Tropical Storm Beryl has formed in the Atlantic Ocean and could reach the Caribbean Sea next week as a hurricane

Things to know about dangerous rip currents and how swimmers caught in one can escape

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Stinging jellyfish, rays with their whip-like tails and sharks on the hunt are some ocean hazards that might typically worry beachgoers. But rip currents are the greatest danger and account for the most beach rescues every year. Six people drowned in rip...

It was meant to be a Christian utopia. Now this Nigerian community is helpless against rising seas

AYETORO, Nigeria (AP) — The coastal Nigerian community of Ayetoro was founded decades ago and nicknamed “Happy City,” meant to be a Christian utopia that would be sinless and classless. But now its remaining residents can do little against the rising sea. Buildings have sunk...

Bye bye, El Nino. Cooler hurricane-helping La Nina to replace the phenomenon that adds heat to Earth

The strong El Nino weather condition that added a bit of extra heat to already record warm global temperatures is gone. It's cool flip side, La Nina, is likely to breeze in just in time for peak Atlantic hurricane season, federal meteorologists said. The National Oceanic Atmospheric...

Dangerous brew: Ocean heat and La Nina combo likely mean more Atlantic hurricanes this summer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Get ready for what nearly all the experts think will be one of the busiest Atlantic hurricane seasons on record, thanks to unprecedented ocean heat and a brewing La Nina. There's an 85% chance that the Atlantic hurricane season that starts in June will be above...

California's scenic Highway 1 to Big Sur opens to around-the-clock travel as slide repair advances

BIG SUR, Calif. (AP) — A section of California's scenic Highway 1 leading to the famous Big Sur coast reopened to around-the-clock traffic Friday after stabilization of a storm-triggered rockslide that dropped a chunk of one lane into the ocean and hampered tourism. The gap has yet...

Experts say coral reef bleaching near record level globally because of 'crazy' ocean heat

Ocean temperatures that have gone “crazy haywire” hot, especially in the Atlantic, are close to making the current global coral bleaching event the worst in history. It's so bad that scientists are hoping for a few hurricanes to cool things off. More than three-fifths — 62.9%...

Sea off New England had one of its hottest years in 2023, part of a worldwide trend

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — The sea off New England, already warming faster than most of the world's oceans, had one of its hottest years on record in 2023. The Gulf of Maine, which abuts New England and Canada, had an annual sea surface temperature nearly 2 degrees Fahrenheit above...

Greek minister says 2 major new marine parks will be created by the end of this year

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece will be able to create the two new major marine parks it has announced for the Ionian Sea and the Aegean Sea by the end of this year, the country’s environment and energy minister said Wednesday. Speaking during an international ocean conference in...

UN envoy says of the threat to coral reefs: 'Are we faced with a colossal ecosystem tragedy? Yes'

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The world is not doing enough to protect coral reefs, the United Nations’ special envoy for the ocean said Tuesday in defense of the marine ecosystems that protect biodiversity, sustain underwater life and produce some of the oxygen we breathe. In an...