With every wave that crashes on the beach, little particles known as sea spray fly up into the air. Because of their contents, they can help form clouds in the atmosphere. So we can ask as the ocean acidifies, what happens to sea spray? Daniel SpeerHey! I’m a PhD student at the University of California, […]
Have you ever wondered where smog goes? A group of scientists investigated where particles of iron start and end up, and what they found out is quite interesting! Daniel SpeerHey! I’m a PhD student at the University of California, Davis studying biophysics. I previously studied organic chemistry (B.S.) at the College of William and Mary. […]
Everyone knows that Earth’s climate changes. With the rapid increases in human-influenced global warming and ocean acidification, we need to be able to model and predict the future. What if we could use the past? A similar time period called the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) exhibited similar climate changes. Scientists have investigated the PETM and […]
Our atmosphere is composed of different gases like oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide. These gases can absorb energy, sent from the sun, reflecting off of the Earth’s surface. While scientists can measure and estimate their amounts in the air, gases have the ability to move between the ocean and the atmosphere. This behavior, while interesting, […]
Inspired by the flying squid, researchers have built a robot that can launch itself from the water surface using water-reactive fuel. Emily ChuaI am a Ph.D. candidate at Boston University where I am developing an underwater instrument to study the coastal ocean. I have a multi-disciplinary background in physics and oceanography (and some engineering), and […]
Climate change, due to the increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide from fossil fuel burning, is arguably the most important issue facing our planet. One of the most detrimental changes already in progress is the shifting pH of the world’s oceans, known as ocean acidification. Although the speed with which the planet is changing does not […]
This time of year kids (and adults) around the world start wishing for a white Christmas. Researchers in this study are conducting a 5-year experiment in Wyoming to see if they can make snow. Read more to see how scientists are making snow. Victoria TreadawayI am a PhD candidate at the Graduate School of Oceanography […]
Mercury: we know it from old-school thermometers and we know if from sushi; and now we know that the distribution in the ocean is reflected in the blood of northern elephant seals. N.B. No elephant seals were harmed during this research. Anne M. HartwellHello, welcome to Oceanbites! My name is Annie, I’m a marine research […]
Scientists use ocean color from satellites to show that tiny ocean plankton may be responsible for making clouds brighter around Antarctica. Veronica TamsittI’m a PhD student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla California. My research is focused on the Southern Ocean circulation and it’s role in climate. For my research I sometimes spend […]
Researchers from Scripps Institute of Oceanography have found that humble heterotrophic bacteria in the surface waters of the ocean can have far reaching impacts – extending beyond the typical marine microbial system and into the atmosphere to affect how clouds are formed. Irvin HuangA recent convert to oceanography, I’m studying under Dr. Anne McElroy at […]
Take a breather, and learn how cyanobacteria struggled to bring the world oxygen. Abrahim El GamalAbrahim is a PhD student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego where he studies marine chemical biology.
The transfer of organic matter from the surface sea water to sea spray aerosols appears constant despite the concentration of chlorophyll-a. This could suggest that satellite-derived estimates of organic matter in sea spray are inaccurate in the open ocean Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in oceanography in 2014 from the Graduate School of Oceanography (URI) […]