LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The National Weather Service is warning of the potential for a thunderstorm to materialize over Lake County on Monday morning.
Parts of Northern California, including the North Bay, area under a red flag warning through Monday evening due to the potential for lightning.
Lake County is not under a red flag warning. However, the National Weather Service said an isolated dry thunderstorm will be possible over Lake County into Monday morning.
The forecast called for monsoonal moisture to spread north across the region overnight, with that moisture expected to aid in a slight chance of a dry thunderstorm over Lake County.
Winds of up to 10 miles per hour also are forecast for Monday.
Besides that storm potential, the National Weather Service said Lake County can look forward to a week of warm, sunny and dry conditions “typical of mid-summer.”
Temperatures across Lake County throughout the week are forecast to hover in the low to high 90s, with higher temperatures expected this weekend. Nighttime temperatures will range from the high 50s to low 60s.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Firefighters have stopped a fire that burned several structures in a Clearlake Oaks neighborhood.
The fire was first reported shortly before 6 p.m. Sunday in the area of Second and Hoover streets.
Radio traffic stated that authorities had received multiple 911 calls about the fire and associated explosions.
Incident command requested deputies respond to assist with dispersing a large crowd and to help with evacuating a two-block radius.
Over the radio, Lake County Fire Chief Willie Sapeta also requested aircraft and an immediate need strike team, reporting that there were spot fires moving through the community.
There also are reports of multiple downed fire lines throughout the fire area.
Sapeta estimated that four structures were on fire, reporting minutes later another structure was starting to catch fire.
Additional fire units are being requested from the Williams area.
Shortly before 6:30 p.m., radio traffic indicated the area from Hoover to Butler had been evacuated.
Scene reports stated the fire had been held to a total of four structures.
Shortly after 7 p.m., air resources reported that the threat to the wildland fire had been stopped.
By 7:15 p.m., the fire’s advance was stopped, with incident command reporting that it had been contained to the block of origin.
Scanner traffic also indicated that at least two firefighters were being treated for heat-related illness.
Due to the amount of water that’s been drawn from the Clearlake Oaks County Water District, Northshore Fire Chief Mike Ciancio reported over the air that the district is low and he requested three water tenders to respond.
Ciancio also asked for Lake County Animal Care and Control to come to the scene due to multiple pets that were in the structures. “They’re running everywhere.”
Pacific Gas and Electric reported that 161 customers in Clearlake Oaks were out of power as of 7:05 p.m. The power was restored shortly before 8:30 p.m., About two hours ahead of the original estimate.
Red Cross has been requested to provide assistance to five adults, one child and at least a dozen pets — from birds to cats and dogs — from three family residences, according to radio reports.
The incident was terminated at 10:30 p.m., with the final units clearing.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
Cassandra M. Johnson, Texas State University and Shailen Singh, Texas State University
Child care insecurity is a term we’ve come up with to describe limited or uncertain access to adequate child care.
It factors into many Americans’ decisions whether to even have a child. Parents – mothers especially – often weigh the cost of child care in their decision to return to work. And when a kid has a disability, there may not even be child care options that meet the family’s needs.
And just as with food insecurity, increasing access is necessary. However, access alone will not address the problem.
Why child care insecurity matters
Female caregivers in the U.S. have traditionally borne most of the burden of finding and managing child care and providing care directly. This results in stalled careers, higher stress and lower earnings.
When schools and child care facilities were forced to close or restrict access during the COVID-19 pandemic, millions more American parents and guardians – men and women alike – found themselves suddenly facing child care insecurity. This affected their well-being and mental health.
A group of health psychologists surveyed parents throughout the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. About 4% of the parents reported having high stress levels “before COVID-19.” But by May 2020, that share had ballooned to 22%.
Meanwhile, sociologists who surveyed and interviewed U.S. mothers in April and May of 2020 found that not having child care affected mothers’ interpersonal interactions – such as increased frustration with their children – and quality of life.
How common is it?
In January 2020, 26 million working caregivers in the U.S. “did not have an in-home care option” – whether a parent, grandparent or older sibling – for children 14 years and younger, according to a Rand Corp. analysis of data from the U.S. Department of Labor.
A World Bank Report from December 2020 estimated that globally, over 40% of all children who needed quality child care or preschool in 2018 did not have access to it. That’s nearly 350 million kids.
