In July 2003, anomalous cold water along the mid-Atlantic coast affected local tourism and fishing. The cold water interfered with tuna fishing, and for 2 to 3 weeks, rockfish generally found during the fall were present in the area. Satellite data, buoy observations, and weather maps were analyzed to investigate the cause of this cold water event. The results show that the increasing westerly and southerly winds that resulted from approaching cold fronts may have induced upwelling away from and along the mid-Atlantic coast. This, combined with the southward advection of cold sea water from the North Atlantic Ocean, might have caused the anomalous cold water along the coast. The sea surface temperature (SST) observations made by buoy 44014 (0.6 m below sea level) (http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/) near Virginia Beach (36.61¿N, 74.84¿ W) for the month of July 2003 show a 4¿C decrease in SST from 3 to 5 July 2003. A smaller drop of 2--3¿C is also found for 24--25 July 2003 (Figure 1a). The east-west (u) and south-north (v) wind components (Figure 1a) observed by buoy 44014 shows a relationship with the observed SST. In general, wind speeds during July 2003 were found to be stronger than those of July 2002.