Researchers at Stony Brook University propose a technology to electrochemically enhance ocean alkalinity without seawater pretreatment, reducing costs and increasing carbon offset quality. This approach enables 'negative emission' carbon offsets and has significant implications for ocean carbon capture and net-zero goals.
Researchers propose using white-light lidar to measure ocean remote-sensing reflectance without sunlight, overcoming limitations of passive ocean-color observations. Simulations show high accuracy with MAPE below 10% across various platform altitudes and receiver FOVs.
Marine microbes play a vital role in ocean health, climate regulation, biodiversity, and the blue bioeconomy. They drive processes including nutrient cycling, carbon sequestration, and primary productivity. AMI recommends acknowledging their importance in European ocean policy to ensure a healthy, resilient, and sustainable ocean.
A weakening Atlantic Ocean current system, known as the AMOC, could exacerbate global warming by distributing heat unevenly around the planet. During periods with a strong AMOC, the global ocean loses heat, while weak AMOC periods lead to a net increase in heat stored by the ocean.
Researchers investigated adding iron to the ocean to boost CO2 removal, finding varying effects on marine ecosystems. The Southern Ocean offers a favorable balance of climate impact and ecological consequences, while other regions face more severe consequences.
KIST-Ocean, an AI-based global ocean prediction model, has been developed to overcome limitations of existing ocean models. It forecasts the three-dimensional state of the ocean at five-day intervals and can generate changes down to a depth of 600 meters with significant computational efficiency.
A study published in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences reveals that persistent ocean warming in the South Pacific during 2023-2024 was driven by two consecutive anomalous anticyclones over the region. The warming signal extended to depths of about 1000 m, leading to record-high sea surface temperatures and upper-2000-m ocean heat content.
A Portland State University professor has received a nearly $1.2 million NSF CAREER Award to study the predator-prey relationship of Prochlorococcus, the ocean's most abundant photosynthetic life form. The project aims to understand how single-celled ocean predators hunt Prochlorococcus and its implications for the ocean's food web.
New research suggests that Europa's shallow water reservoirs are unlikely to contain water from the deep ocean. The route from deep ocean to surface is probably much more difficult than scientists assumed, with turbulent water rising through ice cracks leading to freezing and clogging.
ADIS has collected over 165TB of ocean scans worldwide, identifying over 20,000 macroplastic items and creating a global dataset and map to track plastic hotspots. The system's second generation, ADIS2.0, is autonomously recognizing floating debris and taking detailed pictures.
A new study reveals that temperature changes in the Indian Ocean can significantly influence winter weather thousands of kilometers away in the Eastern Mediterranean, offering new opportunities to predict damaging dry spells months before they occur. Positive phases of the Indian Ocean Dipole are linked to large-scale shifts in atmosph...
Researchers found that tiny, invisible swirls in the deep ocean shape significant climate forces like sea level rise and fisheries collapse. Climate models require significant improvements to accurately predict these effects.
Scientists have found that 15 million years ago, the Atlantic Ocean had large low-oxygen zones, while the Pacific Ocean's zones were much smaller. A new study suggests that ocean circulation and continental position played a crucial role in shaping these zones, indicating that warming alone cannot explain changes in oxygen levels.
A Chinese research team has developed a deep learning model that can predict the South Indian Ocean Dipole (SIOD) seven months in advance, outperforming traditional dynamical forecasting systems. The model uses sea surface temperature and ocean heat content anomalies as inputs and automatically learns key features of ocean temperature ...
Researchers found that phytoplankton in the eastern equatorial Pacific were fertilized by iron from the seafloor during ice-age transitions. This suggests a possible feedback loop connecting sea level, seafloor volcanism, and ocean biology, with potential implications for climate change.
Researchers used the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model to predict internal tide sea-surface height signatures and improve SWOT satellite observations of small-scale ocean eddies. The new approach accounts for 60% more internal tide signal, yielding a clearer picture of these important ocean patterns.
A new framework developed by FSU researchers accurately models subsurface waves that interfere with satellite readings, increasing the accuracy of ocean circulation observations by 60%.
SwRI has introduced a new 30-inch diameter pressure vessel, enabling faster testing of larger equipment at extreme ocean depths. The vessel can test equipment up to 16,500 psig, simulating the pressures in the deepest parts of the ocean, and features a novel quick-acting closure system.
Research reveals tropical cyclones contribute to ocean carbon outgassing but its role is decreasing due to global warming. If emissions remain high, they may reverse to enhancing ocean carbon uptake, accelerating ocean acidification.