President Joe Biden has proposed some national policies to address child care insecurity in the U.S. – for example, limiting the percentage of income families need to spend on child care to 7% by providing subsidies to care providers. This would likely improve access.
However, child care insecurity is not always based on economic constraints. The quality of child care, location, hours and access for children with disabilities can all play a role as well.
The Conversation U.S. publishes short, accessible explanations of newsworthy subjects by academics in their areas of expertise.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The Lake County Board of Supervisors will honor probation officers this week and consider new rules for bidding for services.
The board will meet beginning at 9 a.m. Tuesday, July 20, in the board chambers on the first floor of the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport.
The meeting ID is 951 9209 8576, pass code 163326. The meeting also can be accessed via one tap mobile at +16699006833,,95192098576#,,,,*163326#.
All interested members of the public that do not have internet access or a Mediacom cable subscription are encouraged to call 669-900-6833, and enter the Zoom meeting ID and pass code information above.
At 9:06 a.m., the board will present a proclamation designating the week of July 18 to 24 as Probation Officers Week in Lake County.
At 9:30 a.m., a public hearing, continued from July 13, will take place with the supervisors sitting as Lake County Sanitation District Board of Directors. They will consider a resolution of delinquent sewer fees for the Lake County Sanitation District.
At 11 a.m., the board will hold a public hearing to consider an ordinance amending Article X of Chapter Two of the Lake County Code to include further requirements for exemptions from competitive bidding and requirements for bid protests.
Those changes will include purchases during a state of emergency, requirements for bidding every five years and situations where competitive bidding would produce no economic benefit for the county.
The full agenda follows.
CONSENT AGENDA
5.1: (a) Approve the purchase of an animal control box in the amount of $30,776.15 and (b) authorize the Animal Care and Control director or his designee to issue a purchase order.
5.2: Approve the continuation of a local health emergency related to the 2019 Coronavirus (COVID-19) as proclaimed by the Lake County Public Health officer.
5.3: Approve the continuation of a local health emergency and order prohibiting the endangerment of the community through the unsafe removal, transport, and disposal of fire debris for the LNU Complex wildfire.
5.4: Approve the continuation of a local emergency due to the Mendocino Complex fire incident (River and Ranch fires).
5.5: Approve the continuation of a local emergency due to COVID-19.
5.6: Approve the continuation of a local emergency due to the Pawnee fire incident.
5.7: Approve the continuation of an emergency declaration for drought conditions.
5.8: Approve the continuation of a local emergency in Lake County in response to the LNU lightning complex wildfire event.
5.9: Adopt Resolution amending Resolution No, 2021-68 Establishing Position Allocations for Fiscal Year 2021-2022, Budget Unit No. 4012, Health Services Administration.
5.10: Approve amendment five to the agreement between the county of Lake and Evan Bloom, MD, MPH, to assist the Lake County Public Health officer during the COVID-19 crisis response and authorize the board chair to sign.
5.11: Adopt proclamation designating the week of July 18-24 as Probation Officers Week in Lake County.
5.12: a) Adopt resolution revising the fiscal year 2021-2022 adopted budget of the county of Lake by canceling reserves in Fund 254 Lake County Sanitation District Southeast Capital Improvement Reserve Designation, in the amount of $82,000 to make appropriations in the Budget Unit 8354, Object Code 783.62-74 to purchase a mobile generator to provide backup power to Lift Stations #1, 2, 3, and 4. (b) Waive the formal bidding process, pursuant to Lake County Code Section 2-38.2, not in the public interest. (c) approve purchase of a used, low hours (2,000 hours) Multiquip 300kVa portable generator and authorize the Special Districts administrator/assistant purchasing agent to issue and sign a purchase order not to exceed $82,000 to Generator World of Sacramento.
TIMED ITEMS
6.2, 9:06 a.m.: Presentation of proclamation designating the week of July 18-24 as Probation Officers Week in Lake County.
6.3, 9:30 a.m.: Public hearing, continued from July 13, sitting as Lake County Sanitation District Board of Directors, consideration of resolution of delinquent sewer fees for Lake County Sanitation District.
