Since 2011, large amounts of Sargassum is a recurrent problem in the Caribbean Sea, in the Gulf of America and tropical Atlantic. These events can cause significant economic, environmental and public health harm. These Sargassum Inundation Risk (SIR) fields provide an overview of the risk of sargassum coastal inundation in the Caribbean and Gulf of America regions. Using as core inputs the AFAI (Alternative Floating Algae Index) fields generated by the University of South Florida (USF), the algorithm analyses the AFAI values in the neighborhood (50-100 km) of each coastal pixel and, computing the difference between those values and a multiday baseline, classifies the risk into four categories: low (blue), warning (yellow), medium (orange) and high (red). In black are areas with not enough data. The vectors in the images represent the geostrophic currents. SIR is the result of the collaboration between the Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (NOAA/AOML), NOAA/CoastWatch/OceanWatch, and USF.
Have you recently seen Sargassum and taken a picture? Maybe while at the beach, walking along the boardwalk, or even out on a boat while fishing or snorkeling. By filling out the survey below and uploading your pictures onto this NOAA/AOML Reporting Form, you can help scientists improve Sargassum monitoring and research. Your contribution to this effort is greatly appreciated. Some of the information you entered will be shared with the Florida International University Atlantic/Caribbean Sargassum Epicollect database.