07/17/2026
For the first time in over 40 years, Panama's vital ocean upwelling system has failed.
Every year from January to April, strong trade winds drive a critical process called upwelling in the Gulf of Panama, pulling cold, nutrient-rich deep ocean waters to the surface. This seasonal cooling supports robust fisheries, feeds marine life, and shields coral reefs from lethal heat stress.
However, in 2025, this highly predictable natural cycle completely collapsed. Researchers at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute reported that Panama's seasonal upwelling failed to develop for the first time in more than four decades of satellite and in-situ monitoring, leaving coastal waters unusually warm and devoid of essential nutrients.
The environmental fallout was immediate: satellite data revealed a massive drop in chlorophyll levels, indicating that the microscopic algae forming the base of the marine food web never bloomed. Scientists attribute the system's collapse to exceptionally weak regional trade winds, and they warn that such disruptions could have catastrophic ripple effects worldwide. Because coastal upwelling systems are among the most productive environments on Earth—powering global fisheries and stabilizing coastal economies—the continuing breakdown of these natural cycles could expose marine ecosystems to unprecedented heat stress, threatening biodiversity and the millions of people who depend on them.
source: O'Dea, A., Sellers, A. J., PĂ©rez-Medina, C., DĂaz, J. P., Bloise, A. G., Pöhlker, C., ChiliĹ„ski, M. T., Aardema, H. M., Cybulski, J. D., Heins, L., Paton, S. R., Slagter, H. A., Schiebel, R., & Haug, G. H. (2025). Unprecedented suppression of Panama’s Pacific upwelling in 2025. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 122(36).
