Oceans

BIG PLASTIC: Don't blame us, it's those public litterbugs

25 Nov 19 - Plastic manufacturers believe they are not to blame for the material choking the world’s oceans. They point the finger at litterbugs.

Look back 125,000 years and sea-level rises are terrifying

8 Nov 19 - Sea levels rose 10 metres above present levels during Earth’s last warm period 125,000 years ago, according to new research that offers a glimpse of what may happen under our current climate change trajectory.

Dumped fishing gear biggest ocean polluter

7 Nov 19 - Lost and abandoned fishing gear which is deadly to marine life makes up the majority of large plastic pollution in the oceans, according to Greenpeace.

Seabed carbon storage could help in climate crisis

30 Sep 19 - Climate scientists say seabed carbon storage could be a new ally to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by a volume greater than all the carbon dioxide pumped into the atmosphere from the planet’s coal-burning power stations.

RETURN OF THE BLOB? Marine heatwave settles over Pacific

10 Sep 19 - The Pacific Ocean off the western coast of North America is five degrees hotter than usual after warming at an unusually rapid rate.

Changing waves add to coastline worries

20 Aug 19 - A warming planet will alter ocean waves along more than 50 per cent of the world’s coastlines, according to research published today.

Magnets could help rid oceans of microplastics

19 Aug 19 - An army of tiny magnetic coils could dissolve microplastics from water, and possibly help us clean up waterways and oceans.

MAKING WAVES: Female crews to chart oceans' plastic crisis

17 Jul 19 - More than 300 women will join a round-the-world voyage launching in October to highlight the devastating impact of plastic pollution in the oceans.

Climate changes drive plankton towards poles

24 May 19 - Communities of zooplankton – microscopic drifting animals that underpin marine ecosystems – are migrating poleward in response to climate change, a study finds.

Warming hits ocean species hardest

29 Apr 19 - Populations of fish, molluscs and other marine animals are disappearing at twice the rate of land-based species, new research shows.

MARINE MESSAGE: From under the sea, a president's plea

16 Apr 19 - The Seychelles president has made a plea for stronger protection of the “beating blue heart of our planet”, in a speech delivered from deep below the ocean’s surface.

Heatwaves sweeping oceans ‘like wildfires’

5 Mar 19 - Extreme ocean temperatures destroy kelp, seagrass and corals – with alarming impacts for humanity.

Deep waters become 'ultimate sink' for plastic

1 Mar 19 - The world’s deepest ocean trenches are becoming “the ultimate sink” for plastic waste, according to a study that reveals contamination of animals even in these dark, remote regions of the planet.

Major study changes view of vital Atlantic conveyor belt

5 Feb 19 - An international research programme has uncovered data that could transform scientists’ understanding of the Atlantic Ocean current – a circulation pattern that plays a central role in determining...

Industrial fishing ushers the albatross closer to extinction

1 Feb 19 - Industrial fishing vessels that accidentally kill tens of thousands of albatrosses each year routinely ignore regulations designed to save the birds from extinction, according to research.

Shellfish under threat as seas become more acidic

31 Jan 19 - Growing acidification of the oceans is becoming a serious problem for the production of shellfish around the world.

Our oceans head into another heatwave

24 Jan 19 - Marine heatwave conditions are already occurring in parts of the Tasman Sea and the ocean around New Zealand and looking to become the new normal.

In a warming world, bigger waves pack a stronger punch

24 Jan 19 - Ocean waves are now hitting harder than ever. As the world warms, they gain in energy, impact and height.

Our oceans broke heat records in 2018

23 Jan 19 - Rising temperatures can be charted back to the late 1950s, and the past five years were the five hottest on record.