Latest Oceans News
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...
Greece plans 2 marine protected areas. But rival Turkey and environmental groups aren't impressed
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece aims to create two large marine parks as part of a 780-million-euro ($830 million) program to protect biodiversity and marine ecosystems that includes banning bottom trawling and tackling plastic and microplastic pollution, the prime minister announced during an...
Scientists say coral reefs around the world are experiencing mass bleaching in warming oceans
Coral reefs around the world are experiencing global bleaching for the fourth time, top reef scientists declared Monday, a result of warming ocean waters amid human-caused climate change. Coral reef bleaching across at least 53 countries, territories or local economies has been...
These biodegradable straws could prevent new coral from becoming expensive fish food
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — South Florida researchers trying to prevent predatory fish from devouring laboratory-grown coral are grasping at biodegradable straws in an effort to restore what some call the rainforest of the sea. Scientists around the world have been working for...
