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Welcome to the archives of Oceans Deeply. While we paused regular publication of the site on September 1, 2018, we are happy to serve as an ongoing public resource on ocean health and economy. We hope you’ll enjoy the reporting and analysis that was produced by our dedicated community of editors and contributors.
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Research ships are vital for advancing marine science but are costly to operate. Oscar Pizarro, a scientist at the University of Sydney’s Australian Centre for Field Robotics and the Schmidt Ocean Institute, thinks automated expeditions are the future of ocean science.
Veteran oceanographer Eddy Carmack has witnessed five decades of accelerating change in the Arctic. As he accepted a lifetime achievement award in January, he talks about why ‘pan-Arctic’ research that crosses borders and disciplines is now imperative.
Official development assistance for fisheries in developing nations dropped by about one-third between 2010 and 2015. University of British Columbia researcher Colette Wabnitz says the trend is surprising, but the story is complicated.
A recent expedition off of the California coast was able to take a rare look at how ash from the massive Thomas fire may have affect the coastal marine ecosystem. University of California, Santa Barbara oceanographer Kelsey Bisson explains why it was a unique opportunity.
Steve Rintoul, an oceanographer at Australia’s CSIRO, is embarking on a mission to deploy floats that will collect data from deep in the Southern Ocean. He tells talks about why understanding this region is crucial to getting a better handle on climate change.
Even today, few people have ever traveled to the bottom of the ocean. Stockton Rush, chief executive of OceanGate, explains why he is designing a submersible that will take paying clients there on research missions.
Malcolm David Hudson Academic, University of Southampton
The global community has solved significant environment problems, such as the ozone hole, but has fallen far short on others. When it come to plastic pollution, environmental researcher Malcolm David Hudson asks, which way will the world go?
Climate change has irreversibly changed the Arctic from its reliably frozen past. Recently, U.S. government researchers, dubbing it the ‘New Arctic,’ said there’s little chance of going back to the way things were.
The maritime industry is full of risk, but piracy is a particularly frightening one. Conor Seyle of the foundation One Earth Future explains why the maritime industry needs to better address the PTSD that seafarers may experience.
In a deep, dark and unexplored corner of the ocean, researchers are searching for the answer to how all life on Earth began. Take a journey with them.
Hatchlings make a dangerous run for the ocean as soon as they are born, but light pollution can confuse them. Florida biologist Sarah L. Milton explains how she measured the physiological effects of babies getting lost.
In February, construction will begin on a research and expedition vessel like no other. Nina Jensen, the new chief executive of the company behind the ship, hopes that it will be a “floating think tank” that will change the conversation about ocean health.
Should certain coral reefs be strategically saved? Australian scientist Karlo Hock talks about his recent research that could help conservation managers focus their efforts on reefs that offer hope to the larger ecosystem.
Hundreds of people came out to map the king tides in coastal Virginia in November. Virginia Institute of Marine Science researcher Derek Loftis explains how that is helping the region better prepare as flooding worsens.
Paul Holthus Founding President and Chief Executive, World Ocean Council
Paul Holthus, chief executive of the World Ocean Council, says not enough attention is being paid to the ocean’s potential to generate renewable energy and sequester planet-warming carbon dioxide.
Line K. Bay Senior Research Scientist and Team Leader, Australian Institute of Marine Science
Andrew Heyward Principal Research Scientist, Exploring Marine Biodiversity
Andrew Negri Principal Research Scientist, Australian Institute of Marine Science
Coral spawning is a wonder of the natural world, and understanding the phenomenon better could help save corals around the world, say Line Bay, Andrew Heyward and Andrew Negri from the Australian Institute of Marine Science.
Countries met at the U.N. climate talks in Bonn this month to discuss implementing the Paris climate accord to limit global temperature rise. Negotiator Hugh J. Sealy says only minimal progress has been made to help vulnerable small island nations adapt to global warming.
Fish 2.0 brings together startups and investors that want to make seafood more sustainable. Founder Monica Jain says emerging technologies and market forces will push the industry to change – sooner rather than later.
Most of the planet’s coastlines are in the developing world. Western marine scientists and institutions could do better work by developing the scientific talents of the people who live there, says Asha de Vos, founder of Oceanswell.
