Ocean Sentry
Marine ecosystems are particularly interesting as potential carbon sinks or stores. Coastal wetlands like mangroves, salt marshes and seagrasses can store more carbon than terrestrial ecosystems. This is because the waterlogged soils preserve the organic carbon and prevent decomposition.
February, 2020
-
25 February
A heat wave in Antarctica melted 20% of an island’s snow in 9 days
A nine-day heat wave scorched Antarctica’s northern tip earlier this month. New NASA images reveal that nearly a quarter of an Antarctic island’s snow cover melted in that time — an increasingly common symptom of the climate crisis.
-
24 February
A plan to save Earth’s oceans
At least 26 per cent of our oceans need urgent conservation attention to preserve Earth’s marine biodiversity, a University of Queensland-led international study has found.
-
21 February
One-third of plant and animal species could be gone in 50 years, study says
A new study by University of Arizona researchers presents detailed estimates of global extinction from climate change by 2070. By combining information on recent extinctions from climate change, rates of species movement and different projections of future climate, they estimate that one in three species of plants and animals may face extinction.
-
19 February
Warming, acidic oceans may nearly eliminate coral reef habitats by 2100
Rising sea surface temperatures and acidic waters could eliminate nearly all existing coral reef habitats by 2100, suggesting restoration projects in these areas will likely meet serious challenges, according to new research presented here today at the Ocean Sciences Meeting 2020.
-
17 February
Half a million mussels cooked to death at a New Zealand beach
Hundreds of thousands of mussels cooked to death in New Zealand due to rising temperatures in New Zealand’s oceans.
-
14 February
Earth just had hottest January since records began, data shows
Last month was the hottest January on record over the world’s land and ocean surfaces, with average temperatures exceeding anything in the 141 years of data held by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
-
14 February
Antarctic temperature rises above 20C for first time on record
The Antarctic has registered a temperature of more than 20C (68F) for the first time on record, prompting fears of climate instability in the world’s greatest repository of ice.
-
13 February
New study shows Deepwater Horizon oil spill larger than previously thought
Toxic and invisible oil spread well beyond the known satellite footprint of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, according to a new study led by scientists at the University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science.
-
13 February
Global warming is speeding up Earth’s massive ocean currents
The oceans’ great continent-wrapping currents, each one moving as much water as all the world’s rivers combined, can rightly be considered the planet’s circulatory system. And this circulation, it appears, has started to thump faster: For nearly 25 years the currents have been rapidly speeding up, partly because of global …
-
13 February
Research links sea ice retreat with tropical phenomena, including a new kind of El Niño
Two researchers present evidence today in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that the accelerating melt of Arctic sea ice is linked to weather patterns near the equator in the Pacific Ocean.
-
11 February
Carbon dioxide reached a new high in humanity’s existence
It’s not surprising carbon dioxide levels hit a new daily high, but the new atmospheric record underscores the fact that carbon emissions are rising to new all-time highs when they need to be dropping.