Marine heat waves are cooking our ocean ecosystems—and will only become more common
You may have heard reports of fish die-offs or seen photos of hauntingly bleached coral.
Environment
Aug 13, 2026
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Research news on ocean circulation
Ocean circulation refers to the large-scale, coherent movement of seawater driven primarily by wind stress, density gradients (thermohaline processes), Earth’s rotation, and basin geometry. It encompasses wind-driven gyres, western boundary currents, and the global overturning circulation that links surface and deep waters across ocean basins. Ocean circulation redistributes heat, salt, carbon, nutrients, and tracers, thereby regulating climate, biogeochemical cycles, and sea level. It is studied using in situ observations, satellite remote sensing, numerical models, and theory, with key research focusing on circulation variability, its sensitivity to forcing (e.g., greenhouse gas–induced warming and freshwater input), and associated feedbacks in the climate system.
Mechanical shortcut' rapidly carries organic particles into the deep ocean
The processes that capture carbon from the atmosphere and store it on the seabed are crucial for climate balance. However, assessing these mechanisms is often complicated because it requires measurements ranging from the ...
Earth Sciences
Aug 3, 2026
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Geological evidence questions the role of Agulhas Leakage in Atlantic Ocean circulation
For decades, scientists have asserted that the leakage of warm, salty Indian Ocean water south of South Africa into the Atlantic is a major contributor to the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), a component ...
Earth Sciences
Aug 3, 2026
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Meet WOMBATlite, the model helping researchers follow the ocean's carbon
The ocean absorbs roughly a quarter of humanity's carbon dioxide emissions each year. Understanding how that happens, and how it might change, is essential for predicting our climate's future. To do that, scientists need ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 30, 2026
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Rainfall across the US is increasingly coming from farther away
Before rain falls, the moisture that forms it may have traveled anywhere from just a few kilometers to hundreds or even thousands of kilometers away. It usually begins as water that evaporated from oceans, lakes, forests ...
First Arctic Ocean 2050 expedition on its way to the North Pole
On July 23, R/V Kronprins Haakon cast off from the coal quay in Longyearbyen. Around 30 researchers and 20 crew members will spend the next 50 days sailing toward the North Pole as part of the Polhavet 2050 research program.
Earth Sciences
Jul 28, 2026
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AI unlocks Atlantic circulation insights from 20 years of ocean float data
For more than 20 years, about 4,000 autonomous profiling floats have been drifting through the ocean. They form part of the international Argo program (Argo—global array of profiling floats). At regular intervals, they descend ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 23, 2026
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Antarctic change drives slowdown of global ocean circulation
New Antarctic research shows the deepest layer of the Southern Ocean is shrinking faster than scientists realized, with the rate of change accelerating over the past decade. This is of worldwide significance because as it ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 15, 2026
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Researcher creates seawater isotope database to improve climate data reconstructions and projections
A Florida State University paleoclimatologist led the creation of a global database hosting thousands of seawater isotope measurements collected over almost 50 years that will aid scientists in generating more accurate climate ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 14, 2026
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Climate oscillations shape nature's coral refuges in a warming ocean
Why do some coral reefs weather marine heat waves better than others? A new study published in Scientific Reports shows that the answer may lie not only in local ocean conditions, but also in climate patterns that span entire ...
Ecology
Jul 12, 2026
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