6.4, 10 a.m.: Public hearing, consideration of rezone for Brand Family Parcel Map Project; General Plan Amendment (GPAP 17-01); Rezone (RZ 17-01); Parcel Map (PM 17-01); and Initial Study (IS 17-31).
6.5, 10:15 a.m.: Public hearing, consideration of Rezone for Richard and Beverly Siri; General Plan Amendment (GPAP 19-02) and Rezone (RZ 19-02) and Initial Study (IS 19-41).
6.6, 11 a.m.: Public hearing, consideration of an ordinance amending Article X of Chapter Two of the Lake County Code to include further requirements for exemptions from competitive bidding and requirements for bid protests.
UNTIMED ITEMS
7.2: (a) Consideration of county investment policy; and (b) consideration of agreement for investment advisory and management services.
7.3: a) Consideration of certification resolution for an exception to the 180-day wait period to hire a CalPERS retiree as an extra help county employee; and b) consideration of advanced step hiring of Jeff Rein as an extra-help employee.
7.4: Consideration of agreement between county of Lake and Behavioral Health Services as lead agency of the Lake County Continuum of Care and Elijah House for services funded under the Emergency Solutions Grant — Coronavirus Program for fiscal year 2021-22 in an amount not to exceed $450,000 and authorize the chair to sign.
7.5: Consideration of agreement between county of Lake and Behavioral Health Services as lead agency of the Lake County Continuum of Care and Elijah House for transitional housing services for fiscal years 2021-25 in an amount not to exceed $207,585 and authorize the chair to sign.
7.6: Consideration of a presentation from the Cyanobacteria Communication Work Group Multi Agency members.
CLOSED SESSION
8.1: Public employee evaluation: County Librarian Christopher Veach.
8.2: Conference with legal counsel: Existing litigation pursuant to Government Code section 54956.9 (d)(1): Nichols v. County of Lake, et al.
8.3: Conference with labor negotiator: (a) Chief negotiator: M. Long; County Negotiators: C. Huchingson and P. Samac; and (b) employee organizations: LCDDAA, LCDSA, LCCOA, LCEA, LCSEA and LCSMA.
8.4: Conference with legal counsel: Significant exposure to litigation pursuant to Government Code section 54956.9 (d)2)(e)1) — one potential case.
8.5: Conference with legal counsel: Significant exposure to litigation pursuant to Government Code section 54956.9 (d)(2) (e) (3) — Claim of McQueen.
8.6: Public Employee Appointment Pursuant to Gov. Code Section 54957(b)(1): Appointment of Public Health officer.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Firefighters have stopped the forward progress of a wildland fire in Nice that prompted evacuations.
The fire, in the 2400 block of Lakeshore Boulevard at Stokes Avenue, was first reported shortly before 1:30 p.m. Sunday.
Fire officials arriving on scene reported that it was about two to three acres in size, with spots being pushed by the wind across Lakeshore Boulevard, where it’s threatening structures, including a sewer system utility building.
The wind was reported to be coming off of Clear Lake and pushing the fire toward Highway 20.
Evacuations were underway in the area at that time, fire officials reported.
Air tankers, a helicopter and air attack arrived on scene shortly after 2 p.m. and began to work the fire, based on radio traffic.
At 2:14 p.m., the Lake County Sheriff’s Office issued a Nixle alert for an evacuation order for residents south of Stokes Avenue to north of Clear Lake, east of the Nice-Lucerne Cut-off and west of Hammond Avenue.
At that point, a temporary evacuation point hadn’t been established, officials said.
Just after 2:30 p.m., incident command reported that forward progress had been stopped and the aircraft had been released, with evacuations to be lifted shortly.
Lakeshore Boulevard is to remain closed temporarily to all but residents, based on radio reports from the scene.
The fire was reported to be a total of four and a half acres.
Units were expected to remain on scene for a few more hours for mop up.
On Sunday evening around 6 p.m., as units were wrapping up, some were released to respond to a fire burning several structures in Clearlake Oaks at Second and Hoover.
There was no immediate information available on the cause of the Lakeshore Boulevard fire.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Lake County Animal Care and Control has a kennel filled with many breeds of dogs ready to be adopted.
Dogs available for adoption this week include mixes of bloodhound, boxer, bulldog, Chihuahua, husky, pit bull, Rhodesian Ridgeback, Rottweiler, shepherd and terrier.
