a strong jetstream these features are more likely to cause the storm to reach an extreme intensity than just sst's alone, recent examples are hurricane Charley and Wilma just before landfall on the SW coast of Florida.
Where sst's are more critical are areas in the mid-atlantic from the west coast of Africa to the Lesser Antilles. This year these temps. are most part slightly above average but areas around 30 to 35W there are some cool patches. Compared to 2005 these are much cooler in those areas. The Caribbean is above average but the trade winds have been stronger in recent weeks compared to last year at this time so this may cool the sst's somewhat in the weeks to come.
Jim
http://www.cyclonejim.com

 

[B Ozanne]

Was there any indication this was more widespread? Or is it just a microscale event where you were diving?

 

[David Wolfson]

Here's the deal, from NOAA TCHP group:

 

[Jim Leonard]

Here is the most current sst anomaly for the entire atlantic basin.
http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/hurr..._lastweek.shtml
Jim
http://www.cyclonejim.com

 

[David Wolfson]

I like this site, too: NOAA SST anomalies
Clicking on any date gets you a bigger image.

 

[Jim Leonard]

I like this site, too: NOAA SST anomalies
Clicking on any date gets you a bigger image.
[/b]

Thanks, Dave!
That is the only site you can compare this year to other recent years...
Jim

 

[Doug_Kiesling]

Was there any indication this was more widespread? Or is it just a microscale event where you were diving?
[/b]

From my dive's, it was from the Tortugas to off shore from Naples was the area where it was warmer then normal down deep according to the crew and other divers I was with. I'm already planning on going back next month to dive the Gulf and see how warm it is deep under at the 85-100 foot range.

 

[beaudodson]

Just got back from diving in the Gulf of Mexico - off of Destin. Very warm waters all the way to 80 feet. I was surprised. Normally you run into at least a cold/cool pocket. Waters are defin warm. Hopefully we won't have another bad year for the Gulf States. Let's hope for some fish storms!