Oceans

Climate

Urchin takeover underlies California’s vanishing kelp forests

Some 95 percent of kelp forests along its northern coast are gone. Meanwhile, sea otters are helping slow the loss of surviving kelp farther south.

Microbes

Several plant-like algae can morph into animal-like predators

Single-celled green algae swim through water as free cells. Most use only photosynthesis for their energy. But not all of them, a new study shows.

Animals

Fin whales could help scientists map what lies below the seafloor

Fin-whale calls are loud enough to penetrate into Earth’s crust, offering scientists a new way to study the properties of the ocean floor.

Earth

Rock rising from below the Atlantic may drive continents apart

Molten rock rising from the deep mantle at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge may drive plate tectonics there more than had been expected.

Climate

2020 was warmest year on record for Earth’s oceans

2020 continued the trend of record-breaking heat for the world’s oceans. The three previous warmest years on record were 2019, 2017 and 2018.

Animals

Choked by bacteria, some starfish are turning to goo

For years, researchers thought gooey, dying starfish were infected. Instead, these sea stars are suffocating. And bacteria may be behind it all.

Environment

Unmasking the pandemic’s pollution problem

Discarding all the materials people use to protect themselves from COVID-19 has created a growing environmental problem.

Animals

Let’s learn about sharks

This ancient group of fish can use scent and even electricity to detect their prey. And they fill an important niche in the ocean.

Ecosystems

Analyze This: Shipwrecks provide a home for bottom-dwelling fish

Fish have found a habitat in a submarine and freighter that sunk to the seafloor during World War II.

Animals

Whales get a second life as deep-sea buffets

When a whale dies and sinks to the seafloor, it becomes a feast for hundreds of different types of creatures.

Animals

One tiny sea parasite survives 200 times atmospheric pressure

Known as the seal louse, this tiny insect can survive deep oceanic dives on its mobile home, a marine mammal.

Microbes

Some deep-seafloor microbes still alive after 100 million years!

Some starving microbes nap while awaiting their next meal. For some living miles below the ocean surface, that nap may exceed 100 million years.