Dogs that are adopted from Lake County Animal Care and Control are either neutered or spayed, microchipped and, if old enough, given a rabies shot and county license before being released to their new owner. License fees do not apply to residents of the cities of Lakeport or Clearlake.
The following dogs at the Lake County Animal Care and Control shelter have been cleared for adoption (additional dogs on the animal control website not listed are still “on hold”).
This 1-year-old male bloodhound has a short black and tan coat.
He is in kennel No. 11, ID No. LCAC-A-1185.
‘Rocky’
“Rocky” is a 6-year-old male bulldog with a brown and white coat.
He is in kennel No. 16, ID No. LCAC-A-1122.
‘Happy’
“Happy” is a 3-year-old female pit bull mix with a short tan coat.
She is in kennel No. 19, ID No. LCAC-A-562.
Male terrier
This 6-year-old male terrier has a short black coat.
He is in kennel No. 24, ID No. LCAC-A-1149.
‘Dash’
“Dash” is a 2-year-old female Rhodesian Ridgeback mix with a short tan coat.
She is in kennel No. 15, ID No. LCAC-A-1183.
Male pit bull
This young male American pit bull has a short brown coat.
He is in kennel No. 18, ID No. LCAC-A-1028.
‘Hype’
“Hype” is a 5-year-old female boxer mix with a short red and white coat.
She is in kennel No. 20, ID No. LCAC-A-974.
‘Jim’
“Jim” is a 2-year-old pit bull terrier mix with a short black and white coat.
He is in kennel No. 23, ID No. LCAC-A-810.
‘Luna’
“Luna” is a 3-year-old female pit bull terrier mix with a short red coat.
She is in kennel No. 25, ID No. LCAC-A-1078.
‘Tinker’
“Tinker” is a 4-year-old Chihuahua with a short tan coat.
She is in kennel No. 26a, ID No. 1074.
Rottweiler-pit bull mix
This 1-year-old female Rottweiler-pit bull mix has a short black coat.
She has been spayed.
She is in kennel No. 27, ID No. LCAC-A-731.
‘Brutus’
“Brutus” is a 5-year-old male pit bull terrier with a short gray and white coat.
He is in kennel No. 28, ID No. LCAC-A-670.
Female pit bull terrier
This 4-year-old female pit bull terrier mix has a short white coat.
She is in kennel No. 29, ID No. LCAC-A-812.
‘Apollo’
“Apollo” is a 2-year-old male husky mix with a medium-length red and white coat and blue eyes.
He is in kennel No. 31, ID No. LCAC-A-783.
Male husky
This 2-year-old male husky has a medium-length red and white coat.
He is in kennel No. 32, ID No. LCAC-A-1024.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
William A. Masters, Tufts University and Anna Herforth, Tufts University
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused price spikes for corn, milk, beans and other commodities, but even before the pandemic about 3 billion people could not afford even the cheapest options for a healthy diet.
The remaining 60% of the world’s 7.9 billion people could afford the ingredients for healthy meals. That, of course, does not mean they always eat a healthy diet. Cooking time and difficulty, as well as the advertising and marketing of other foods, can lead many people to choose items that are surprisingly unhealthy.
To measure diet costs globally, our project linked World Bank price data for about 800 popular foods across 174 countries to the nutritional composition of those items. Using the prices and nutritional values of each item, we computed the least expensive way of meeting national dietary guidelines and essential nutrient requirements.
For affordability, we compared diet costs to World Bank estimates of what people typically spend on food and income distribution within each country. It turns out that almost everyone in the United States could afford enough ingredients for healthy meals, such as rice and beans, frozen spinach and canned tuna, bread and peanut butter and milk. But most people in Africa and South Asia could not acquire enough of these foods for a healthy diet even if they were willing to spend their entire available income.
Food prices go up and down, but many healthy foods like fruits and vegetables, nuts, dairy products and fish are consistently more expensive than starchy staples, oil and sugar. The high cost of the healthier food groups often forces people in poverty to eat less expensive items, or go hungry.
Beyond higher incomes and safety nets for the poorest, food prices can be lowered for everyone through public investment in new technology and infrastructure to improve food production and distribution. Agricultural innovation and investment in food markets can save lives and drive economic development – when the new technologies and other changes are well adapted to local conditions.
