Oceans

An opah or moonfish that washed up on Sunset Beach in northern Oregon on July 14.

Brightly Colored, 100-Pound Moonfish Washes Up on Oregon Beach

Scientists say this open-ocean species, also known as an opah, typically inhabits warmer waters than those of the Pacific Northwest

Neurotoxins secreted by the algae Karenia brevis kill marine life including fish, dolphins and manatees

More Than 600 Tons of Dead Sea Life Wash Up on Florida Coast Amid Red Tide

Crews cleaned up nine tons of dead fish in just 24 hours after Tropical Storm Elsa pushed the fish toward shore

Similar lunar and climate conditions led to increased flooding in 2015. Pictured, a car drives through high waters in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Moon's Wobbly Orbit and Rising Sea Levels Will Cause Record Flooding in the 2030s

Clusters of nuisance floods could have major impacts on businesses and public health

New research finds that sea otters have extremely high metabolisms for their size to keep warm in the cold ocean waters they inhabit.

With This Metabolic Trick, Sea Otters Stay Warm Without Shivering

Researchers find that the metabolisms of these marine mammals go into overdrive to create heat in cool waters

Chris Meyer, a marine invertebrate zoologist at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, dives around French Polynesia with equipment used to track coral reef health.

Meet the Reef Expert Collecting Environmental Time Capsules

Collecting DNA in waters worldwide can help scientists figure out which places are the most important for conservation

Rain, waves, and seeping groundwater can destabilize seaside bluffs, making them prone to collapse.

The Science of Predicting When Bluffs in Southern California Will Collapse

Researchers are using lidar to better understand the erosional forces that cause oceanfront cliffs to crumble

An Atlantic White Shark Conservancy boat and crew work to tag a great white shark in the waters off the shore in Cape Cod, Massachusetts on July 13, 2019.

Can New Tools Help Beachgoers Predict the Likelihood That a Shark Is Nearby?

Great whites have returned to Cape Cod, and efforts are underway to help people coexist with them

Astronomers used the Keck Observatory in Hawai'i to analyze what chemical building blocks made up the Comet 46/P Wirtanen.

Boozy Comet's Mysterious Heat Source Offers Clues to How Planets Like Earth Obtain Water

The cosmic relic contains minerals from when the solar system first formed and high amounts of methanol

Satellite images of the Southern Amery Ice Shelf show the ice-covered lake before and after a fracture in the ice shelf beneath caused it to drain into the sea.

Massive Antarctic Lake Vanishes in Just Three Days

Researchers estimate the body of water once held as much as 26 billion cubic feet of H2O that has now all drained into the ocean

Dune Lankard is embracing a method called regenerative ocean farming.

Facing Warming Waters, Fishermen Are Taking Up Ocean Farming

Called regenerative ocean farming, this model involves growing shellfish and kelp in underwater gardens

This image from Seabed 2030 shows how much of the seafloor has been mapped, with black areas representing places without data yet.

Can Scientists Map the Entire Seafloor by 2030?

Two non-profit organizations are betting that with the help of research institutions, private vessels and new technologies, they can do just that

Head scientist at the Smithsonian Marine Station, Valerie Paul, collects blue-green algae samples to study the chemicals they emit. Those chemicals can endanger coral reefs, but also have biomedical potential.

How Algae Communicate

Smithsonian scientist Valerie Paul studies the ways marine biochemicals can potentially help restore coral reefs and create new biomedicine

A snowflake moray eel peers out from its hiding spot.

To Capture Prey on Land, This Eel Has an Extendable, Extra Jaw Hidden Inside Its Throat

This second set of teeth allows some moray eels to more effectively feed in the intertidal zone when the tide is low

Orange scalefin anthias fish swarm in front of a fire coral in the Red Sea's Ras Mohammed Marine Park, Egypt.

Will the Oceans of 2030 Brim With Reef Robots and Other Fancy Stuff?

Imagine a world where an Indigenous fisher can get forecasts of local marine life from a smartphone, or robots offer real-time data on coral reef health

Dried sea snot on the surface of the water can be so strong that seagulls can walk on it, and it can damage fishing boat motors.

Turkey Begins to Clean Smelly Sea Snot From Its Shores

The layer of marine mucilage threatens not only tourism and fishing boats but also creatures living in the Sea of Marmara

Recent research has shown that most scientific papers on coral biodiversity are led by people in high-income countries with few coral reefs.

The Pandemic Showed What Can Be Done Without Parachute Science

With international scientists barred from traveling, local scientists in the Pacific islands are taking the chance to lead.

A pygmy blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus brevicauda) crosses the Indian Ocean and passes near Mirissa, Sri Lanka.

Using Nuclear Bomb Detectors, Scientists Overhear the Secret Songs of a Never-Before-Seen Pygmy Blue Whale Population

The new group is named 'Chagos' after the islands close to where the melodies were detected

New genetic research suggests that the gray whale spotted off the coast of Namibia in 2013 originated in the western Pacific.

Gray Whale Breaks Migration Record With 16,700-Mile Journey

The whale, which is usually found in the northern Pacific Ocean, was spotted off Namibia in 2013

A giant replica of the Aedes mosquito, a known vector for the disease yellow fever, has been waiting for visitors to return the National Museum of Natural History’s “Outbreak: Epidemics in a Connected World” exhibit.

Don't Miss These Objects When the Smithsonian's Natural History Museum Reopens

See everything from a giant replica of a mosquito, to an Allosaurus fossil, to a pink fairy armadillo when the museum opens June 18

Small family-run dive tour operations in Mexico have been found to give more back to their communities than large foreign-owned businesses.

In Mexico, Dive Tourism Is Worth as Much as Fishing

Researchers estimate diving and snorkeling bring in up to $725 million annually

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