OCEAN: Houthis & more – 21st May 2024

Ahoy from BA! This is Rorshok’s Ocean Update from the 21st of May twenty twenty-four. A summary of what's going down in the 70% surface of the Earth covered in saltwater.

The EU Naval Force recently advised ships in the Indian Ocean to be extra careful because of the recent security issues, like drone and missile attacks by Houthi rebels, and recommended some measures. To stay safe, ships should consider taking different routes, change their course and speed randomly, and use the automatic identification system as little as possible. Ships in the Western Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden should report any issues to the Maritime Security Center- Horn of Africa and the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations. Ships registered with the Maritime Security Center get on-time updates on security incidents.

Unfortunately, because of the ships rerouting due to Houthi attacks, the Suez Canal expects to earn nine billion US dollars in the twenty twenty-four-twenty twenty-five fiscal year — half a billion US dollars less than in the previous fiscal year. A naval coalition led by the United States is trying to reduce the attacks, but the Houthis keep targeting vessels that have links with Israel. Osama Rabie, the Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority, said that almost 4,000 vessels rerouted. The canal is still crucial, handling 12% of global trade. The Suez Canal Authority has an annual budget of twelve billion US dollars and plans to achieve a profit of almost five billion dollars.

From the Suez to the Panama Canal. The authorities have announced that from the 1st of June, the number of daily transits will be increased to thirty-two. This follows a previous increase from twenty-four to thirty-one vessels per day due to improving weather and climate conditions after almost one year of drought. This announcement convinced important shipping companies like Maersk and Yang Ming to pass again through the canal, after months of rerouting. The news is reassuring for global trade, but coming back to normal transit conditions (like before the drought) will depend on the weather: the ocean freight intelligence platform Xeneta has declared that the repercussions of the recent drought affecting the Panama Canal might persist for years.

Moving on, the hurricane season in the Eastern Pacific Ocean started on Wednesday the 15th. Forecasters from the National Hurricane Center are watching two areas of disturbed weather, but their chances of becoming tropical storms are low. One disturbance is off the coast of Mexico, and might merge with another disturbance nearby, lowering its development chances. Mexico expects almost twenty named storms this season, with around ten becoming hurricanes. The first named storm in the Pacific Ocean will be Aletta.

Up nexxt, on Monday the 13th, two injured loggerhead sea turtles called Cayman and Finley crawled back into the Atlantic Ocean after rehab at the Loggerhead Marinelife Center in Juno Beach, Florida. Cayman arrived in February with a flipper injury from a fishing line and underwent successful surgery. Finley arrived in April with a fishing hook in his shoulder, which was easily removed. Researchers released the turtles on a beach near the center, located just north of West Palm Beach.

Still in the Atlantic. Researchers of the Georgia Institute of Technology found that a weakening of a major ocean current in prehistoric times led to fewer nutrients and harmed ocean life in the North Atlantic. They studied ocean sediments and discovered that about 13,000 years ago, the Gulf Stream slowed down, reducing nutrient flow and marine life activity. This supports predictions that today's climate change might weaken ocean currents, leading to similar problems. The study also developed new methods to understand how nutrients move in the ocean, helping predict future impacts on ocean health and fisheries.

In other news, new research from the journal Limnology and Oceanography published on Wednesday the 15th says that climate change could drastically alter jellyfish and gelatinous zooplankton populations in the Arctic Ocean. Seven out of eight species will move further north due to changing ocean conditions. Scientists used three-dimensional models and oceanographic data to study these shifts. The findings suggest that these changes could impact fish populations and the general ecosystem. Dmitrii Pantiukhin, the study's lead author, emphasized climate change’s potential to modify Arctic ecosystems and affect the entire food web.

Want to know more? Check out the Rorshok Arctic Update with the link in the show notes!

From the Arctic to the Southern Ocean. A study, published in the journal Nature on Wednesday the 15th, found that dust blowing into oceans helps tiny marine plants called phytoplankton to grow. Australian researchers studied data from sensors in the Southern Ocean that measure nutrients. Phytoplankton needs iron, which the dust provides, and light to thrive. This plant is the base of the marine food web and helps store carbon in the ocean. According to the study, dust supports about one-third of the phytoplankton in the Southern Ocean. During ice ages, more dust meant more phytoplankton growth. Jakob Weis, the lead author, said this information could help make climate models more accurate, improving our understanding of how oceans store carbon and regulate carbon dioxide levels.

Talking about dust, Ph.D. researcher Sabine Haalboom from the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, studied the effects of dust clouds created by deep-sea mining in the Pacific Ocean. Her research shows that most stirred-up material from mining settles quickly, but some particles remain suspended and visible over long distances, affecting the typically clear waters. These findings suggest deep-sea mining could significantly impact deep-sea life, which relies on scarce food resources. Haalboom and her co-promoter, Henko de Stigter, call for more research to understand the full impact of the dust clouds before drawing definitive conclusions about the environmental effects of deep-sea mining.

Let’s have a look at the Black Sea. On Friday the 17th, Ukrainian forces launched a significant drone assault along the Russian coast, striking the cities of Novorossiysk and Tuapse. They hit oil refineries recently repaired from earlier attacks, among other targets. Ukraine's military intelligence confirmed over thirty explosions. Ukrainian drones also targeted Sevastopol, a Crimean port, on the night before. Ukraine's military intelligence also confirmed another drone attack on an oil base in Russia's Rostov Oblast on Wednesday the 15th.

Studio nab has unveiled the Mediterranean Alliance Rescue (or MAR) project, designed to install versatile rescue platforms throughout the Mediterranean Sea. Led by Nicolas Abdelkader, the MAR seeks to save lives, preserve biodiversity, and produce clean energy. These platforms will be strategically positioned to cover extensive areas, enhancing the efficiency of rescue operations. Each platform, equipped with medical facilities and energy self-sufficiency, minimizes environmental impact. Coastal platforms will focus on producing low-carbon electricity, while those further offshore will aid in ecological restoration and scientific research. The MAR project addresses the Mediterranean's severe migratory, ecological, and energy crises, highlighting the need for international cooperation to protect human lives and the marine environment.

More about the Mediterranean Sea as the Norwegian ship Ocean Viking, chartered by the NGO SOS Méditerranée, rescued thirty-five Bangladeshi migrants from a fiberglass boat in distress off Malta between Sunday the 19th and Monday the 20th. All the rescued people, who had departed from Benghazi, Libya, were men. They were rescued shortly after 4 a.m. in the joint search area between Malta and Italy and received medical care on board.

And to wrap up this edition, the impact fund Ocean Fourteen Capital Fund I, dedicated to improving the blue economy, has secured a total of 201 million euros (almost 220 million US dollars). The fund will support marine-focused innovations, creating up to forty million jobs. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Fourteen, called Life below Water, is guiding the investment, which will focus on aquaculture, alternative proteins, plastic waste reduction, ecosystem protection, and overfishing prevention. Chris Gorell Barnes, the co-founder of Ocean Fourteen Capital Limited, remarked on the urgent need to revamp capital markets to combat climate change. High-profile backers include Nestlé and the Green Earth Impact Fund, managed by Schroders and BlueOrchard.

Aaand that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us!

We appreciate all our listeners on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other platforms, especially those who subscribe and share the show with their friends and loved ones! If you ever want to share an episode by sending a small MP3 file to someone through a messaging app, you can download every episode directly from our website at www.rorshok.com/ocean. The link is also available in the show notes. Thank you!

See you next week!