Blue water temporarily invades Galveston Island beaches

When most non-natives ask where the clear blue water is along the Texas Gulf Coast the standard response from locals is "somewhere else." But over Memorial Day weekend on Galveston Island, beautiful, blue water actually made its way to a local coast.

FUN IN THE SUN: A Galveston cheat sheet

Dr. Tom Linton, a marine biologist at Texas A&M University-Galveston, has a theory on why the water so clear over the weekend.

Over Memorial Day weekend visitors to the beaches on Galveston Island were treated to a welcome sight: blue water. SOURCE: Cameron Holmes on Twitter. Check out a guide to the best Texas beaches in the following gallery ... less Over Memorial Day weekend visitors to the beaches on Galveston Island were treated to a welcome sight: blue water. SOURCE: Cameron Holmes on Twitter. Check out a guide to the best Texas beaches in the ... more Photo: Twitter / Cameron Holmes Photo: Twitter / Cameron Holmes Image 1 of / 30 Caption Close Blue water temporarily invades Galveston Island beaches 1 / 30 Back to Gallery

His theory is that Hurricane Alberto off the coast of Alabama in the Gulf of Mexico helped set up a gyre (a large system of rotating ocean currents) east of the Mississippi that began moving the water in a counter-clockwise direction. Hurricanes can go in a counter-clockwise direction.

The competing, existing Gulf Stream created a gyre west of the Mississippi moving in a clockwise direction.

"So you got these two gyres acting like floor sweepers, pulling in water from the west and the east," Linton said.

Much clearer ocean water from the western side of the Gulf Stream, namely the Corpus Christi area and points south, was brought up and began striking the Galveston beach. It all goes to show that a hurricane in the Gulf no matter how big or small can have a very wide-reaching impact.

"The wind was coming from the southwest when I was out on the beach," Linton says. "The water was coming farther north than it usually does."

Locals joked on social media the City of Galveston dyed the water blue just in time for the weekend. A video posted on Twitter on Saturday from Cameron Holmes showed clear water near San Luis Pass on the island's southwest end.

Linton noted that brown water doesn't necessarily mean that the water is dirty or dangerous. Our water is colored by the muddy Mississippi, Trinity, and the San Jacinto rivers.

Don't knock that brown water, Linton says, as it its more beneficial than one might think.

BEACH HISTORY: Galveston beaches from the 1900s to today

"The clear water may be good for pictures and for tourists but its not that good for marine life," Linton says. "Fishermen love dark water because of the nutrients from the rivers."

Linton says that hurricanes like Alberto and others in the past have likely be drawing up clear water for Galveston residents for centuries.

"You could probably look at newspapers from 1847 and read stories about strange blue water in Galveston," Linton said.

"We're on the less pretty side of the Mississippi," Linton said. A native of the area since his family moved here in the 1940s, Linton says remembers clear, blue water as a kid but never made the connection to hurricanes until his academic career began.

"I would say enjoy it while you can," Linton said.

As always it's important to check beach water conditions before heading to down to the coast with friends and family in tow. The Texas Beach Watch web page is a great resource to check before packing up the family and going south.

Craig Hlavaty is a reporter for Chron.com and HoustonChronicle.com.