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Marine Task Force to Develop National Standards for Ocean Aquaculture Announced

June 22, 2005

Additional Contact:
Justin Kenney
The Pew Charitable Trusts
215-575-4816, jkenney@pewtrusts.org

(Washington, D.C.) The Pew Charitable Trusts, in collaboration with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), announces the establishment of the Marine Aquaculture Task Force—comprising leaders from the worlds of science, industry, conservation and […]

How Much Excess Fresh Water Was Added to the North Atlantic in Recent Decades?

June 16, 2005

Large regions of the North Atlantic Ocean have been growing fresher since the late 1960s as melting glaciers and increased precipitation, both associated with greenhouse warming, have enhanced continental runoff into the Arctic and sub-Arctic seas.  Over the same time […]

Scientists Map Ocean Floor Near Palmer Station in Antarctica

June 8, 2005

Using inflatable boats, a portable depth sounder with GPS, and a REMUS autonomous underwater vehicle, a team of scientists and engineers has created the first detailed, comprehensive chart of the ocean floor around Palmer Station in Antarctica, revealing previously unknown […]

Hurricanes and the Coastal Zone

June 1, 2005

With hurricane season arriving June 1, along with predictions of an above normal number of major storms in the Atlantic and Gulf States, understanding how the ocean and atmospheric interact and what role changing climate has on the formation of […]

What is That in the Water?

June 1, 2005

As summer vacations approach, beachgoers might want to bring along a guide to what they and their children will see on the beach and in the water. WHOI scientists and educators have created Beachcomber’s Companion for adventures at the beach. […]

Blooms of a Different Sort

June 1, 2005

Commonly called “red tides,” harmful algal blooms, or HABs, are an abundance or “bloom” of single-celled marine algae called phytoplankton that grow and multiply under the right conditions. Among the thousands of phytoplankton species, most are harmless and only a […]

G. Unger Vetlesen Foundation Honored by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

May 31, 2005

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution recently honored The G. Unger Vetlesen Foundation of New York with the prestigious Cecil H. Green Award.  The award, named for Texas Instruments’ founder and philanthropist Cecil H. Green, is presented to those who have made […]

WHOI Scientists Monitor Largest Red Tide Outbreak in 12 Years in Massachusetts Bay

May 26, 2005

With shellfish beds from Maine to the Cape Cod coast closed from the largest outbreak of red tide in 12 years in Massachusetts Bay, scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) are studying the algae that causes these “red […]

New Underwater Volcano Found Near Samoa

May 25, 2005

An international  team of scientists, led by researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of Oregon and University of Sydney, has discovered an active underwater volcano near the Samoan Island chain about 2,400 miles southwest […]

Scientists Find Unusual Use of Metals in the Ocean

May 9, 2005

Cadmium, commonly considered a toxic metal and often used in combination with nickel in batteries, has been found to have a biological use as a nutrient in the ocean, the first known biological use of cadmium in any life form.

Scientists […]

WHOI Scientist Elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences

May 3, 2005

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) Senior Scientist Stanley Hart of the Geology and Geophysics Department was recently elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the oldest learned societies in the nation. Dr. Hart is […]

Diving to the Rosebud Vents – Galápagos Rift

May 1, 2005

In 2002, researchers diving in the submersible Alvin returned to the Galápagos Rift, a mid-ocean ridge about 250 miles from the Galápagos Islands in the eastern Pacific Ocean where hydrothermal vents and exotic organisms were first found in 1977. They […]

Tiny Computer Tag Provides Insight to Reclusive Beaked Whales

May 1, 2005

A miniature computer weighing less than 5 ounces attached to the backs of beaked whales with suction cups is providing new clues to the behavior and sounds made by the deep-diving reclusive species. Little is known about these mid-sized toothed […]

Exploring the Seas from Top to Bottom

May 1, 2005

WHOI research vessels are exploring the oceans this spring from Bermuda to the Bay of Fundy in the North Atlantic and from Mexico to the Galápagos Islands in the eastern Pacific, conducting studies related to climate change, harmful algal blooms, […]

Salty Staircase in the Atlantic Provides Clues to Ocean Mixing

April 29, 2005

Layers of salty ocean water mix with layers of fresher water, creating a salty staircase or layering driven by small-scale convection known as salt fingers.  Although scientists have known about salt fingers since 1960, when they were discovered at the […]

Sea Squirt Invasion: Scientists Gather at WHOI for First International Conference

April 20, 2005

Scientists, natural resource managers and students from four continents will gather at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) April 21 and 22 to discuss a growing global problem: the sea squirt.

The mysterious filter feeding organism, a didemnid also known as […]

New Coral Dating Technique Helps Resolve Changes in Sea Level Rise in the Past

April 15, 2005

Corals from Papua New Guinea and Barbados indicate that changes in sea level, one of the key indexes for global climate change, may have been more frequent in the past than previously thought, according to a report in today’s issue […]

WHOI Establishes Award to Recognize Contributions of Navy Admiral, Oceanographer

April 1, 2005

A former Oceanographer of the Navy and Rear Admiral who headed Marine Operations at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) for 14 years has been honored by the Institution with the establishment of the Rear Admiral Richard F. Pittenger, USN […]

Changes in Earth’s Tilt Control When Glacial Cycles End

March 28, 2005

Scientists have long debated what causes glacial/interglacial cycles, which have occurred most recently at intervals of about 100,000 years. A new study reported in the March 24 issue of Nature finds that these glacial cycles are paced by variations in […]

Deep-Sea Tremors May Provide Early Warning System for Larger Earthquakes

March 24, 2005

Predicting when large earthquakes might occur may be a step closer to reality, thanks to a new study of undersea earthquakes in the eastern Pacific Ocean. The study, reported in today??A’s Nature, is the first to suggest that small seismic shocks or foreshocks preceding a major earthquake can be used in some cases to predict the main tremors.