A new study reveals that the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) is more fragile than thought, with its dependence on data from various nations making it vulnerable to losses. The system's vulnerability is not just about data volume, but also geographic reach, emphasizing the need for a genuinely global, coordinated system.
Researchers found that microplastics can reduce carbon uptake by 25,000 and 48,000 tonnes in arid and tropical regions. The study incorporated the effect of microplastics on carbon uptake into a life cycle assessment of plastics.
A new study by the U.S. National Science Foundation National Center for Atmospheric Research has found that the biological productivity of the Southern Ocean is substantially greater than previously estimated. This discovery has significant implications for our understanding of the global carbon cycle and the marine food web.
A decades-long study of oceanographic data shows that warm water has expanded and shifted towards the Antarctic continental shelf, posing a threat to ice shelves. The Southern Ocean's circulation has changed, allowing excess heat from global warming to reach Antarctica's vulnerable ice sheets.
Researchers used a cabled marine observatory to study plankton abundance and variety over a four-year period. They found that long-term changes in aggregate abundance and plankton diversity were not influenced by ocean turbulence.
A new method called GOFLOW uses deep learning to measure ocean surface currents over large areas with greater detail than ever before. The approach applies to thermal images from weather satellites, requiring no new hardware.
The BBVA Foundation awards Carl Wunsch for his groundbreaking work revealing the ocean's central role in regulating Earth's climate. His innovative methods allow scientists to quantify ocean state under a changing climate, highlighting the need for a global ocean observing system.
A new study finds hitchhiking bacteria dissolve essential ballast in ubiquitous
A Rutgers researcher finds bacteria accelerate calcium carbonate dissolution in shallow seas, potentially slowing carbon sequestration and influencing climate change. The discovery sheds light on the ocean's biological carbon pump and its future implications.
Researchers found that the Southern Indian Ocean has decreased in salinity by 30% over the past six decades, bringing fresh water into the region. This could disrupt major ocean circulation systems and affect marine ecosystems, including plankton and sea grass.
Researchers developed the Ocean Equity Index to rate ocean initiatives on their recognition of stakeholders, inclusion in decision-making, and treatment. The index offers a practical way to prioritize coastal communities' rights and voices, leading to more equitable outcomes.
Researchers propose that dense, nutrient-rich ice can separate from surrounding ice and descend into the ocean, addressing a longstanding habitability problem on Europa. The study suggests a novel idea inspired by crustal delamination, which could be a consistent means of recycling ice and providing nutrients to the ocean.
The Global Ocean Ship-Based Hydrographic Investigations Program (GO-SHIP) has been awarded the Ocean Observing Team Award for its groundbreaking contributions to ocean observing. The program's repeat hydrography measurements have documented decadal changes in ocean circulation, heat, carbon, oxygen, and nutrients.
Lisa Rom has been selected as a Fellow of The Oceanography Society for her profound impact on ocean science education, particularly through the Centers for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence (COSEE) network. Her efforts have strengthened connections between research and society, broadened participation in the ocean sciences, and suppo...
Zhongping Lee received the 2026 Nils Gunnar Jerlov Medal for his transformative contributions to understanding light interaction with the ocean. His work reshaped ocean color science, enabling robust global observations of ocean transparency and productivity from satellites.
The Earth's ocean stored more heat in 2025 than in any year since modern measurements began, with a record-high increase of 23 Zetta Joules. The findings indicate stronger ocean warming trends since the 1990s and highlight the importance of reducing emissions to mitigate climate change.
A new study has found that the ocean's ability to absorb CO2 is stronger than previously assumed, with air bubbles playing a key role in this process. The research suggests that the ocean absorbed around 0.3-0.4 petagrams more carbon per year, about 15% more than previous estimates.
Researchers discovered that SAR11 marine bacteria are organized into stable, ecologically distinct groups, adapted to specific environments such as coastal and open ocean. These findings provide new insights into the global ocean's life-support system and climate reactions to threats like pollution and ocean warming.
Research shows that intense storms in the Southern Ocean enable it to absorb more heat from the atmosphere. This helps regulate Earth's climate by reducing global warming. The study found that stronger storm activity generates lower surface temperatures across the ocean.
A new global ocean data assimilation system has been developed to improve the accuracy of sea-surface temperature and sea-level anomaly forecasts. The YHGO platform integrates a fully nonlinear and non-Gaussian data assimilation method with a mass-conserving ocean model, leading to improved performance compared to existing systems.
A new study reveals that ammonia-oxidizing archaea rely on urea as a nitrogen source, enabling them to flourish in open ocean waters. This discovery challenges existing understanding of nitrification rates and highlights the crucial role of urea in sustaining ocean productivity.
