Taylor Van Dijk | Writer
November 28, 2023
With a glowing, blue hue emitting from the ocean as the waves crash on the shore and surfers glide their boards through the water, the occurrence of bioluminescent tides never fails to evoke joy and wonder from viewers. Fortunately, these bioluminescent tides have been spotted again in Laguna Beach, San Deigo, and Newport Beach.
Bioluminescent waters occur due to dinoflagellate algae that release light when prompted by external stimuli. When there is a strong algae bloom near the coast, it produces a noticeable glowing tide. During the day, the algae might produce a red-brown effect in the water. However, at night, viewers can experience the full effects of the blue fluorescent algae. Typically, algae blooms are not advised for people to swim in due to the risk of skin irritation, but many swimmers in California ignore this advisory.
A few years ago in 2020, bioluminescent tides were very pronounced in Southern California and San Clemente particularly. For a period of about six weeks at the height of the pandemic, crowds of surfers, swimmers, and viewers flocked down to beaches to catch a glimpse of the bioluminescent tides. In San Clemente, they were particularly bright, which caused an excitement so great that people lined T-Street despite the crowding restrictions in place.
“I remember going down to the beach and watching the blue lights form as the waves crashed,” said junior Payton Blake, “I really hope they come back, I would love to see them again.” Luckily, sightings of bioluminescence have begun to become more frequent again in several coastal areas in Southern California, despite the unpredictable nature of tides and winds making the lights difficult to locate each night. Some have been spotted sporadically in shallow waters in Laguna Beach, Ventura, and San Diego throughout August and September– some beaches being better than others due to changing tides and wind patterns.
Hopefully, as sporadic sightings become increasingly more frequent, San Clemente will have another round of bioluminescent tides. It would be exciting for the city of San Clemente to experience the blue fluorescent lights once again without the lingering threat of the pandemic holding people back from lining the coastal streets and crowding beaches.
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