Kate Madin

I was born in California near San Francisco Bay, and childhood summers included fishing in Washington rivers, digging clams on Oregon beaches, and camping from the California redwoods to the Olympic rainforest. Living close to nature and being the daughter of a chemistry teacher, I inclined toward science. At the University of California, Davis, I met my future husband knee-deep in mudflats diging for marine invertebrates. After a year in Bimini on a science-on-a-shoestring expedition to study open-ocean zooplankton, we returned to Davis, moved eastward to WHOI, and I commuted cross-country for a PhD at UCD. I feel very fortunate to have been able to raise a family, stay close to science through writing and education outreach, and work with wonderful, interesting people every day.

PlankZooka & SUPR-REMUS

June 1, 2017

Much of marine life begins as microscopic larvae—so tiny, delicate, and scattered in hard-to-reach parts of ocean that scientists have…

Eavesdropping on Whales

March 15, 2017

WHOI scientist Mark Baumgartner has installed a mooring in New York waters that listens for whales and sends back alerts. The prototype advance-warning system could one day help reduce shipping collisions with whales.

A Big Decline of River Herring

February 14, 2017

River herring used to run up coastal streams in great numbers in springtime, returning from the ocean to spawn in fresh water. But their populations have plummeted. WHOI biologist Joel Llopiz is investigating critical gaps in understanding river herring’s larval stage just after they hatch.

A New Tsunami-Warning System

January 11, 2017

After successfully testing a long-range underwater communications system that worked under Arctic Ocean ice, an engineering team at Woods Hole…

Communicating Under Sea Ice

January 5, 2017

Researchers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution developed a new communication and navigation system that works over long distances under Arctic sea ice, allowing scientists to use autonomous underwater vehicles to explore the ice-covered Arctic Ocean.

New Device Reveals What Ocean Microbes Do

December 13, 2016

Whether you’re a plant, animal, or even a microbe, you generally can’t conduct the business of living without exchanging oxygen.…

Not Just Another Lovely Summer Day on the Water

June 1, 2016

It looks like nice summer day on the water, but Alexis Fischer (right) and Alice Alpert, graduate students in the…

In 2010, a research team garnered headlines when it published evidence of finding the first animals living in oxygen-free conditions…

Illuminating an Unexplored Undersea Universe

Twenty-five years ago, the Hubble Telescope was launched to look out to the vast darkness of outer space. It captured…

How Did Earth Get Its Ocean?

December 21, 2015

Adam Sarafian overcame a learning disability and surmounted heights as a an All-American pole-vaulter—all before launching a scientific career that has now allowed him to hurtle across the universe and back through time to the period when Earth was still forming.

Sand, Seals, and Solitude

March 4, 2015

In high school, students interested in art or science often diverge into separate fields. For several years now, an art…

A Telescope to Peer into the Vast Ocean

February 6, 2015

There are more single-celled plankton in the ocean than stars in the universe. A new instrument is about to depart on a mission across the vast Pacific to capture images of what is out there.

‘Covering’ Alvin‘s History

October 9, 2014

The Spellman Museum of Stamps and Postal History in Weston, Mass., is having an exhibit of postal covers and artifacts related to the submersible Alvin’s 50th anniversary Oct. 3 to Nov. 2.

Alvin‘s Animals

July 2, 2014

From orange octopi and furry yeti crabs to the largest known anemone, pilots and scientists diving in the Alvin submersible continue to find amazing marine creatures.

Trailblazer in the Ocean

June 3, 2014

On June 5, 1964, a stubby submersible with a not-so-bold name was commissioned on the dock of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, marking the beginning of a new era of deep-sea exploration

A Buoy’s Long Strange Trip

March 6, 2014

Since 2004, WHOI scientists have deployed ice-tether profilers (ITPs) in polar sea ice to monitor changing conditions in the Arctic. ITP 47 found its way to the coast of Ireland.

WHOI CSI Lab Investigates Rare Whales

January 30, 2014

Two seldomly seen deep-diving whales called True’s beaked whales were found dead on a beach on Long Island, N.Y. Why did the whales, an adult female and male juvenile,die?

Can Squid Abide Ocean’s Lower pH?

January 9, 2014

To most people, squid are calamari: delicious when fried. But to WHOI researchers Max Kaplan and Aran Mooney, squid are another reason to be concerned about ocean acidification.