We believe that our diet cost data, produced to inform global agricultural policies, gives people sharp new insight into the world food situation. Previous efforts to monitor global food prices focused on tracking a few internationally traded farm commodities, monitoring conditions in places at risk of famine or keeping an eye on consumer price indices. Measuring the cost of healthy diets using locally available items focuses attention on consumer prices for the healthy foods that low-income people might buy, if those items were affordable.
With better data, governments and development agencies can steer their countries to where they want to go, which one day could make it possible for everyone around the world to eat a healthy diet.
World Bank economist Yan Bai contributed to this research.
Thomas Jefferson said that coffee is the favorite drink of the civilized world, and we in this java loving nation have proven his point in spades.
Though coffee houses were wildly popular in continental Europe beginning in the early 1600s, it wasn’t until 1773 that the drink gained popularity here. It was the Boston Tea Party that turned the beverage tide, morphing us from a tea drinking nation to a coffee drinking one.
These days, over 80% of adult Americans consume coffee, and we drink more of it than any beverage other than water.
In 2016, a whooping 88.8 gallons of the beloved brew was guzzled per capita in the United States, and consumption has only grown since.
Compare that with the next highest category, carbonated beverages (including things like soda and sparkling water), which registered only 39.5 gallons per person, less than half of the coffee tally.
Its acclaim is worldwide, going far beyond our shores. Coffee is one of the most valuable legally traded commodities in the world, second only to crude oil.
If the proliferation of coffee businesses throughout our lovely county is any indication, we here in Lake County are consuming our fair share.
A complex espresso drink or a simple cup of Joe can be found in coffee shops in nearly every one of our communities, from Middletown to Upper Lake, some with drive-through service and others offering food beyond croissants and muffins.
I recently learned that an enterprising Lake County woman has begun a different sort of coffee business — a portable espresso cart — which I happened upon on a balmy June evening at the Friday night farmers’ market in Middletown.
As I strolled the shaded paths lined with vendors in Middletown Square (the large green lawn in front of the library and senior center complex), I discovered the “Kates Out the Bag” cart nestled near the end of the southernmost path. Intrigued, I ordered a honey-oat milk latte for myself and a fresh lemonade for a friend.
It was a treat to have such interesting potables options at the market.
One of the first things one notices about this cart is its feline theme. The name is a play on “the cat’s out of the bag” and the phrase “PURR-FECT COFFEE” graces the banner above the cart.
It turns out the purveyor, Katelyn Rubio, loves cats as much as she loves coffee and decided to combine her passions in this business.
Her custom blended coffees include names like Black Cat Decaf and Nine Lives Breakfast Blend. Other products are named after her two rescue cats, Freddy and Fannie.
Rubio, a Hidden Valley Lake resident, is a 2005 graduate of Middletown High School. She’s been hooked on the taste of coffee since the first time she was given a sip of it as a child.
While in college she honed her espresso pulling skills at the drive-through coffee hut (now Mugshots) at the Highway 29 Shell station near Hidden Valley Lake, as well as at the Mugshots outpost at Harbin Hot Springs near Middletown.
She fell in love with the technique of making coffee at those jobs — she feels it’s an art form. Learning how to make the perfect shot and steaming the milk just right was satisfying work. She also enjoyed interaction with customers and getting to know the regulars.
After forays into a couple of other careers (phlebotomy and office administration), she’s returned to her first love, coffee. She says it’s a great business for a mother with four children at home aged from 6 to 16.
The coffee she serves is custom roasted, with blends created and curated by her with assistance from the roasting company. The espresso she serves contains six different beans from around the world — Indonesia, Africa, and Central and South America.
Her espresso cart (as well as her packaged coffee blends) can be found at farmers’ markets in the county on Friday nights in Middletown and Tuesdays and Saturdays in Lakeport. She hopes to expand her business to include weddings and special events.
Kates Out the Bag Coffee Co. products can also be purchased online at www.katesoutthebag.com and the business can be found on Instagram. To book her cart for events, Rubio can be contacted at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
It turns out that research has shown coffee to be beneficial in a variety of ways, so there are plenty of reasons to drink it aside from the taste.
Some obvious benefits are heightened energy, increased metabolism and improved workout performance. Other positive effects are more surprising.