Ocean is an international, peer-reviewed open-access journal dedicated to advancing research in ocean science, technology, and engineering. The journal aims to foster interdisciplinary collaboration and solve pressing challenges in ocean science and technology.
Researchers from UCSB have challenged the prevailing view of how carbon is fixed in the ocean's sunless depths. They found that microbes beyond autotrophic archaea and heterotrophs could be responsible for fixing carbon dioxide, providing a new understanding of deep-ocean food web dynamics.
A satellite deployed to measure ocean surface heights captured the first high-resolution track of a great subduction zone tsunami. The track shows an unexpectedly complex pattern of waves dispersing and scattering across the ocean basin.
A recent study reveals vast regions of the ocean are experiencing compound state change, with simultaneous warming, salinity changes, oxygen loss, and acidification. This framework enables scientists to identify areas most affected and monitor climate risks.
Researchers found upper ocean ecosystem conditions play a major role in shaping the composition of carbon-rich particles sinking into the deep ocean, storing carbon for decades. Microorganisms influence these transformations, which determine how long this carbon is locked away.
A modelling study suggests that heat stored in the Southern Ocean could be released, causing a rapid warming of the atmosphere. The ocean acts as a large heat reservoir, mitigating atmospheric warming since the Industrial Revolution.
New research reveals that oceanic upwelling systems amplify acidification, posing existential threats to fisheries and coastal economies. The study used historic coral samples and regional ocean models to predict future changes.
A new study reveals that 16% of the Arctic Ocean's dissolved organic carbon comes from land, primarily from thawing permafrost and coastal erosion. This finding has significant implications for understanding how terrestrial organic matter affects Arctic marine ecosystems and the ocean's ability to store CO2.
Researchers analyzed two marine-based carbon removal methods, ocean iron fertilization (OIF) and artificial ocean alkalinization (AOA), for their impacts on the climate system. OIF enhances marine carbon sinks by adding iron, increasing photosynthesis and absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere, but exacerbates deep-ocean acidification.
Climate models oversimplify the role of calcifying plankton in capturing and cycling carbon, potentially underestimating the ocean's capacity to respond to climate change. Ignoring these organisms' diversity risks oversimplifying how the ocean responds to climate stressors.
A new model shows that buoyant plastics degrade slowly at the surface, fragmenting into smaller particles over decades. These tiny fragments can then sink to the ocean floor, but it may take more than 100 years for surface plastic waste to disappear.
A recent study by AWI suggests that the Southern Ocean's ability to absorb CO2 has remained unchanged despite climate change, due to increased density stratification between surface and deep water masses. This 'freshening' of surface water keeps carbon-rich deep water trapped in the lower layer.
A new study reveals that fluctuations in hydrothermal vent temperatures can indicate magmatic and tectonic processes deep beneath the seafloor. The research offers a powerful new tool for monitoring and predicting tectonic activity at mid-ocean ridges, one of the most active segments of the global ocean.
A new study found that marine heatwaves impact the base of ocean food webs, changing carbon cycling in the process. However, the effects of the two heatwaves were not consistent, with one causing a 'conveyor belt' to jam and increasing the risk of carbon returning to the atmosphere.
A new study highlights the Southern Ocean as a decisive factor in cooler warm periods, with stronger stratification leading to more carbon storage in the deep ocean. This led to less atmospheric CO2, a weaker greenhouse effect, and possibly a larger Antarctic ice sheet.
Researchers found that corals can regulate their calcifying fluid chemistry to maintain growth of their skeletons despite increasing ocean acidity. The study suggests an unexpected and hopeful signal, but more long-term data is needed to understand the implications.
The 2026 Ocean Sciences Meeting will be held in Glasgow, Scotland from February 22-27, 2025. The event will bring together 6,000 scientists, students, and educators to discuss breaking research on the ocean sciences and critical issues affecting a sustainable future for our oceans.
A new study reveals that corporations disclose little about their ocean-specific impacts, especially on biodiversity and ecosystems. The research highlights crucial gaps in current reporting frameworks and provides an important baseline for future comparisons.
A new study reveals that North Pacific waters are acidifying more rapidly below the surface than previously thought. Researchers analyzed a 35-year record of ocean carbon measurements and found increases in carbon from natural decomposition, with accelerated acidification associated with fresher and colder waters.
A NUS-led study analyzed coral samples from the Maldives, extending the sea-level record by 60 years and revealing an acceleration of rising sea levels since 1959. The findings show that the Indian Ocean has been highly responsive to climatic changes, with significant sea level rise of 30cm since the mid-20th century.