Microbiology
Marine Microbe Lures Prey into Custom Slime Traps
These organisms’ private “mucospheres” play an outsize role in the planet’s carbon cycle
Oceans51 articles archived since 1845
Pollution
Ocean Oil Slick Map Reveals Enough Greasy Patches to Cover France—Twice
An algorithm-aided analysis of satellite images reveals the size, distribution and sources of oil slicks at sea
Renewable Energy
Engineers Look to River and Ocean Currents for Clean Energy
The Department of Energy is helping to fund 11 projects that are designed to harness the power of moving water
Animals
Wiggling Whiskers Help Hungry Seals Hunt in the Dark
A new seal’s-eye view shows these specialized hairs in motion at sea
Oceans
Coral Reefs Are Struggling, but There Is Some Good News
Graphics show how reefs around the globe are faring
Defense
The Navy Extracted a Jet Fighter from 12,400 Feet below the Surface of the South China Sea
But the U.S. must probe even further to catch up with China’s access to the ocean’s deepest reaches
Oceans
Scientists Warn of Looming Mass Ocean Extinction
If greenhouse gas emissions are not curbed, temperature spikes could bring the first such mass extinction in 250 million years
Oceans
A Major Ocean Current Is at Its Weakest Point in 1,000 Years
Natural variations are currently the main cause, but climate change should continue to cause it to slow down
Oceans
Probiotics Could Help Save Overheated Corals
Think of the process as a kind of marine fecal transplant—except the restorative bacteria do not come from stool; they come from other corals.
Oceans
All Ocean Life Follows This Massive Pattern—Except Where Humans Have Interfered
Humans have shifted the weight of life in the sea
Oceans
We Need a Global Plastics Treaty to Stop an Environmental Disaster
Truly global participation in the process will create more than just a Paris Agreement for plastics
Climate Change
Extreme Heat Becomes New Normal for Oceans
Once rare marine heat waves have become routine, threatening coral reefs and other sea creatures
Oceans
How Marine Wildlife Can Coexist with Offshore Wind [Sponsored]
Harnessing the wind to blow back emissions is not without its own impacts, so researchers are developing technologies to coexist with whales and other ocean-dwelling species.
Oceans
Oceans Break Heat Record for Third Year in a Row
Last year broke the record from 2020 by about 14 zettajoules, or 20 times the world’s annual energy consumption
Oceans
Historical Shipwreck Keeps Moving, Revealing Dangerous Underwater Mudflows
A ship sunk by a German U-boat in 1942 can today help track large pulses of mud from the Mississippi River
Climate Change
Moving CO2 from Air to Oceans May Be Necessary to Slow Warming
A major new report from the National Academies examines options to store carbon in the oceans
Oceans
Half of the World’s Coastal Sewage Pollution Flows from Few Dozen Places
An analysis of roughly 135,000 watersheds reveals that large amounts of key pollutants come from human wastewater, not just agricultural runoff
Climate Change
Coastal Darkening Could Block Kelp’s Carbon Sink Potential
Sediment and algal blooms are blocking sunlight, reducing kelp productivity
Oceans
Bringing Fisheries Back from the Brink
Marine biologist Daniel Pauly did a turnabout from helping fishing trawlers to fighting them. Can struggling fisheries now turn around?
Renewable Energy
Contest Challenges Inventors to Harness Wave Power to Desalinate Seawater
The Department of Energy wants devices that could be deployed to disaster areas that have lost electricity