According to what I’ve read, research has shown that:
Coffee is an antioxidant that has been proven to increase longevity and to reduce the risk of heart failure, stroke, diabetes and some cancers. It contains a variety of essential nutrients like riboflavin, pantothenic acid, manganese, potassium, magnesium and niacin.
It may also be an effective treatment for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Studies showed that those who drank two or more cups of coffee a day had less liver damage than those who drank little or no coffee.
The chlorogenic acid found in coffee can aid in reducing blood sugar, lowering blood pressure, improving mood and reducing inflammation in the body. It also acts as an antimicrobial against a wide range of organisms.
Coffee contains substances that have heavy metal chelation properties, binding to heavy metals like lead, mercury or copper and extracting them from the body via the kidneys.
Other studies link coffee with improved brain function, including reducing the risk of Alzheimer’s and dementia, lowering the risk of type 2 diabetes, and staving off depression.
Does this make you want to go make a cup of coffee as it does me?
Or we could eat our coffee. There are many ways to use it in cuisine.
Coffee’s roasted notes and its bitter, acidic qualities compliment sweet, bold, earthy or nutty ingredients, from desserts (think mocha brownies or espresso-laden tiramisu) to meats (like ham with red eye gravy or coffee rubs on beef or pork).
As to meats, coffee not only infuses flavor, it also has tenderizing qualities.
A specialty of the southern U.S. is ham with red-eye gravy, made simply by cooking ham in a skillet and then deglazing the pan with about ½ cup of boiling hot coffee. It should be simmered to reduce by half, which takes about five minutes. Butter or oil may be added to the pan to ensure there are enough drippings if the ham is lean.
Some add sugar, broth or a little extra butter to round out the intense and bitter coffee flavor, but this isn’t a traditional preparation.
I ran across an interesting recipe that includes marinating bite-sized pieces of chicken overnight in brewed espresso with pink peppercorns, cardamom and cinnamon, which shows that there can be a great deal of creativity when using coffee in the kitchen.
The flavors of roasted or grilled pork and beef can be enhanced with a rub that includes coffee. In addition to ground coffee, common ingredients include sugar (typically brown), coarse pepper, paprika and garlic in fresh or powder form.
Today’s recipe is for an all-purpose coffee rub which can be used on almost any protein as well as on most veggies. Unlike some rubs, it’s relatively low in salt and sugar, so there's no overpowering sweet or salty overtones.
Cayenne pepper can be added for some heat if desired, and the level of any of the spices can be adjusted according to your taste. This makes a generous amount and can be stored for quick use in a tightly sealed container. Be sure to store away from sunlight to prevent deterioration of flavors.
Enjoy!
All-purpose coffee rub
2 tablespoons each of: Garlic powder Ground coffee (medium grind) Paprika Onion powder or dried onion flakes Ground cumin
1 tablespoon each of Salt Brown sugar
Combine all ingredients.
Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of cayenne pepper if heat is desired.
Esther Oertel is a writer and passionate home cook from a family of chefs. She grew up in a restaurant, where she began creating recipes from a young age. She’s taught culinary classes in a variety of venues in Lake County and previously wrote “The Veggie Girl” column for Lake County News. Most recently she’s taught culinary classes at Sur La Table in Santa Rosa. She lives in Middletown, California.
While scientists at our partner institutions are directly focusing on shark conservation, NASA's Earth-observing satellites collect key information about sharks' habitat — the ocean.
NASA's satellites measure the height of the ocean, track currents, monitor marine habitats, and oversee water quality events like harmful algal blooms.
Our long-term data sets also help us understand how climate change is affecting the ocean and marine life. NASA shares ocean data with conservation groups, researchers and partners like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA.
1. NASA satellites help track marine animals' movement
NASA satellite data combined with field measurements help scientists construct a clearer picture of the travel routes of sharks and other marine animals.
In 2019 with the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite, or CALIPSO, a joint venture between NASA and the French space agency, the Centre National D'Etudes Spatiales, or CNES, observed a massive animal migration that takes place on our planet.
In this case, marine animals such as fish, krill and squid rise from the ocean depths to the surface to feast on microscopic plants called phytoplankton as well as smaller zooplankton and other animals on a daily basis.
