For the first time in 40 Years, Panama’s deep and cold ocean waters fail to emerge

The natural phenomenon of upwelling, which occurs every year in the Gulf of Panama, failed for the first time in 2025. A study led by scientists from the Tropical Smithsonian Research Institute (Stric) indicates that the weakening of food was the cause of this event. This observation highlights the impact of the climate on fundamental ocean processes and the coastal communities that depend on it.

During the dry season in Central America (generally between December and April), the Northern Alizés generate Upwelling events in the ocean waters of the Gulf of Panama. Upwelling is a process that allows cold waters and rich in nutrients from the depths of the ocean to rise to the surface. This dynamic supports highly productive peaches and helps protect coral reefs against thermal constraint. Thanks to this water movement, the sea along the Panama Pacific beaches remains cooler during the “summer” holiday season.

Stric scientists have studied this phenomenon and their files show that this seasonal rise, which occurs from January to April, was a coherent and predictable characteristic of the Gulf for at least 40 years. However, researchers recently recorded that in 2025, this vital oceanographic process did not occur for the first time. As a result, typical temperature drops and productivity tips during this time of the year were reduced.

In the article recently published in the journal PNAScientists suggest that a significant reduction in wind patterns has been the cause of this unprecedented event, revealing how climate disturbance can quickly change the fundamental ocean processes that have supported coastal fishermen for thousands of years. However, additional research is necessary to determine a more precise cause and its potential consequences for fishing.

This observation highlights the growing vulnerability of tropical cross -mounted systems, which, despite their enormous ecological and socioeconomic importance, remain poorly monitored. He also highlights the urgency of strengthening the observation and prediction of ocean climates in the tropical regions of the planet.

This result marks one of the first major results of the collaboration between the S / Y Eugen Seibold research ship of the Max Planck Institute and STA.