oceanlove

🌊The European Digital Twin Ocean (EU DTO) is making strides! The Digital Ocean Forum 2024 on 13 June marked an important milestone for the #EUDTO, as the European Commission, Mercator Ocean International (MOi) and the @vlizostend - Flanders Marine Institute unveiled the pre-operational platform. The event featured a live demonstration in the presence of European Commission representatives, scientific officers and civil society organisations, underscoring the collaborative nature of the project.  A powerful tool for science-driven decision-making, the #EUDTO will represent a significant leap forward in our ability to monitor, predict, and understand Ocean dynamics, helping to drive sustainable Ocean management. As a flagship initiative of the EC's Mission Restore Our Ocean and Waters, the EU DTO supports the EU Green Deal and the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. The platform is set to gradually scale up throughout 2025. The...

By Greg Brosnan, BBC News Climate and Science     A billboard shows the temperature on 5 June in Phoenix, Arizona Human-induced climate change made recent extreme heat in the US southwest, Mexico and Central America around 35 times more likely, scientists say. The World Weather Attribution (WWA) group studied excess heat between May and early June, when the US heatwave was concentrated in southwest states including California, Nevada and Arizona. Extreme temperatures in Mexico also claimed lives during the period. The scientists said that such a heatwave was now four times more likely than it was in 2000, driven by planet-warming emissions. Such attribution studies take some time to complete, so it's too soon for scientists to say how much of a role climate change is playing in the current heatwave stretching from the centre to the northeast of the US and into Canada. Experts say many extreme weather events including heatwaves are becoming more frequent and intense as a re...

This TimelapseTuesday, we’re looking at sea surface temperatures.  As meteorological summer approached, NOAA’s GOES East satellite watched the Gulf of Mexico heat up. We can even see the warm “loop current” from the Caribbean Sea flowing into the Gulf Stream in this visualization from April 9 to May 29, 2024. Loop current images * #GOESEast #GOES16 #Satellite #Satellites #Imagery #SatelliteImagery #Ocean #Current #LoopCurrent #SeaSurfaceTemperature #Heat #Caribbean #GulfStream #Earth #Timelapse #TimelapseVideo

June 1 marked the start of hurricane season in the Atlantic Ocean. And as Earth’s climate changes, hurricanes are changing too. 🌀 Hurricanes are not becoming more frequent during the official season, which lasts from June 1 to November 30; however, when they do form, hurricanes are more likely to become much stronger (Category 4 or 5) in a warmer world. Tropical cyclones are also becoming slower and wetter. As oceans warm, hurricanes are more likely to undergo rapid intensification – when wind speeds increase by 35+ mph in 24 hours. Sea level rise is also worsening storm surge from hurricanes, increasing coastal flood risk during storms. Image description: Satellite image of Hurricane Lee, a large storm with a spiral of puffy white clouds, taken on September 12, 2023. Below is the blue water of the Atlantic Ocean. To the left, the green land of the southeast U.S., Florida, and Cuba are visible. Batten down the hatches, hurricane season is here! High winds, coas...

Scientists have high hopes for the first mission to collect rocks from the far side of the Moon.   A Chinese Long March 5 rocket, carrying the Chang’e-6 mission lunar probe, lifts off in the rain at the Wenchang Satellite Launch Centre on Hainan Island. (Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty) Today we hear that Chang’e-6 has successfully launched to the far side of the Moon, explore why grad students are going hungry on campus and read the letter that jump-started Alzheimer’s research.   China has successfully launched its historic Chang’e-6 mission. The 53-day odyssey will be the most complex and challenging Moon mission China has carried out. If all goes according to plan, scientists will be examining the first rocks from the Moon’s far side by late June.   The 7.2-metre-tall, eight-tonne spacecraft lifted off aboard a Long March 5 rocket on Friday afternoon local time, piercing through a tropical rainstorm from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Centre on Hainan Island. ...

  The laboratory of Dr. Kim Holland, also known as the Shark Lab, is part of the Hawai’i Institute of Marine Biology (HIMB). HIMB is a research institute of the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa, which is located on Moku o Lo’e (Coconut Island) in Kane’ohe Bay, O’ahu.   Our research group specializes in organismic and supraorganismic biology of marine organisms. The predominant research approach is to take advantage of the laboratory’s unique physical setting by blending rigorous laboratory work with well-focused field experiments to investigate the behavior, physiology, and ecology of sharks and other fish.   To learn more about our group and the research we do, please select from the links provided above.   Check out our Hawai’i Tiger Shark Tracking website provided by the Pacific Islands Ocean Observing System (PacIOOS). https://www.pacioos.hawaii.edu/projects/sharks/ Tagged Tiger Sharks to Collect B...

Since the 1990s, our planet has witnessed a significant rise in sea levels, with an increase of nearly 4 inches (3.98 inches, to be precise). It might not seem like a lot, but this rise in sea levels is not uniform across the globe, due to phenomena like gravitational effects and ocean circulation patterns. In some areas, the increase is significantly more pronounced, leading to entire islands being submerged and highlighting the intricate and complex nature of our planet's climate system. The consequences of this rise are profound, particularly for marine ecosystems. Mangrove forests, for example, are vital ecosystems that buffer coastal communities against storms and erosion, while providing critical habitat for numerous marine species. Mangroves are exceptional carbon sinks, but as sea levels climb, these forests risk submersion. Their loss not only impacts the biodiversity relying on mangroves but also weakens coastal defenses. sea level rise However, th...

For #WorldWaterDay: The availability of fresh groundwater is vital for agriculture, industry, people, and ecosystems, but its quality and quantity have been significantly affected by climate change and anthropogenic activities. ⁠ ⁠ A new Review looks at the changes that groundwater is experiencing now and will experience in the near future and discusses future challenges to groundwater supplies. Considering these changes is important for managing this critical resource in an ever more challenging environment.⁠ If you’ve ever thought water was boring, we’re here to change your mind. This World Water Day, discover these incredible facts about our most precious resource:  70% of the Earth’s surface is covered by water (it’s called the blue planet for a reason), but only 0.5% of it is usable as fresh water.  The water cycle is a closed loop: This means we’re drinking the same water that dinosaurs did.  Where did all this water come from? S...