(HOODSPORT, WA) -- Summertime has brought teal waters back
to parts of the Hood Canal again. Photos from satellite imagery show
brightly-colored waters appearing to spread along the western side of Kitsap
Peninsula, thanks to a huge bloom of microscopic phytoplankton. KOMO-TV reports
the blooms have appeared each summer over the past few years, after taking a
roughly 10-year hiatus. Teri King, a marine water quality specialist with the
University of Washington, says likely causes of the bloom are “Hood Canal’s
warm, stratified waters with limited nutrients. Water in Hood Canal does not
always mix well, meaning the upper layer of water can have different
temperature and salinity from deeper layers.
