Pacific Ocean

A drawing of the extinct Steller's sea cow

An Extinct Sea Cow May Help the Restoration of California’s Dwindling Kelp Forests

Researchers are modeling out what the ocean may have looked like when the seaweed-munching mammal roamed the shores

The last surviving thylacine's skull

Remains of Last Surviving Tasmanian Tiger Discovered in Museum Cabinet

Researchers found the lost body of the female thylacine after 85 years

A house damaged by last week's earthquake.

What Made Indonesia’s Recent Earthquake So Deadly?

The 5.6-magnitude earthquake that rocked the island of Java last week has killed at least 321 people

The first juvenile collector urchin (Tripneustes gratilla) raised from a cryopreserved embryo.

A Graduate Student’s Research Could Help Stop the Spread of Invasive Seaweed in Hawai'i

For the first time, using cryopreservation to freeze sea urchin embryos may help restore coral reefs

Moai statues on Easter Island

Fire Irreversibly Damages Easter Island Statues

The isolated island is home to hundreds of the mysterious monuments

A NASA Earth Observatory satellite captured an image of the eruption on September 14. The greener, discolored water near the eruption site likely contains particulate matter, rock fragments and sulfur from the volcano. 

Volcanic Eruption Creates a New Island in the South Pacific

The growing land mass is larger than 8 acres and visible from space

An epaulette shark in the South Pacific

This Shark Can Walk on Land to Survive Its Extreme Habitat

Epaulette sharks could help scientists understand how animals respond to harsh conditions, including those caused by climate change

Breadfruit grows on trees.

Is Breadfruit the Climate Change-Proof Food of the Future?

New research suggests it will fare better than our current staple crops under warming conditions

The so-called frogmen swam into enemy beaches unarmed, wearing only swim trunks, dive masks and fins.

Untold Stories of American History

The Stealth Swimmers Whose WWII Scouting Laid the Groundwork for the Navy SEALs

The Underwater Demolition Teams cleared coastal defenses and surveyed enemy beaches ahead of Allied landings

Chilean devil rays swim in the Atlantic Ocean near the Azores. 

What Are Scientists Learning About the Deepest Diving Creatures in the Ocean?

Animals-turned-oceanographers are helping biologists find out what they do when they get to the cold, dark depths

A 2015 expedition found two species of sharks living in the hot, acidic water near Kavachi, thus earning it the nickname "Sharkcano."

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NASA Snaps Photos of Underwater 'Sharkcano' Erupting

Kavachi, a submarine volcano in the southwest Pacific Ocean, is home to several species of sharks and fish that can withstand the extreme environment

Marine biologists suspect that the dragonfish can use its tiny fins to detect vibrations and alert them of nearby predators and prey.

Rarely Seen Torpedo-Shaped Dragonfish Spotted Off California's Coast

The copper-colored fish has only been seen four times in more than three decades of deep-sea research

The MarineLabs sensor buoy that detected the record-breaking wave near Ucluelet, British Columbia.

Record-Breaking Rogue Wave Detected Off Vancouver Island

A 58-foot-tall wall of water was measured by a sensor buoy off the coast

Last November, a team of scientists and photographers spent 200 hours studying the vast reef during a dive expedition supported by UNESCO.

Good News

Researchers Find a Pristine Coral Reef Off the Coast of Tahiti

With rose-shaped corals as far as the eye can see, it is one of the largest healthy reefs on record

The recent explosion was so powerful that it obliterated parts of the volcanic island of Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai, splitting it in two.

NASA Says Tonga Eruption Was More Powerful Than an Atomic Bomb

The recent blast was the equivalent of 4 to 18 megatons of TNT, according to scientists

The explosion was likely the biggest volcanic eruption recorded anywhere on the planet in more than 30 years.

Why the Eruption in Tonga Was a 'Once-in-a-Millennium' Event for the Volcano

The blast, which sent tsunami waves across the Pacific, left thousands of Tongans without access to water and power

Little is known about most magnapinnid, or bigfin squid, species. The individual pictured here was spotted by the NOAA ship Okeanos Explorer in the Gulf of Mexico. Recently, a magnapinnid was filmed in the Philippine Trench—the deepest ever sighting of a squid.

Scientists Find the World's Deepest-Dwelling Squid

Researchers went looking for a war wreck roughly 19,000 feet under the sea—and spotted the animal instead

A humpback whale and her calf swim underwater. A recent study in Nature found whales eat and poop way more than previously thought—and that feces plays an important role in fertilizing the ocean.

The Top Ten Ocean Stories of 2021

From the discovery of a large bioluminescent shark to the use of an innovative drone to study hurricanes, these are the best marine stories of the year

The device was developed by The Ocean Cleanup, a nonprofit that aims to remove 90 percent of floating ocean plastic by 2040.

This New Installation Pulled 20,000 Pounds of Plastic From the Great Pacific Garbage Patch

The trash collection device dubbed 'Jenny' could help address overwhelming marine plastic pollution

Gigantic and extinct, Steller’s sea cows would have played an important role in shaping their environment.

How Steller's Sea Cows Impacted the Environment They Left Behind

A new paper explores the ways these extinct megaherbivores would have reshaped kelp forests across the North Pacific

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