marine life

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    Controversial Study Says 1.5°C Warming Target Already Breached, ‘Underscores Urgent Need’ to Phase Out Fossil Fuels

    Controversial Study Says 1.5°C Warming Target Already Breached, ‘Underscores Urgent Need’ to Phase Out Fossil Fuels

    A new study using marine sponges collected off the coast of Puerto Rico has found that the planet has already warmed more than 1.5 degrees Celsius. Researchers analyzed ocean temperature records from sea sponges going back 300 years, a press release from The University of Western Australia (UWA) said. They concluded that global heating had […]

    Marine Heat Waves Can Impact Microorganisms Enough to Cause ‘Profound Changes’ to Ocean Food Chain

    Marine Heat Waves Can Impact Microorganisms Enough to Cause ‘Profound Changes’ to Ocean Food Chain

    Marine heat waves (MHWs) are prolonged periods of ocean warming that can significantly affect coral reefs, fish, kelp forests and other marine life. A new study led by Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) has found that MHWs are changing the communities of microorganisms that make up the foundation of the oceanic food […]

    4 of the Best Whale Watching Spots in the U.S.

    4 of the Best Whale Watching Spots in the U.S.

    Whale watching is a popular pastime and a great way to get outdoors, but not everyone knows the best places and times of year to see the largest mammals on Earth. Here’s a quick guide to some of the best places to catch a glimpse of these magnificent creatures in the United States. San Juan […]

    Scientists Map Largest Deep-Sea Coral Reef Off Atlantic Coast

    Scientists Map Largest Deep-Sea Coral Reef Off Atlantic Coast

    For the first time, scientists have succeeded in mapping the largest deep-sea coral reef in the world, which runs hundreds of miles off the Atlantic coast of the United States. The massive 6.4-million-acre reef is bigger than the state of Vermont, a press release from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said. “It’s eye-opening […]

    Sea Otters Helped Minimize Kelp Forest Loss in California, Study Finds

    Sea Otters Helped Minimize Kelp Forest Loss in California, Study Finds

    Researchers at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey, California have linked sea otters to healthy kelp forests off the West Coast. According to a new study published in the journal PLOS Climate, the recovery of Southern sea otters (Enhydra lutris nereis) in central California happened at the same time that kelp forests in the same […]