Eyes Over Puget Sound (EOPS) is a news report, and is made available within two days of observation. http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/eap/mar_wat/eops/ We inform on current surface conditions in Puget Sound and links several scales of observation together. The report contains condition summaries, personal flight observations, aerial photographs, en route ferry data, satellite images, and mooring data collected by the Marine Monitoring Unit at Ecology. Ecology's Marine Monitoring Unit conducts several marine observations with a sampling frequency of minutes to 1 month. We use our routine commute flight between Kenmore Airbase and Olympia to document current marine water conditions by camera and supplement the information with satellite images and en route ferry data between Seattle WA and Victoria BC. This program is an example to optimize monitoring resources. You may subscribe or unsubscribe to the Eyes Over Puget Sound email listserv by going to this link: http://listserv.wa.gov/cgi-bin/wa?A0=ECOLOGY-EYES-OVER-PUGET-SOUND

1. Eyes Over Puget Sound
Surface Conditions Report
April 2011
Aerial observations on current Puget Sound conditions ftp://www.ecy.wa.gov/eap/Flight_Blog/

2. Observations between Olympia and Seattle
ftp://www.ecy.wa.gov/eap/Flight_Blog/
Contents:
In this April edition we highlight:
•Satellite and Victoria Clipper data collected en route between Seattle
and Victoria.
•Observations supported with mooring measurements made in
Whidbey Basin.
Flight information:
Due to La Niña and low cloud cover, aerial observations have been
challenging this year. We anticipate that visibility will improve for May.

3. Victoria Clipper detects strong algal bloom in
Main Basin of Puget Sound in April 2011
• Clear skies and fresh/nutrient‐rich water from Whidbey Basin has stimulated a
large algae bloom in central Puget Sound.
• Whidbey Basin water is noticeably more turbid and associated with increased
colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) fluorescence.
April 23
Description of Ecology’s Ferry Monitoring Program
http://www.turnerdesigns.com/newsletter/newsletter_0311_full.html#iia
Additional Information: Brandon Sackmann, PhD (bsac461@ecy.wa.gov)

4. Possession Sound (a) bloom ( ) and frontal systems ( )
near Mukilteo‐Clinton moving north with the tide (b, c)
a)
b) c)

5. Evolution of April 2011 spring bloom in Puget Sound
Victoria, BC April 23
Seattle, WA
Daily snapshots…
April 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

6. Satellite helps map spatial extent of spring bloom
MERIS Ocean Color – Chlorophyll Victoria Clipper – Chlorophyll Fluorescence
April 23 (approx. 10AM) April 23
9AM
5PM
• Agreement between V. Clipper chlorophyll
fluorescence and MERIS ocean color data.
• Smaller algae blooms seen in Carr, Case,
and Budd Inlets.

7. MERIS Satellite Ocean Color – Chlorophyll This year’s early blooms
• Nutrient‐rich water from
Whidbey Basin often spreads
through central sound.
• Fresh water leads to stratified
conditions and encourages algae
blooms.
7 March 19 March
23 April
6 April 17 April

8. Satellite products used to help assess water quality
• Chlorophyll, Maximum Chlorophyll
Index (MCI, sensitive to high algae
concentrations), CDOM Absorption,
and Total Suspended Material
reveal different information
23 April

9. Ecology
Mooring data
April 13‐27, 2010
Possession Sound
Oxygen levels >10mg/L
in the surface layer
(0‐ 16m) in Possession
Sound support satellite
images showing a strong
spring bloom in Whidbey
Basin and Central Basin.
Warmer and sunnier
conditions on 4/26 give
rise to enhanced oxygen
production and algae
growth.
http://www.ecy.wa.gov/a
pps/eap/marinewq/moo
rings/MUK01.asp#tab1

10. Long – Term Real – Time
Monitoring Mooring
Network Washington State Department Network
of Ecology’s long‐term marine
monitoring stations
Access Access
archived data archived data
at: at:
http://www.ecy.wa.
http://www.ecy.wa.g gov/programs/eap/
ov/apps/eap/marine mar_wat/moorings.
wq/mwdataset.asp html