Tag: global-warming

Upwelling, the Ocean’s Engine Beneath California’s Waters

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I recently revisited a book I enjoyed: The Blue Machine by physicist, oceanographer, and writer Helen Czerski. It is a beautifully clear exploration of the deep mechanics of the ocean and why those processes are so essential to keeping our planet cool, biodiverse, and stable.

One of the core ideas she returns to is ocean upwelling, a process that is especially important for those of us who live in California. Upwelling is one of those hidden forces that quietly underlies everything around us, and once you read about it, you realize that so much of what we know and love here simply would not exist without it.

Few marine processes are as impactful on the abundance of sea life off the coast of California as upwelling. It may not be a term you’ve heard before, but the natural oceanic process of upwelling is one of the most important engines driving climate, biological diversity, and the ocean’s food web.

It’s time to pay attention.

The abundance of sea life around some of California’s oil rigs is due in part to ocean upwelling near the continental shelf. (Photo: Erik Olsen)

In simple terms, upwelling is when cold, nutrient-rich water from the deep ocean rises to the surface, replacing warmer surface water. A churn. Along the California coast, prevailing northerly winds push surface waters offshore through the Coriolis effect, allowing deeper, colder water to rise in their place. Over the continental shelf off shore California, this upwelled water is rapidly brought into shallower depths, delivering nutrients directly into the photic zone where phytoplankton can grow. This is one reason continental shelves, including areas around offshore oil platforms (which I wrote about a few weeks ago), are biological hotspots.

California’s upwelling system is one of the most intensively studied in the world because it fuels the region’s crazy marine productivity.

In California, upwelling occurs year-round off the northern and central coast. It’s strongest in the spring and summer when northwesterly winds are at their most powerful. Upwelling is reduced in the fall and winter when winds are more variable.

Killer whales benefit from upwelling because the nutrient-rich waters fuel a surge in phytoplankton, which triggers an increase in the populations of smaller prey fish and marine mammals that orcas rely on for sustenance. (Photo: NOAA)

Researchers from institutions like the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Stanford University have used a variety of methods, including satellite observations and computer modeling, to study upwelling. One of the groundbreaking studies was the CalCOFI program (California Cooperative Oceanic Fisheries Investigations), which began in the late 1940s. It was a joint venture between Scripps and state and federal agencies to investigate the collapse of the sardine fishery. The study showed that the sardine collapse was not just due to overfishing but also large-scale ocean and climate variability, a finding that reshaped fisheries science. Over decades, it has expanded its scope and now provides invaluable long-term datasets that help scientists understand upwelling and its impacts on marine populations.

Deep, cold ocean water is rich in nutrients because organic matter from the surface sinks as it dies or is consumed, and is broken down at depth, releasing nutrients back into the water. When that water is brought to the surface through upwelling, it delivers a fresh supply of nutrients that fuels phytoplankton growth and supports the entire marine food web.

The food web is kind of like a ladder. Or a chain. Nutrient-rich cold waters support blooms of phytoplankton: microscopic, photosynthetic organisms (meaning they are teeming with chlorophyll) that produce oxygen and form the base of marine food webs. When these primary producers flourish, it triggers a chain reaction throughout the ecosystem: zooplankton feed on phytoplankton, small fish feed on zooplankton, and larger predators, including fish, marine mammals, seabirds, (and humans) reap the rewards! So a well functioning upwelling system is pretty important for abundant sea life.

Also, cold water holds more dissolved gases like oxygen compared to warm water (yet another reason that warming seas could be a problem in the future). Oxygen is crucial for marine animals. In cold, oxygen-rich environments, organisms can efficiently carry out metabolic processes, which leads to higher rates of feeding, growth, and reproduction, thereby further boosting biological productivity. Everyone wins!

But there’s a problem.

Sardines off the coast of California (Photo: NOAA)

Studies have shown that natural changes in climate, like El Niño and La Niña events have a significant impact on wildlife and the local ocean ecosystem. During El Niño events, warmer waters and weaker upwelling reduce nutrient levels in the California Current, lowering phytoplankton productivity and causing deadly ripples through the food web. La Niña conditions generally strengthen upwelling, bringing nutrient-rich water to the surface and boosting marine productivity.

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Climate change adds a potentially dangerous new layer of uncertainty: oceans are warming and growing more acidic, which can disrupt the timing, strength, and benefits of upwelling. While climate change does not necessarily mean more El Niño years, it does mean that El Niño events now play out in a warmer ocean, often amplifying their impacts and increasing stress on marine life, with serious consequences for some organisms.

Sea lions off the Southern California coast. (Photo: Erik Olsen)

We’ve been seeing some of these impacts. Take sea lions and large fish populations. In years of strong upwelling, prey is more abundant and closer to shore, allowing California sea lions to forage more efficiently and increasing populations. During weak upwelling years, prey becomes scarcer and more dispersed, forcing sea lions to travel farther for food, increasing stress and reducing reproductive success. Variations like this have been observed in recent years during El Niño periods along the California coast, showing how quickly marine ecosystems respond to shifts in ocean conditions.

Of course, upwelling isn’t just a California thing; it’s a global phenomenon that occurs in various parts of the world, from the coasts of Peru to the Canary Islands. It serves a similar churning life inducing function in these places, too. But California is sort of the poster child for scientists thanks to extensive research here and its vital role in a multi-billion dollar fishing industry that includes species like albacore tuna, swordfish, Dungeness crab, squid, and sardines.

Anacaps Island in California’s Channel Islands (Photo: Erik Olsen)

Upwelling is one of those critical oceanic processes that helps maintain our stable and immensely productive California waters, but warming ocean temperatures and changes in wind patterns could cause big problems, disrupting the timing and intensity of upwelling, putting sea life off California’s coast at risk.

