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A Milestone for JASON

September 1, 2004

The Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) JASON completed its 100th dive August 1 in Adak Canyon in the Aleutian Island chain as part of the Aleutian Coral Research Expedition (ACRE), funded by the NOAA’s West Coast and Polar Regions Undersea Research…

Deeper-Diving Human Occupied Submersible to Replace Alvin

August 6, 2004

Arlington, VA –After 40 years of scientific research that led to the discovery of new life forms, helped confirm the theory of plate tectonics, and enthralled schoolchildren around the world with seafloor images and video, the research submersible Alvin will…

A New Seafloor Observatory System

July 1, 2004

Monitoring earthquakes and changing ocean conditions, and adapting experiments to those changes, will now be possible with a new type of acoustically-linked moored observatory developed by WHOI scientists and engineers with colleagues at the University of Washington. The new observatory…

Insights into Harmful Algal Blooms

July 1, 2004

WHOI scientists have been sampling a coastal pond as part of a study of the effects of nutrients on toxic micro-algae that frequently contaminate shellfish in the pond and nearby marsh system with potent neurotoxins. The methods and approaches used…

Where Currents Collide and Marine Mammals Gather

July 1, 2004

Cape Hatteras, where the Gulf Stream veers off the continental slope into the deep ocean and heads toward Europe, will be the site of two intensive surveys in August 2004 and January-February 2005 to study frontal structures and the related…

WHOI Elects Members and Trustees at Spring Meeting of the Corporation

June 17, 2004

Nine new members and two new trustees were elected at the recent Joint Meeting of the Board of Trustees and Corporation at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. All Members will serve until 2007. Members are elected initially for a term of three years and are eligible for reelection to six-year terms. Trustees serve four-year terms and are eligible for reelection.

Abrupt Climate Change Brought to Public Attention in Hollywood Movie

May 28, 2004

The movie The Day After Tomorrow, released today by 20th Century Fox, paints a dramatic picture of the effects of climate change – and raises questions about the boundary between science and science fiction. How fast can Earth’s climate change? Will global warming raise sea level and flood coastal cities? If our climate cools, will it spawn an “ice age” in our lifetimes?

Tropical Plants Help Identify Lags Between Abrupt Climate and Vegetation Shifts in Different Parts of the World

May 28, 2004

Clues to the timing and cause of abrupt climate changes in the past may lie in ocean floor sediments, according to a study by scientists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI).

New Chair of the Corporation Elected at WHOI

May 14, 2004

Thomas B. Wheeler, former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, has been elected Chairman of the Corporation of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI).

Two New Directors Named for WHOI’s Ocean Institutes

May 6, 2004

An international red tide expert and a leading researcher in mid-ocean ridge volcanism and hydrothermal processes have been named directors of two Ocean Institutes at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI).

Technology Opens World of Marine Archaeology off Greece

May 1, 2004

Scientists and engineers in the Deep Submergence Laboratory are working with Canadian, American and Greek colleagues to find and study the lost fleets of the Persian Wars. The WHOI team, experienced in underwater search and survey work and in imaging…

Our Moving Shoreline

May 1, 2004

Scientists in the Coastal Ocean Institute (COI) are studying coastal erosion, storm impacts, development, nutrient inputs from septic systems and agriculture, and other phenomenon that impact our shoreline. A recent study of the Massachusetts coast, for example, found that an…

Oceanus Magazine Available Online

May 1, 2004

Oceanus, the oceanography magazine produced by WHOI, now has an online version at https://www.whoi.edu/oceanus/. Initial articles feature deep ocean exploration, such as the evolutionary puzzle of seafloor life, life beneath the sea floor, and undersea earthquakes. Articles on current research…

New Center for Oceans and Human Health Established in Woods Hole

April 22, 2004

Scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have joined together to form the Woods Hole Center for Oceans and Human Health (COHH). The new Center, with administrative offices at WHOI, will serve as a focal point for research on issues at the intersection of oceanographic, biological and environmental health sciences, such as harmful algal blooms and organisms in coastal waters and estuaries that cause human illness and death.

Rate of Ocean Circulation Directly Linked to Abrupt Climate Change in North Atlantic Region

April 21, 2004

A new study strengthens evidence that the oceans and climate are linked in an intricate dance, and that rapid climate change may be related to how vigorously ocean currents transport heat from low to high latitudes.

Ocean Commission Report Offers Opportunity to Set New Course In Managing Our Oceans Wisely

April 16, 2004

The release of the preliminary report of the US Commission on Ocean Policy today offers an opportunity to set a new national course in the conservation, management and wise use of the oceans, say scientists at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI).

Effects of Ocean Fertilization with Iron To Remove Carbon Dioxide from the Atmosphere Reported

April 16, 2004

Dumping iron in the ocean is known to spur the growth of plankton that remove carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, from the atmosphere, but a new study indicates iron fertilization may not be the quick fix to climate problems that some had hoped.

Submersible Alvin Reaches Another Milestone with Dive #4,000

April 16, 2004

Alvin, the nation’s only deep-diving research submersible capable of carrying humans to great depths to explore the sea floor, reached another milestone in its long career April 12 when the sub made its 4,000th dive.

WHOI Launches Coastal Vessel Tioga

April 14, 2004

The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution’s new 60-foot coastal research vessel (CRV) Tioga was christened and launched March 29, 2004 in ceremonies at Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation in Somerset, MA.

Detrick Appointed to WHOI Marine Facilities and Operations Post

April 5, 2004

Senior Scientist Robert Detrick has been appointed Vice President for Marine Facilities and Operations at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), effective July 1, 2004.