Ocean mixing is a physical oceanographic phenomenon encompassing the turbulent and wave-driven processes that irreversibly redistribute heat, salt, momentum, and biogeochemical tracers within the ocean interior and boundary layers. It is mediated by shear instability, double-diffusive convection, internal waves (including internal tides), and boundary-generated turbulence, and is quantified using parameters such as diapycnal and isopycnal diffusivities. Ocean mixing regulates the vertical exchange between the surface and deep ocean, controls stratification and overturning circulation, influences climate-relevant heat and carbon storage, and sets nutrient supply to the euphotic zone, thereby coupling physical dynamics with marine biogeochemistry.
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
8 hours ago
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Doctors can often detect diseases in humans using minimally invasive methods, like blood or urine tests, before symptoms become severe. Now, researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) are applying a similar ...
Ecology
Jul 27, 2026
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After a typhoon surprised a research cruise, scientists took advantage of the unique sampling opportunity to reveal rapid changes in bacterioplankton communities and biogeochemical cycling.
Earth Sciences
Jul 13, 2026
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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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Tiny, invisible swirls and twirls—not much bigger than a coin—deep below the ocean's surface are silently shaping some of the biggest forces shaping our climate: sea level rise, fisheries collapse, extreme flooding and how ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 9, 2026
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The state of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) has been a hot topic among climate scientists in recent years. The AMOC is crucial for climate regulation because it pulls warm surface water from the tropics ...
The Southern Ocean has long stood out as an oddity in the global climate system. While most of the planet's surface oceans have warmed in response to rising greenhouse gases, waters circling Antarctica showed an unexpected ...
Every summer, communities across northern Australia brace for the tropical cyclone season. Tropical cyclones draw their power from the warm seas, extracting heat and moisture from ocean water.
Earth Sciences
Jul 3, 2026
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Microscopic plankton are among the most important organisms on Earth. Phytoplankton produce around half of the oxygen we breathe, while plankton as a whole underpin marine food webs, support fisheries, help regulate carbon ...
Environment
Jun 29, 2026
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In recent years, marine heat waves have been taking an ever-greater toll on the world's oceans and their ecosystems. Amplified by increasing global warming, these events are occurring more frequently and lasting longer. The ...
Environment
Jun 21, 2026
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