Antarctic
A change in ocean circulation makes for long glacial periods through the Mid-Pleistocene Transition
Isotope records from the Southern Ocean imply that prolonged epochs of time between glacial and interglacial periods through the Mid-Pleistocene Transition were caused by a reduction in deep waters mixing with the surface and the positive feedback it created with the salinity gradient. Anne M. HartwellHello, welcome to Oceanbites! My name is Annie, I’m a […]
Who Governs the Ocean Around Antarctica?
Antarctica is often considered an untouched wilderness. While its location is remote, the region is hardly undisturbed by human activity. Exploitation of marine species, tourism, scientific research activities, and anthropogenic climate change are all impacting Southern Ocean ecosystems. A recent policy paper examines the governance challenges for the Antarctic, particularly those due to climate change. […]
The Many Modes of Antarctic Ice Loss
The Western Antarctic Ice Shelf has been melting rapidly in recent decades, largely due to upwelling of deep ocean water that has been gradually warming. Atmospheric systems can influence the ice-sheet height anomalies on interannual time scales. Paolo and other researchers used satellite altimetry to study which processes have the greatest effect in one region […]
Antarctic krill retreat to icy terrace homes for the winter
An international research time dives beneath the ice in Antarctica’s remote oceans to understand how krill larvae make use of sea ice to survive the winter and make it to adulthood. 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 […]
Mixing it up in the Southern Ocean
A team of scientists used underwater ocean gliders to measure ocean turbulence and mixing along the Antarctic continental slope and their results are changing our understanding of the 3-dimensional circulation of the Southern Ocean. Veronica TamsittI’m a PhD student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla California. My research is focused on the Southern […]
Can you hear me now? Investigating sound across the Atlantic Ocean
The ocean is full of sounds, ranging from marine mammal conversations to man-made noises used to investigate the seafloor. Ocean noise pollution makes it hard for marine mammals to communicate with each other. Read more to learn how scientists measure sound in the Atlantic Ocean. Victoria TreadawayI am a PhD candidate at the Graduate School […]
Coastal waves link far-off winds to melting Antarctic ice
The ocean surrounding Antarctica is warming, rapidly melting ice shelves from below. Scientists have now discovered that strong winds thousands of miles away can cause this warming with the help of large, very fast waves that propagate around Antarctica’s coast. Veronica TamsittI’m a PhD student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla California. My […]
Antarctica’s growing green space
As the planet warms, Antarctic land ice is retreating rapidly in some regions, and along with this, small pockets of ice-free habitat are growing and connecting. A team of scientists predicted how much these ice-free regions will expand by the end of the century and what this means for Antarctica’s unique ecosystems. Veronica TamsittI’m a […]
Using seabirds to study squid
How do scientists track fast swimming squid in the remote and vast open waters of the Southern Ocean? Probably not in any way you’d expect. They use squid predators, specifically a seabird—the wandering albatross—to find the squid for them. These albatrosses are outfitted with some very cool technology to bring the researchers information on their […]
Antarctica’s bottom waters freshen up
A team of researchers went back to the same part of Antarctic after a decade to see how the deep ocean had changed, and were surprised to find the deep ocean was fresher than they expected. Veronica TamsittI’m a PhD student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla California. My research is focused on […]
Earth’s strongest current even stronger than previously thought
The Antarctic Circumpolar current, which wraps around Antarctica and connects the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans, is notoriously difficult to measure. Recently a group of researchers tackled the wild current, and found it was 30% stronger than scientists previously thought. Veronica TamsittI’m a PhD student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla California. My […]
Pole wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Sea Ice
In the sea ice battle between the North Pole and the South Pole, there is no winner in 2016, as sea ice cover is plummeting at both poles. 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 […]
Positive real estate outlook for Antarctic krill
An Australian research team predict future sea-ice habitats for Antarctic krill larvae, and are surprised to find more suitable ice habitats in the future, despite shrinking sea-ice cover. 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 […]
Why the Southern Ocean is getting less salty
The Southern Ocean has been getting less salty for decades, and scientists have finally proved that sea-ice is responsible for the extra fresh water in the ocean. 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. […]
Hide-and-Go-Seek in the Deep Sea
In the deep sea off the coast of Antartica, sea urchins are getting crafty to avoid predation from king crabs. In the face of global climate change, their tactic may become less effective while the predators become more abundant. Find out more here. Derrick AlcottDerrick is pursuing a Ph.D. in the Organismic and Evolutionary Biology […]
12,000 feet under the sea, from space
A pair of scientists have figured out how to track deep ocean currents using gravity measurements from space. 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 months at sea […]
Plankton fill up ice-free summer homes
Source: Li, Y., R. Ji, S. Jenouvrier, M. Jin, and J. Stroeve (2016), Synchronicity between ice retreat and phytoplankton bloom in circum-Antarctic polynyas, Geophys. Res. Lett., 43, 2086–2093, doi:10.1002/2016GL067937. Antarctic coasts Despite the dark winters and freezing cold conditions, the coastline of Antarctica is a hotspot for growth of phytoplankton, the tiny, photosynthesizing organisms that […]
In the Heart of the Sea: Following the Song of Humpback Whales to Study Migration
Every year, humpback whales journey across the ocean. Using passive acoustics to study whale song, scientists are able to follow the path of humpback whales and learn about their migratory patterns. Read (and listen) to find out more! Aditi TripathyHello! I am an undergraduate student majoring in Marine Biology with a minor in Acoustics at […]
A new king (crab) of the Antarctic
Temperatures are increasing at the poles (and worldwide) and shifting the balance of predator-prey interactions. Predatory king crabs are moving into the Antarctic. How will it change the ecosystem? Sarah GiltzI am a doctoral candidate in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Tulane University. My research focuses on the larval dispersal and development of the blue […]
Tiny shells tell the history of Antarctic ice
Over the past 10,000 years, the West Antarctic Ice Sheet has gone through long periods of growth and long periods of retreat. Shells from the tiny organisms living in the seawater throughout the millennia can be used to reconstruct the history of times when warmer water from offshore came onto the shelf and weakened the […]
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