beware the blob
Massive 'blob' of odious seaweed slowly drifts towards Galveston beaches
Seaweed has been known to blanket Galveston and Gulf Coast beaches.
Something messy is headed to Galveston shores.
Part of a giant, 5,000-mile-wide swarm of Sargassum seaweed — dubbed a "blob" — is headed towards the Gulf of Mexico. Experts have been tracking the mass since Thursday, April 20.
These seaweed masses are also living ecosystems are said to provide shelter and food for more than 100 different species. They also prevent coastal erosion when washed toward the shore.
ABC13 meteorologist Travis Herzog broke down the bloom and its approach after he consulted with research scientists at NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) and the University of South Florida (USF).
According to the two researchers, it is difficult to predict exactly how much seaweed could wash ashore, as two Sargassum sources are along the Texas coast.
Dr. Chuanmin Hu at USF says two Sargassum sources are along the Texas coast. The first is a local source in the northwest Gulf that typically peaks along Texas beaches in April and May. (Locals may recall in 2014 when we had a record amount of Sargassum beach along the Texas coast around Memorial Day weekend.)
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Continue reading this story and accompanying video on our news partner ABC13.
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