Studies like this provide information about the food supply available to sharks and how changes in ecosystems could impact the health of sharks and other large marine wildlife.
Knowing where marine animals are by using NASA satellite data and field observations also supports sustainable fishing practices and reduces bycatch.
2. NASA studies the productivity of Earth's oceans
From space and ships and autonomous underwater vehicles, NASA's EXport Processes in the Ocean from Remote Sensing, or EXPORTS, campaign is studying the ocean's biological pump — the process by which carbon from the atmosphere and surface ocean is sequestered in the deep ocean.
This process starts at the surface, where phytoplankton draw carbon out of the atmosphere through photosynthesis.
This kicks off the marine food web because phytoplankton turn atmospheric carbon into food when they are eaten by tiny animals called zooplankton.
Those in turn are eaten by fish who are eaten by other fish and large marine animals, including sharks. When fish and marine animals die, they can carry the carbon stored in their bodies to the ocean floor.
3. A Hubble star-mapping algorithm tracks whale sharks
Back in 1986, a researcher at Princeton University developed an algorithm to map the stars and galaxies captured by NASA's Hubble Telescope.
Now, that algorithm has been adapted to recognize the star-like patterns on speckle-skinned whale sharks.
This allows the algorithm to identify individual whale sharks, which helps scientists keep tabs on these rare, 40-foot-long sharks as part of the Australian nonprofit ECOCEAN's Whale Shark Photo-Identification Library.
4. NASA measures changes in sea level rise and climate patterns
NASA has been measuring ocean height for almost 30 years, starting with the TOPEX/Poseidon satellite mission from 1992-2006 and continuing with the Jason-1, OSTM/Jason-2, Jason-3 and Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich missions.
These satellites can detect changes in ocean height within an inch, giving extremely precise measurements of sea level.
This information is crucial for understanding storm severity, sea level rise and climate patterns like La Niña, El Niño and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation that impact marine animals.
Sea surface height data is also useful for cleaning up marine oil spills, sustainably managing fisheries, routing ships and understanding the behavior of ocean animals like Stellar sea lions and whales.
In addition, sea level measurements are used to derive ocean surface currents and ocean eddies that continuously stir and mix the water, changing its biogeochemistry and thus impacting the behavior and migration patterns of sharks.
5. NASA is developing new missions to study Earth's oceans
NASA has three new missions planned to study the ocean. Scheduled to launch in 2022, the Surface Water and Ocean Topography, or SWOT, mission will measure small-scale ocean currents and swirling eddies to better understand the mixing and transport of water and nutrients as well as the dispersal of pollution into the ocean.
Monitoring ocean eddies is important to predict migratory patterns of megafauna, including sharks. SWOT is jointly developed by NASA and CNES with contributions from the Canadian Space Agency and United Kingdom Space Agency.
The Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem mission will use next generation "ocean color" technology to learn more about phytoplankton that live in the upper ocean. In addition to being the base of the marine food web, phytoplankton play a similar role to land plants by absorbing carbon dioxide and producing oxygen.
The Geosynchronous Littoral Imaging and Monitoring Radiometer (GLIMR) instrument will provide unique observations of ocean biology, chemistry and ecology in the Gulf of Mexico, portions of the southeastern United States coastline and the mouth of the Amazon River where it enters the Atlantic Ocean.
In the future, NASA's upcoming Earth System Observatory will use new and innovative techniques to study all facets of our planet, including the more than 70% of Earth's surface covered by ocean.
Sofie Bates is a member of NASA's Earth Science News Team based in Greenbelt, Maryland.
It’s kitten season, so many of this week’s additions are little felines needing forever families.
Here is a sampling of the nearly 30 cats and kittens available this week, more of which can be seen at the shelter website.
Male domestic shorthair kitten
This male yellow tabby kitten has a short coat.
He is in cat room kennel No. 70b, ID No. LCAC-A-987.
Male domestic shorthair kitten
This male yellow tabby kitten has a short coat.
He is in cat room kennel No. 70d, ID No. LCAC-A-989.
‘Furball’
“Furball” is a 6-year-old female domestic longhair cat with a brown tabby coat.
She is in cat room kennel No. 84, ID No. LCAC-A-969.
Domestic medium hair kitten
This male domestic medium hair kitten has a yellow tabby coat.
