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Research Highlights

Oceanus Magazine

Larry Madin and Kelly Sutherland

Tiny drifters, massive impact

March 24, 2026

How salps shuttle carbon to the deep

The unseen toll of war on science

March 19, 2026

As the changing climate accelerates the spread of toxic algal blooms in the Arctic, the Russia–Ukraine war is cutting off critical international collaboration needed to understand and protect vulnerable ecosystems and communities.

Jane Ruckert, a technical diver

From ruin to reef

January 27, 2026

What Pacific wrecks are teaching us about coral resilience—and pollution

One researcher, 15,000 whistles: Inside the effort to decode dolphin communication

January 21, 2026

Scientists at WHOI analyze thousands of dolphin whistles to explore whether some sounds may function like words

A new underwater robot could help preserve New England’s historic shipwrecks

December 1, 2025

WHOI’s ResQ ROV to clean up debris in prominent marine heritage sites

News Releases

CUREE autonomous underwater vehicle

Autonomous underwater robot discovers hidden coral reef “hotspots”

May 13, 2026

New underwater robot opens new possibilities in coral reef conservation by autonomously identifying biodiversity “hotspots”

Industrial fishing has been depleting midwater fish for decades, new WHOI study finds

May 8, 2026

The research focuses on a poorly understood group of larger midwater fishes that the authors call the “dark web,” species, such as pomfrets and snake mackerels.

New WHOI study cautions that deep-sea fishing could undermine valuable tuna fisheries

January 27, 2026

The study shows that large-scale harvesting of mesopelagic fish that live hundreds of meters below the surface could reduce the food available to bigeye tuna

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and CMA CGM expand their partnership

January 27, 2026

CMA CGM, which has long been committed to preserving biodiversity through multiple initiatives in the U.S. and worldwide, will support two key WHOI projects

Seawater microbes offer new, non-invasive way to detect coral disease, WHOI-led study finds

January 20, 2026

Coral reefs support more than 25 percent of all marine life and underpin the livelihoods of roughly one billion people globally.

News & Insights

Jellyfish

Jellyfish larger than blue whales?

July 14, 2020

Recent accounts in the media have described the appearance of lion’s mane jellyfish in waters and beaches in the Northeast as a surprising, sometimes troubling, event, with record sizes and numbers reported from Maine to the Massachusetts south coast. But is this event noteworthy? Or, as some have implied, is it a sign of failing ocean health? Three WHOI marine biologists weighed in to put events into perspective.

whale and glider

Teaming up for right whales

July 8, 2020

Researchers from WHOI and NOAA combine underwater gliders with passive acoustic detection technology to help protect endangered species from lethal ship strikes and noise from offshore wind construction

Working from Home: Scott Lindell

June 25, 2020

Though pandemic slows countless research projects, kelp breeding program can’t stop. A WHOI community rallies to help Scott Lindell and his lab sort over 2,200 blades.

Becker working remotely

Lab shutdowns enable speedier investigation of coral disease

May 20, 2020

Despite labs shutting down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, WHOI microbiologists are working fast to solve a different kind of outbreak—one travelling below the ocean’s surface and ravaging coral reefs from Florida to the Caribbean.

right whale video

WHOI joins effort to accelerate marine life protection technology

April 22, 2020

WHOI has teamed up with Greentown Labs and Vineyard Wind to launch the Offshore Wind Challenge. The program, which is also partnering with New England Aquarium, calls on entrepreneurs to submit proposals to collect, transmit, and analyze marine mammal monitoring data using remote technologies, such as underwater vehicles, drones, and offshore buoys.

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