Alaska Ocean Observing System

Ocean Observing News Archive

orca in Prince William Sound(July 2009) Spotlight on Orcas

Prince William Sound is home to approximately 30-200 “resident” fish eating killer whales, and seven “transient” marine mammal eating whales (with occasional transients visiting from the Gulf of Alaska). There are also more than 600 killer whales in the Gulf of Alaska that can be seen in or near the Sound. Right: Orca in Prince William Sound. (Craig Matkin)

Orcas are considered a sentinel species, and their health reflects the health of an ecosystem. Craig Matkin and Eva Saulitis of the North Gulf Oceanic Society have studied the orcas of the Sound since the mids1980s. The population of transient whales ( the AT1 pod) in the Sound has decreased by two thirds since 1989.

What do orcas sound like? Eva Saulitis knows; she did her Master’s thesis at the University of Alaska Fairbanks on the vocalizations and foraging behavior of the AT1 transient whales of Prince William Sound.

bears at kayak island

(July 2009) New weather station installed at Cape St. Elias

Coordinated efforts between the Prince William Sound Science Center, the Prince William Sound RCAC, and the US Coast Guard resulted in the installation of a new weather station at Cape St. Elias, located southeast of Prince William Sound on Kayak Island. Right:  Two local residents inspect the weather station. (David Weagley)

installation crewLeft:  The station was installed with the help of a Sitka-based air crew operating out of the Cordova air station. From the left:  AET Fernado delCid, AST David Paquin, Joe Banta, Lt. Nate Hudson, Lt. Cdr. Nate Coulter, Rob Campbell. (AET Ryan Feldmei) See larger image

(July 2009) Mysterious blob off Arctic coast has researchers wondering

bucket of goo"Something big and strange is floating through the Chukchi Sea between Wainwright and Barrow ..." (Anchorage Daily News)

A smelly blob of material has formed off the Arctic coast in recent days, causing more than a little consternation on the part of area residents and scientists alike. The mass is thought to be biological in origin, possibly a decaying Phaeocystis algal bloom mixed with diatoms.

Right: A sample of slimy goo (courtesy North Slope Borough).

Other media links

(July 2009) Harbor observation station launched in Seward

Seward City News | AOOS funding has made possible what scientists hope will be a statewide network of stations that collect data on atmospheric and ocean conditions near Alaska’s harbors.

The equipment is being installed on the breakwater crest at Seward’s harbor entrance. When completed, 2-minute averages of wind speed and direction, air temperature, barometric pressure, humidity, and solar radiation will be reported to displays in the Seward Harbormaster's Office, on the data section of the AOOS website. Underwater sensors will measure water temperature and conductivity every second, with hourly averages used to compute and report water salinity and density. Tide level will be reported every six minutes and wave conditions every hour. Read full story

(April 2009) Active volcano threatens: UAF team responds

It took just a week of long days for a team from the University of Alaska Fairbanks School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences to assemble funding and equipment to place High Frequency radar stations close to Mt. Redoubt in Cook Inlet, an active volcano threatening an oil storage facility. The radar stations were active for several weeks, providing real-time surface current data to be used in oil spill trajectory models in the event of an oil spill. Funding was provided by UAF, the Cook Inlet Regional Citizens Advisory Council and Alaska Sea Grant Program.