He is in cat room kennel No. 103a, ID No. LCAC-A-965.
Domestic medium hair kitten
This male domestic medium hair kitten has a short gray tabby coat.
He is in cat room kennel No. 103c, ID No. LCAC-A-967.
Female domestic shorthair kitten
This female domestic shorthair kitten has a gray tabby coat.
She is in cat room kennel No. 103d, ID No. 968.
Domestic shorthair kitten
This male domestic shorthair kitten has a yellow tabby coat.
He is in cat room kennel No. 103e, ID No. LCAC-A-959.
Male domestic shorthair
This male domestic shorthair has a gray and white coat.
He is 1-year-old and weighs nearly 6 pounds.
He is in cat room kennel No. 120, ID No. LCAC-A-874.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Friendly banter abounded as the cast of the Lake County Theatre Co.’s production of “All’s Well That Ends Well” logged into their Zoom rehearsal.
Many of the actors reside here in Lake County, but several hail from out of state, including Virginia, New York and even Toronto.
Despite a physical separation of thousands of miles and multiple time zones, cast members joked around and connected with each other as if in the same room.
Pre-rehearsal conversation touched on diva cats, pro-wrestler theme songs, and outdated fashion trends.
The pros and cons of stiff celluloid collars were discussed at some length thanks to Ed Borg, a local actor who has been in all six of the Shakespeare at the Lake productions.
Altogether, the cast of 11 has more than 40 Shakespeare performances under its belt and some 200-plus years of collective acting experience and eight degrees in theater, including four Masters of Fine Arts degrees.
Their acting chops certainly showed during rehearsal as they worked their way through the pages of Shakespeare’s comedy.
Each performer breathed life into their role, giving depth and flavor to each character while still supporting each other.
At one point Ted Powers (zooming from Toronto), typed a message into the chat to Rose Kingfisher (zooming from Marin), complimenting her stellar entrances.
Since this was the first night off-book, actors patiently waited for each other as they searched for lines or confused one scene with a later one.
They encouraged one another through the process, always keeping the bigger picture of the entire play in mind, not just their individual performance.
The Lake County Theatre Co. and Mendocino College, the producers of the Shakespeare at the Lake project, look forward to putting on a live show again next summer.
In the meantime, they hope you will tune in to this fabulous online play, chock full of talent from all over North America.
Virtual performances will take place Friday, July 23, and Saturday, July 24, at 7 p.m., and Sunday, July 25, at 2 p.m.
Visit www.lctc.us to reserve your free tickets and to obtain all the log-in information.
This production is made possible with generous support from the Lake County Friends of Mendocino College and the cities of Clearlake and Lakeport.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The Lake County Sheriff’s Office has concluded that damage to a boat led to a fatal boating accident on Clear Lake that claimed the lives of a Fresno couple last month.
Webster Medley III, 51, and Novia Walton, 50, died as a result of the accident, which involved the capsizing of Medley’s 19-foot 1985 Bayliner.
Early on the morning of Saturday, June 5, Medley and Walton, along with three members of Medley’s family, were on a nighttime fishing trip offshore of Clearlake Oaks when the boat began to take on water and capsized, as Lake County News has reported.
Family members said Medley had tried to save Walton, who couldn’t swim, when he went missing in the lake. She was found a short time later, face down in the water, while the other three passengers made it to shore safely.
Walton was transported to an out-of-county trauma center where she died later on June 5.
Medley’s body was found not far from the accident scene on the morning of June 6.
Following the accident, the Bayliner was transported to a county facility where Lt. Rich Ward said the sheriff’s Marine Patrol conducted a secondary examination.
Ward said that in addition to the Marine Patrol’s examination of the boat, the investigation was based on witness statements Marine Patrol received.
Based on that evidence, Ward said Marine Patrol had reached a conclusion.
“The cause of the accident is directly related to a damaged outboard transom,” he said.
The transom is the vertical section at the rear of a boat that strengthens its structure. It’s also where the outboard motor is mounted.
Ward said the autopsies of Medley and Walton concluded that the cause of death for both was asphyxia brain injury due to submersion in water and drowning.
The couple’s family reported that celebrations of life for Medley and Walton were held three days apart at the end of June in Fresno.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.