Of course, I do not mean for this piece to be yet another downer about climate change. California’s coastal ecosystem is, in many ways, healthier today than it has been in decades, thanks to policies and practices put in place once we began to understand what was truly at stake. Whenever I get offshore and experience the ocean firsthand, I feel deeply grateful for what we have now, even as I remain aware that it is something we could still damage if we’re stupid and careless…which is not out of the question. The encouraging part is that Californians have shown, again and again, a real capacity to rally when it matters. For now, then, it is worth appreciating what we have and getting out there to experience it whenever you get the chance.

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John Isaacs, the Maverick Oceanographer Who Wanted to Tow Icebergs to California

An AI rendering of Isaacs’ bold idea (Midjourney)
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California’s water crises have always inspired bold solutions, but few ideas rival the sheer audacity of John Isaacs’ proposal to tow a giant Antarctic iceberg to San Diego. A brilliant and unconventional researcher at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Isaacs made waves in 1949 with his imaginative, though controversial, plans to quench California’s chronic droughts by harnessing the frozen reservoirs of the polar regions.

Isaacs’ career was defined by his boundary-pushing ideas. A polymath with a keen interest in marine biology, engineering, and climate science, he often operated at the intersections of disciplines, challenging conventional thinking. The iceberg-towing proposal exemplified his knack for blending vision and pragmatism—if one were willing to stretch the definition of “pragmatic.”

Isaacs theorized that large Antarctic icebergs could be wrapped in insulation to slow their melting and then towed by tugboats up the Pacific coast. The journey, spanning thousands of miles, would end with the iceberg positioned off the coast of Southern California, where its meltwater could be harvested to replenish reservoirs. Isaacs estimated that a single large iceberg, some the size of Manhattan, could supply tens of billions of gallons of freshwater—enough to offset drought conditions for millions of people.

John D. Isaacs (Scripps Institution of Oceanography)

The concept wasn’t a fleeting thought. Isaacs expanded on his idea in 1956, suggesting the capture of an eight-billion-ton iceberg—20 miles long, 3,000 feet wide, and 1,000 feet deep—and towing it to San Clemente Island off San Diego in approximately 200 days. He even calculated that a fleet of six ocean-going tugs could accomplish the feat, taking about six months to tow the iceberg from the 65th parallel south to the Californian coast.

In October 1973, the RAND Corporation took Isaacs’ vision further with an extensive report titled “Antarctic Icebergs as a Global Fresh Water Source” for the National Science Foundation. This 96-page document, authored by J.L. Hult and N.C. Ostrander, provided the most detailed scheme to date, transforming the theoretical idea into a more structured and mathematical model. It envisioned the creation of an “iceberg train” and delved into the technicalities and logistics of towing icebergs across the ocean. Hult explained, “Bringing icebergs to where the water is needed was suggested by John Isaacs of Scripps Institute of Oceanography in the 1950s. It is our job to show how practical it is.” However, the plan was not without eccentricities—such as the suggestion of using a floating nuclear power plant to supply the energy needed for the operation. The RAND report exemplified the ambition of its era, though many of its assumptions leaned heavily on theoretical modeling rather than practical viability.

AI rendering of an iceberg being dismantled (Midjourney)

Isaacs wasn’t alone in dreaming big. His proposal came at a time when other researchers and engineers were exploring similarly outlandish ideas, like seeding clouds with silver iodide to induce rain or building massive aqueducts from Alaska. But Isaacs’ iceberg scheme captured imaginations for its sheer romance and its symbolic uniting of Earth’s polar extremes with parched California landscapes.

Isaacs knew his plan faced enormous technical, logistical, and financial hurdles. For one, towing an iceberg would require immense energy and coordination, as well as a fleet of powerful ships. The iceberg’s tendency to melt during transit—especially when entering warmer waters—posed another significant obstacle. To mitigate this, Isaacs suggested covering the iceberg in reflective materials or insulating blankets to slow heat absorption.

Then there was the issue of economics. Calculations revealed that the cost of transporting a single iceberg could run into the billions, far outweighing the price of more conventional water solutions like desalination plants or water recycling programs. Critics also worried about ecological disruption, from changing ocean currents to the impact on marine ecosystems along the iceberg’s route.

While Isaacs’ iceberg idea was never realized, it sparked a wave of creative thinking about unconventional water solutions. Today, some of the principles behind his ideas have resurfaced in modern innovations. Advanced engineering methods, including climate-resilient infrastructure and adaptive water management, owe a debt to the exploratory spirit of Isaacs’ era.

AI rendering of an aqueduct built to carry water from Alaska to California (Midjourney)

The iceberg-towing concept is occasionally revisited, especially as climate change intensifies water scarcity. For example, in recent years, researchers in the United Arab Emirates have considered similar plans to bring freshwater from polar ice to arid regions. Advances in materials science and energy efficiency have made some aspects of Isaacs’ vision more feasible, though the logistics remain daunting.

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John Isaacs’ career extended far beyond icebergs. He contributed to deep-sea exploration, studied the effects of nuclear fallout on marine life, and was an early advocate for understanding the ocean’s role in climate systems. His interdisciplinary approach and willingness to embrace unorthodox solutions left a lasting impact on oceanography and environmental science.

Isaacs’ iceberg proposal remains a testament to his fearless creativity and his deep commitment to solving humanity’s greatest challenges. While the world never saw an iceberg floating past Los Angeles, Isaacs’ bold thinking continues to inspire researchers grappling with the complex interplay of science, technology, and the environment.

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