The massive storm devastated the Sunshine State’s coral reefs, but a team of researchers and divers is working to help them recover. NOAA’s Lauri MacLaughlin explains what she saw on recent dives and why she is hopeful for the reefs’ future.
Catches by local, non-commercial fishers are often ignored or under-reported by governments globally. But Dirk Zeller, a professor at the University of Western Australia, reckons their size may well rival that of industrial fleets.
Michael Vardon Expert in Environmental Accounting
Australian National University’s Michael Vardon argues that the country’s government should hike the marine park’s minimal entry fee to fund conservation of a priceless ecosystem.
Many populations of endangered sea turtles are recovering, but some continue to drop. Sea turtle biologist Margaret Lamont talks about why differences in biology and ecology hinder some turtles from bouncing back and why the animals are so difficult to study.
The University of Alaska has produced a procedure for what scientists on research vessels should do to avoid disrupting Indigenous communities’ traditional hunts. The university’s Brenda Konar hopes that other vessels will adopt codes of conduct.
Jessica Meeuwig Marine Scientist
More than 1,200 scientists from 45 countries have signed a petition calling on the Australian government to reverse a proposal to allow commercial fishing in marine protected areas, calling the action scientifically flawed.
Researchers know that some species of fish will be impacted by climate change more than others, but which ones? Marine scientist William Cheung says a mathematical tool known as fuzzy logic may help solve that puzzle.
Small island states face increasing threats from climate change – from rising sea levels to the loss of coral reefs. University of Hawaii law professor Maxine Burkett discusses legal strategies that could help them secure compensation for those impacts.
Researcher Rebecca Selden talks about her new study, which looks at the impact of climate change on predator-prey relationships and how the migration of a keystone species can roil local economies.
Growing evidence indicates that underwater air guns used to detect oil and gas deposits affect the behavior of marine mammals. Arctic biologist Eva Garde talks about her research into the impact of air guns on elusive narwhals
David Obura Adjunct Fellow, Global Change Institute
Kenya’s marine resources are declining, but they could be one of the nation’s most valuable assets as long as it follows through on its sustainable development commitments, writes David Obura of the University of Queensland.
Marine scientist Michael Beck says that an analysis of hurricane-related economic losses shows that conserving and restoring coastal reefs, wetlands and mangroves can prevent flooding and save hundreds of millions of dollars.
Researcher Iain Couzin is shedding light on how thousands of fish can instantly and seamlessly synchronize their movements – a phenomenon that has implications for marine conservation.
Studying whales in the wild can be difficult and expensive, but drones are now cheaply gathering huge amounts of data on the mammals’ health by capturing samples of their mucus.
Susanne Becken Professor of Sustainable Tourism, Griffith University, Australia
Bela Stantic Acting Head of School of Information and Communication Technology, Griffith University
Rod Connolly Professor in Marine Science, Griffith University in southeast Queensland, Australia
Environmental monitoring is an expensive and time-consuming endeavor. One solution: Tap data stored in tweets and Instagram photos to track the health of coral reefs and other marine ecosystems.
Scientists with NASA’s Operation IceBridge are shooting green lasers into the Arctic Ocean’s melt ponds to better understand the dramatic thawing that’s well underway.
NOAA sent an expedition to remote Pacific Islands after the recent global bleaching events and found devastation at reefs once exploding with life, but also reason for optimism.
Steve Adler Chief Data Strategist, IBM Watson
Nishan Degnarain Member of the Government, Mauritius’s National Ocean Taskforce
Scientists, governments and businesses are amassing unprecedented amounts of ocean data. But if marine ecosystems are to survive, we need to figure out how to get a lot more, say Nishan Degnarain and Steve Adler.
Donald Scavia Professor of Environmental Engineering, University of Michigan
Too many nutrients washing into our waters create oxygen-deprived “dead zones.” But voluntary steps to reduce nutrient runoff and shrink dead zones just aren’t working, says environmental researcher Don Scavia.
On a recent trip to South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Pew’s Johnny Briggs documented how wildlife has thrived since a marine protected area was established.
Mia Bennett National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow, University of California
If you thought that all Indigenous peoples were uniformly opposed to oil drilling, think again. The Arctic Slope Regional Corporation sees offshore exploration as a way to create wealth for its communities, writes Mia Bennett at Cryopolitics.
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