Articles tagged as Oceans | Smithsonian Magazine

Can humans stop a catastrophic rise in sea levels?

New Research

Sea Levels Are Rising More Quickly Than in the Last Two Millennia

Here are five things to know about the rising tide

February 23, 2016

The Pearl of Dubai is half adventure park, half marine sanctuary.

Can Underwater Resorts Actually Help Coral Reef Ecosystems?

A Los Angeles company is designing artificial reefs to boost local economies and marine habitat

February 23, 2016

A thick wetsuit is mandatory garb for surfers braving the ice-cold ocean.

For New England’s Snow Surfers, Surf’s Up Even When Temps Are Down

Catch a very cold wave at the New England Mid-Winter Surfing Championships

February 11, 2016

When CO2 rises, wet and wild planets may lose their oceans to space.

New Research

Looking for Life Beyond Earth? Watch Out for Steam Bath Planets

Simulations show that water and CO2 can be a surprisingly deadly combo on some unfortunate worlds

February 9, 2016

Trainer Liz Seely and Tucker head out to search for scat on a research boat.

Meet the Dogs Sniffing Out Whale Poop for Science

Inspired by drug-detection programs, these canines scour the sea for samples that aid in conservation research

February 8, 2016

A beached sperm whale on January 13, in Wangerooge, Germany

The cause of the cetacean tragedy is still a mystery

January 29, 2016

The drill bit that the Atlantis Bank expedition broke near the start of operations. Three of the four "cones" used to dig the hole have snapped off.

A Decades-Long Quest to Drill Into Earth’s Mantle May Soon Hit Pay Dirt

Geologists have had to contend with bad luck, budget cuts and the race to the moon in their efforts to drill deep into our planet

January 25, 2016

Fish caught for drying in a village in Bangladesh

New Research

Overfishing Has Been Even Worse Than We Thought

Official counts previously overlooked fish as bycatch, small-scale fishing and illegal fishing

January 20, 2016

Crews abandon their ships during the Great Whaling Disaster of 1871.

Cool Finds

Remnants of a Whaling Disaster Have Been Discovered off the Coast of Alaska

A catastrophe wiped out an entire whaling fleet 144 years ago, now researchers have found some of the wrecks’ remains

January 8, 2016

Art Meets Science

Does This Sculpture Depict a Coral Reef Collapsing or Recovering?

Artist Courtney Mattison’s spiral-shaped piece explores the uncertain future for coral reefs

January 2016

Does Icy Pluto Have a Hidden Ocean? New Horizons Offers New Clues

Data from the NASA probe are helping to build a solid case for a liquid ocean inside the tiny, distant world

January 7, 2016

Scientists expect about 10,000 whales to visit Hawaii’s tropical waters this winter—but they’re taking their time

January 4, 2016

Do these satellite sea surface images look similar? Experts think so. The image of the Pacific Ocean on the left was taken recently. To the right is a sea surface image taken in December 1997.

The world is bracing for record rains and droughts

December 30, 2015

Cool Finds

A Giant Squid Visits a Japanese Harbor

These denizens of the deep usually lurk between 2,000 to 3,000 feet below the surface

December 28, 2015

Cool Finds

Oysters Could Save Staten Island From the Next Hurricane Sandy

A living breakwater could prevent future flooding while cleaning polluted waters

December 23, 2015

This photo of two short-nosed sea snakes alerted researchers to the species' survival, even though they were thought to be extinct for 15 years.

New Research

They’re Back: Supposedly Extinct Sea Snakes Have Been Found in Australia

Nearly 15 years later and about 1,000 miles away from the last sighting, the snakes could be making a comeback

December 22, 2015

Top Nine Ocean Stories That Had Us Talking in 2015

From fossil whales to adorable octopuses, here are some of the marine headliners that caught our attention this year

December 21, 2015

Logs like this one are being digitized in museums all over New England and used to help scientists understand climate change.

A new crowdsourcing project lets amateur enthusiasts contribute, too

December 17, 2015

Part of the Capitol Christmas Tree's splendor comes from marine debris collected along the Alaska coast.

Cool Finds

The Capitol’s Christmas Tree Is (Partially) Made of Trash

Marine debris bedecks a 74-foot tree from Alaska

December 17, 2015

Divers approach a bull shark in the water off Mauritius. Though environmental conditions are much the same in Mauritius and neighboring La Réunion, the latter is one of the most dangerous shark-attack spots in the world.

Age of Humans

Why Is This Indian Ocean Island a Hot Spot for Shark Attacks?

La Réunion has seen way more attacks than its neighbor Mauritius, and scientists are struggling to figure out why

December 14, 2015