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The AO is the oscillation of pressure difference between the middle and high latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere. Negative phases occur when there is relatively high pressure over the polar regions and low pressure over the mid-latitudes, with positive phases featuring the opposite characteristics. Since the 1970?s, the index has been predominately positive. Positive phases [...]

The El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), or the cyclical movement of heat in the tropical Pacific Ocean, affects atmospheric phenomena throughout the world. Its effects are the most pronounced during the winter, when the temperature difference between the atmosphere and the oceans is the greatest. The cycle affects the strength and position of the Pacific Jet [...]

The El Ni?o-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), or the cyclical movement of heat in the tropical Pacific Ocean, affects atmospheric phenomena throughout the world. Its effects are the most pronounced during the winter, when the temperature difference between the atmosphere and the oceans is the greatest. The cycle affects the strength and position of the Pacific Jet [...]

The El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), or the cyclical movement of heat in the tropical Pacific Ocean, affects atmospheric phenomena throughout the world. Its effects are the most pronounced during the winter, when the temperature difference between the atmosphere and the oceans is the greatest. The cycle affects the strength and position of the Pacific Jet [...]

The El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), or the cyclical movement of heat in the tropical Pacific Ocean, affects atmospheric phenomena throughout the world. Its effects are the most pronounced during the winter, when the temperature difference between the atmosphere and the oceans is the greatest. The cycle affects the strength and position of the Pacific Jet [...]

The El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), or the cyclical movement of heat in the tropical Pacific Ocean, affects atmospheric phenomena throughout the world. Its effects are the most pronounced during the winter, when the temperature difference between the atmosphere and the oceans is the greatest. The cycle affects the strength and position of the Pacific Jet [...]

Tropical cyclones are one of Earth’s mechanisms for distributing heat from the sweltering tropical regions to the frigid poles. Once the winds inside these cyclones reach 75 miles per hour, they are classified as hurricanes. There are five categories of hurricanes, with category five hurricanes being the most severe. Warm ocean water is necessary to [...]

Coral reefs form natural barriers that protect shorelines from the wind, swells and storms of the sea. Without coral reefs, parts of Florida would be underwater. Seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter (Source: World Wildlife Fund. Windows on the Wild: Oceans of Life, An Educators Guide to Exploring Marine Biodiversity. www.worldwildlife.org.)

According to a 2004 survey by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, nearly eight out of 10 American adults believe that man-made stresses endanger coastal regions and oceans, and that these factors may lead to long-term damage and serious problems. Seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter (Source: American Association for the Advancement of Science: [...]

Not only do hurricanes transport heat and moisture from the tropics to more northern latitudes, they also stir up nutrients from cold water in deep seas. When these nutrients reach the ocean surface, they can cause phytoplankton (microscopic plant) blooms in “ocean deserts” – areas that typically have very little marine life growing in them. [...]

Every year, about 15 miles of wetlands in the Barataria-Terrebonne Estuary of Southern Louisiana are lost. Even more astounding – it is estimated that one-half acre of the area’s coastal wetlands are converted to open water every 15 minutes! Seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter This message aligns to Ocean Literacy Essential Principles and Fundamental Concepts: [...]

The maximum sustained winds of Hurricane Camille in 1969 were estimated to be around 200 mph, but because the storm destroyed all wind-recording instruments when it made landfall in Mississippi, the actual sustained winds will never be known! Camille is the second most intense hurricane to hit the U.S. on record, resulting in more than [...]

In order to intensify, hurricanes need warm sea surface temperatures. One of the reasons that the Gulf of Mexico is so prone to hurricanes is an ocean characteristic known as the Yucatan Channel Loop Current. Found in the southeastern part of the Gulf, extending from the mouth of the Mississippi River down through the Florida [...]

The Galveston Hurricane (1900) had storm tides (storm surge plus astronomical tides) of eight to 15 feet, which inundated all of Galveston Island, and parts of the Texas coast. The flooding is thought to be largely responsible for the 6,000 to 12,000 deaths attributed to the storm, and property damages of about 30 million dollars. [...]

The wetlands in southern Louisiana act as a buffer to help moderate flooding during storm events. Erosion of the Mississippi delta and sea level rise threaten these wetlands. Louisiana’s coast, which contains 40 percent of US wetlands, is disappearing into the Gulf of Mexico at a rate of 35 square miles per year. That is [...]

Hurricane Katrina was the deadliest hurricane to hit the U.S. since 1928, resulted in a record 2,773,000 insurance claims, and is the costliest hurricane in U.S. history approximately double the cost of Hurricane Andrew. Seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter (Source: Hurricane Season of 2005: Impacts on US P/C Insurance Markets in 2006 and Beyond, Insurance [...]

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina created storm surge flooding 25 to 28 feet above normal tide levels along the Mississippi coast, and 10 to 20 feet above normal levels along Louisiana’s southeastern coast. Storm surge extended several miles inland in Mississippi, and breached levees in New Orleans. The storm resulted in 75 billion dollars in damages, [...]

The northern Gulf Coast is second only to Florida in terms of regional lightning strike frequency. While large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns and the region’s proximity to the ocean are factors that contribute to this regional phenomenon, local geography affects the frequency of lightning strikes. For example, land adjacent to convex-shaped coastlines, such as Mobile Bay, [...]

Hurricanes contribute significantly to coastal land loss and can cause the formation of varying sized ponds of water on land. Immediately following the 2005 hurricane season, Louisiana had lost around 219 square miles of land to open water – that’s roughly the size of Chicago! By the end of 2006, only about 19 square miles [...]

More than half of hurricanes that make landfall produce at least one tornado. Tornadoes associated with hurricanes most often occur in the right-front quadrant of the hurricane, but can occur in rainbands and away from the hurricane?s center. As Hurricane Ivan (2004) moved inland, it produced heavy rains and more than 100 tornadoes. Hurricane Katrina [...]