Archive: Harmful Algal Bloom Reddit "Ask Us Anything"
On May 5, NOAA talks harmful algal blooms and forecasting
Ask Us Anything!
With harmful algal bloom (HAB) season beginning over the next few months in several areas of the U.S., this is your chance to talk with two NOAA scientists who study the impacts of harmful algal blooms and forecast bloom conditions for various U.S. coastal regions.
Reddit "Ask Us Anything" Details (Archive)
- Who: NOAA scientists Richard Stumpf and Karen Kavanaugh
- What: Reddit Science "Ask Us Anything." Richard and Karen are ready to answer your questions about harmful algal blooms and how we forecast blooms. Get your questions ready about HAB science, impacts, how we forecast a bloom, and even what it's like to work at NOAA. Ask them anything!
- When: 5 May, 2016, at 1:00 p.m. EDT
- Where: Reddit.com/r/Science/
Meet the Scientists
Karen Kavanaugh is the HAB Product Coordinator for NOAA's Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services. Karen leads a group of analysts that provide operational forecasts for HABs of Karenia brevis (red tide) in the Gulf of Mexico. These forecasts are used by public health officials, natural resource managers, and scientists to support their bloom response efforts.
Dr. Richard Stumpf is an oceanographer with NOAA's National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science. Dr. Stumpf works to improve forecasts of harmful algal blooms and develop and apply remotely sensed satellites to coastal regions. His research has included most of the U.S. east and Gulf coasts, the upper Great Lakes, and central California.
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What's a HAB?
Harmful algal blooms, or HABs, occur when colonies of algae—simple plants that live in the sea and freshwater—grow out of control while producing toxic or harmful effects on people, fish, shellfish, marine mammals, and birds. The human illnesses caused by HABs, though rare, can be debilitating or even fatal. HABs are a growing problem in every U.S. coastal and Great Lakes state.
