Meet the sargassum belt. It's 5,000-mile long and weighs over 10 billion tons. And it's circling around the Gulf of Mexico and the mid-Atlantic. Here's what you need to know about it.
Sargassum begins to rot after about 48 hours on land, releasing irritants like hydrogen sulfide, a hazard to anyone with respiratory issues like asthma. Oh, and the resulting smell resembles manure or rotten eggs — not a great spring break aroma., causing little disruption to beach-going.
More than double the width of the contiguous U.S., the mass fluctuates in size from month to month, with the high point generally landing in the summer. "What we thought was just a massive bloom has only gotten bigger and bigger and bigger each year," Barnes adds.Sargassum seaweed inundated the shores of Le Gosier on the French islands of Guadeloupe in November 2022.Sargassum seaweed inundated the shores of Le Gosier on the French islands of Guadeloupe in November 2022.
Those elevated nutrients then shoot out over the surface of the ocean, acting as a fertilizer for sargassum patches.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
So Florida: Massive alligator crushes through metal fence at Florida golf courseIt's a competition no one asked for – how would a metal fence fair against an alligator? Easy answer – it doesn't, and the alligator definitely wins! But, the video is awesome to watch.
Read more »
Gov. DeSantis hosts ‘Exposing the DEI scam’ roundtable discussion“I think that the supreme court is going to recognize that is not okay — that’s not equal treatment under law,” Gov. DeSantis said.
Read more »
Smelly seaweed spanning 5,000 miles poses menace to Florida beachesVisible from space, the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt can 'choke corals, wreak havoc on coastal ecosystems, and diminish water and air quality as it rots'.
Read more »
Florida restaurants kept tips, charged staff for uniforms: DOL2 Florida restaurants kept staff tips to cover dine-and-dash customers and illegally charged workers for their uniforms, the DOL says
Read more »