-
Sargassum is headed to Florida and the Caribbean. Could it ruin your beach vacation?
“Massive seaweed blob invades Florida beaches!” “Huge, smelly snake of seaweed headed toward the Caribbean!” Though the headlines sound like something out of a 1950s horror movie, sargassum is reaching record levels this year, with some beaches already seeing large amounts of the brown seaweed washing ashore. Does sargassum have the potential to sour your seaside vacation in the coming months? TPG spoke with oceanography experts to find out. What is sargassum? JEFFREY M. SCHELL/SEA EDUCATION ASSOCIATION Sargassum is a large, brown seaweed – the common name for various species of marine plants and algae – that floats along the ocean’s surface. In healthy amounts, sargassum is a critical habitat…