OceanGuy

Sulfur finding may hold key to Gaia theory of Earth as living organism

ScienceDaily: Oceanography News — Wed, 16 May 2012 00:31:31 +0000

Is Earth really a sort of giant living organism as the Gaia hypothesis predicts? A new discovery may provide a key to answering this question. This key of sulfur could allow scientists to unlock heretofore hidden interactions between ocean organisms, atmosphere, and land -- interactions that might provide evidence supporting this famous theory.

Hidden lives of elephant seals: Record-setting dive more than a mile deep

ScienceDaily: Oceanography News — Wed, 16 May 2012 00:30:30 +0000

The same researchers who pioneered the use of satellite tags to monitor the migrations of elephant seals have compiled one of the largest datasets available for any marine mammal species, revealing their movements and diving behavior at sea in unprecedented detail.

Arctic seabirds adapt to climate change

ScienceDaily: Oceanography News — Tue, 15 May 2012 13:39:39 +0000

The planet is warming up, especially at the poles. How do organisms react to this rise in temperatures? Biologists have now shown that little auks, the most common seabirds in the Arctic, are adapting their fishing behavior to warming surface waters in the Greenland Sea. So far, their reproductive and survival rates have not been affected. However, further warming could threaten the species.

MEET: Valerie Grussing [People of NOS]

nos.info@noaa.gov — Tue, 15 May 2012 12:35:43 +0000

Meet Valerie Grussing, Cultural Resources Coordinator for NOAA's National MPA Center. Valerie works with archaeologists, cultural resource managers, and tribal representatives to build the National MPA System.

First satellite tag study for manta rays reveals habits and hidden journeys of ocean giants

ScienceDaily: Oceanography News — Fri, 11 May 2012 16:22:22 +0000

Using the latest satellite tracking technology, conservationists have completed a ground-breaking study on a mysterious ocean giant: The manta ray.

The Nation’s Coastal Waters Receive a Fair Rating [What's New]

nos.info@noaa.gov — Fri, 11 May 2012 14:46:50 +0000

The fourth National Coastal Condition Report (NCCR IV), part of a series of reports that rate the overall condition of U.S. coastal waters and the Great Lakes, was released in April. The overall condition of our coastal waters was rated fair based on data from 2003 to 2006.

Push from Mississippi kept Deepwater Horizon oil slick off shore

ScienceDaily: Oceanography News — Fri, 11 May 2012 02:50:50 +0000

Geoscientists offer an explanation for why the Deepwater Horizon oil spill didn't have the environmental impact that many had feared. Using publicly available datasets, their study reveals that the force of the Mississippi River emptying into the Gulf of Mexico created mounds of freshwater which pushed the oil slick off shore.

Potential instability in West Antarctic Ice Sheet from newly discovered basin size of New Jersey

ScienceDaily: Oceanography News — Thu, 10 May 2012 14:05:05 +0000

Scientists have uncovered a previously unknown sub-glacial basin nearly the size of New Jersey beneath the West Antarctic Ice Sheet near the Weddell Sea. The location, shape and texture of the mile-deep basin suggest that this region of the ice sheet is at a much greater risk of collapse than previously thought.

New weak point discovered in the Antarctic ice sheet

ScienceDaily: Oceanography News — Wed, 09 May 2012 17:59:59 +0000

The Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf fringing the Weddell Sea, Antarctica, may start to melt rapidly in this century and no longer act as a barrier for ice streams draining the Antarctic Ice Sheet, new research shows.

Antarctic octopus study shows West Antarctic Ice Sheet may have collapsed 200,000 years ago

ScienceDaily: Oceanography News — Wed, 09 May 2012 15:14:14 +0000

Scientists have found that genetic information on the Antarctic octopus supports studies indicating that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet could have collapsed during its history, possibly as recently as 200,000 years ago.