Physical Oceanography
Physical Oceanography Department Seminar: Global Dynamic Indexes And Energetics Of Lateral Mixing
Rui Huang, WHOI Sponsored by: Physical Oceanography Department – Clark 507 This will be a hybrid seminar held in Clark 507. If you wish to join virtually, you can access…
Read MoreA mummy, a myth, and the Titanic
A 1986 handwritten letter to Bob Ballard revisits one of the Titanic disaster’s strangest myths
Read MorePO Department features prominently in 2026 Woods Hole Sea Grant Educator workshop, Fishing for Data: Real world applications for oceanographic observations
by Caroline Ummenhofer The Woods Hole Sea Grant Educator workshop, Fishing for Data: Real world applications for oceanographic observations, took place on January 23, 2026, in Woods Hole, MA. It…
Read MorePhysical Oceanography Department Seminar: Vertical Momentum Mixing In The Atmospheric Boundary Layer and Its Role in Tropical Convection
Sponsored by: Physical Oceanography Department – Clark 507 This will be a hybrid seminar held in Clark 507. If you wish to join virtually, you can access the Zoom link…
Read MorePhysical Oceanography Department Seminar: Air-Sea Flux Parameterization – A Data-Driven Approach and Its Online Realization
Jiarong Wu, NYU Sponsored by: Physical Oceanography Department – Clark 201 This will be a hybrid seminar held in Clark 201. If you wish to join virtually, you can access…
Read MoreResearchers help solve mystery of clockwork-like earthquake system deep beneath the Pacific
Study of Gofar transform fault on the Pacific seafloor points to mitigating effects of “barrier zones” that keep ruptures from spreading.
Read MoreAutonomous underwater robot discovers hidden coral reef “hotspots”
New underwater robot opens new possibilities in coral reef conservation by autonomously identifying biodiversity “hotspots”
Read MoreSmall seabirds rely on crosswinds to navigate the open ocean
New tracking research reveals Mediterranean storm petrels trade speed for information as they fly hundreds of kilometers across the sea
Read MorePhysical Oceanography Department Seminar: Measuring Tidal Flows To Support Estuarine Restoration Using Infrared Quantitative Image Velocimetry
Evan Heberlein, Cornell University Sponsored by: Physical Oceanography Department – Clark 507 This will be a hybrid seminar held in Clark 507. If you wish to join virtually, you can…
Read MorePhysical Oceanography Department Seminar: Title to be announced
Yan Sun, WHOI Sponsored by: Physical Oceanography Department – Clark 201 This will be a hybrid seminar held in Clark 201. If you wish to join virtually, you can access…
Read MoreCongratulations Dr. Katy Abbott!
On May 4, Dr. Katy Abbott celebrated her successful thesis defense—Vertical Transport and Transformation of Biogeochemical Properties in the Upper Ocean—with her advisor, Amala Mahadevan, along with fellow MIT/WHOI joint…
Read MoreTracking Black-browed albatrosses in the South Atlantic
by Francesco Ventura As part of NASA grant 80NSSC25K7836, PO’s Francesco Ventura led a field campaign to the Falkland Islands to track Black-browed albatrosses (Thalassarche melanophris) nesting on Steeple Jason.…
Read MoreCongratulations Dr. Phadtaya Poemnamthip!
Dr. Phadtaya Poemnamthip celebrates a successful thesis defense along with fellow MIT/WHOI joint program students, chair of the defense, members of the thesis committee, friends and family. Dr. Poemnamthip’s doctoral…
Read MoreIt’s the most ocean-friendly map ever created. Why haven’t more people seen it?
Discover the Spilhaus Projection, a radical world map that reveals Earth as one connected ocean—and reshapes how we see the planet.
Read MoreSvenja Ryan and Caroline Ummenhofer Join Artist Deb Ehrens for “Ocean Fever” Talk at the Cultural Center of Cape Cod
Svenja Ryan and Caroline Ummenhofer at a joint public talk with artist Deb Ehrens at the Cultural Center of Cape Cod on April 11, 2026, for programming for their exhibit “Ocean Fever” that…
Read MoreCongratulations Dr. Weiguang (Roger) Wu!
On April 9, Dr. Weiguang (Roger) Wu celebrated his successful thesis defense—Vertical Transport at Curved Ocean Fronts—with his advisor, Amala Mahadevan, along with fellow MIT/WHOI joint program students, friends, and…
Read MorePO Researchers On Board the R/V Solander for MINTIE Cruise
Adam Houk, Andy Davies, and Dan Torres aboard the R/V Solander…
Read MoreMangrove sediments reveal drivers of Late Holocene sea-level change in the equatorial Pacific Ocean
Sefton, J. P., Kemp, A. C., Engelhart, S. E., Brain, M. J., Ellison, J. C., Creel, R., Piecuch, C. G., Kopp, R. E., Charley, B., & Lihpai, S. (2026). Mangrove sediments reveal…
Read MorePersistent topographic trapping of the Middle Atlantic Bight shelfbreak front
Taenzer, L., Gawarkiewicz, G., & Plueddemann, A. (2026). Persistent Topographic Trapping of the Middle Atlantic Bight Shelfbreak Front. Journal of Physical Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.1175/jpo-d-25-0075.1 Seasonal position and strength of the MAB shelfbreak front. (a) The shelfbreak frontal…
Read MoreCombining paleocurrents and sea level in a least-cost pathway model of human dispersal from Sunda to Sahul, 65-45,000 years ago
Borreggine, M., Powell, E. M., Fu, M., Yang, X., Weeks, E., Zhang, B., Wilkinson, K., Mitrovica, J. X., Tryon, C., & Meadow, R. (2026). Combining paleocurrents and sea level in a…
Read MoreDirect observations of strong jets transporting deep and bottom water into the Indian Ocean through the fracture zones of the Southwest Indian Ridge
Menezes, V., Furey, H., Torres, D., Bahr, F., & Baker, L. (2026). Direct Observations of Strong Jets Transporting Deep and Bottom Water Into the Indian Ocean Through the Fracture Zones…
Read MoreNorth American ice sheet persistence into past interglacials should inform future projections
Creel, R. C., Kopp, R. E., Dutton, A., Zhou, Y., Raymo, M. E., Britt, C. J., & DeConto, R. M. (2026). North American ice sheet persistence into past interglacials should…
Read MoreMIT/WHOI Joint Program Students Attend the 2026 Ocean Sciences Meeting in Glasgow, Scotland
by Anthony Meza and Hiroki Nagao Graduate students and alumni from WHOI’s Physical Oceanography Department recently joined more than 5,000 attendees at the 2026 Ocean Sciences Meeting in Glasgow, Scotland, for a…
Read MoreTracking the hidden currents of Cape Cod Bay
Scientists are using drifters and ocean models to better understand how water, nutrients, and pollutants move through the bay
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