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Press Room

Stan Hart

Stan Hart Receives AGU’s Highest Honor

December 15, 2016

Stan Hart, WHOI scientist emeritus, has been awarded the American Geophysical Union’s (AGU) highest honor, the William Bowie Medal. The Honors Tribute was held on Wednesday, 14 December 2016, at the AGU Fall Meeting in San Francisco.

Some Fish Quickly Adapt to Lethal Levels of Pollution

Some Fish Quickly Adapt to Lethal Levels of Pollution

December 8, 2016

Killifish living in four polluted East Coast estuaries have adapted to survive levels of toxic industrial pollutants that would normally kill them, tolerating concentrations up to 8,000 times higher than sensitive fish. A new study reveals the complex genetic basis for the Atlantic killifish’s remarkable resilience.

New Studies Take a Second Look at Coral Bleaching Culprit

New Studies Take a Second Look at Coral Bleaching Culprit

December 7, 2016

A new study from WHOI indicates that superoxide’”a natural toxin believed to be the main culprit behind coral bleaching’”may actually play a beneficial role in coral health and resilience.

Henry Dick

WHOI Geologist Henry Dick Named AAAS 2016 Fellow

November 23, 2016

Henry Dick of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) has been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Election as an AAAS Fellow is an honor bestowed upon association members by their peers.

New Study Explains Mysterious Source of Greenhouse Gas Methane in the Ocean

New Study Explains Mysterious Source of Greenhouse Gas Methane in the Ocean

November 17, 2016

A new study may have cracked the longstanding ‘œmarine methane paradox,’ finding that the answer may lie in the complex ways that bacteria break down substances excreted into seawater by living organisms.

Mak Satio

WHOI Scientist Receives Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation Award

November 10, 2016

The Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation selected Mak Saito, a biogeochemist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), as one of eight awardees of a 2016 Postdoctoral Program in Environmental Chemistry grant.

WHOI Study Sheds Light on Previously Overlooked Aspect of Whale Songs

WHOI Study Sheds Light on Previously Overlooked Aspect of Whale Songs

November 2, 2016

Researchers have known for decades that whales create elaborate songs, sometimes projecting their calls for miles underwater. A new study from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), however, has revealed a previously unknown element of whale songs that could aid…

New 13-year Study Tracks Impact of Changing Climate on a Key Marine Food Source

New 13-year Study Tracks Impact of Changing Climate on a Key Marine Food Source

October 20, 2016

A new multiyear study from scientists at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) has shown for the first time how changes in ocean temperature affect a key species of phytoplankton. The study, published in the October 21 issue of the journal Science, tracked levels of Synechococcus – ”a tiny bacterium common in marine ecosystems – ”near the coast of Massachusetts over a 13-year period. As ocean temperatures increased during that time, annual blooms of Synechococcus occurred up to four weeks earlier than usual because cells divided faster in warmer conditions, the study found.

Study Reveals Corals' Influence on Reef Microbes

Study Reveals Corals’ Influence on Reef Microbes

October 12, 2016

As they grow, corals are bathed in a sea of marine microbes, such as bacteria, algae, and viruses. While these extremely abundant and tiny microorganisms influence coral communities in a variety of ways, a new study by researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (BIOS) and University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) reveals that corals also have an impact on the microbes in waters surrounding them

Chief of Naval Operations Visits WHOI

September 19, 2016

Global ocean research projects and marine technology advances were among the topics presented on September 9 when the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), Admiral John Richardson, paid a visit to WHOI.

Ancient Skeleton Discovered on Antikythera Shipwreck

Ancient Skeleton Discovered on Antikythera Shipwreck

September 19, 2016

An international research team discovered a human skeleton during its ongoing excavation of the famous Antikythera Shipwreck (circa 65 B.C.) this month. The shipwreck, which holds the remains of a Greek trading or cargo ship, is located off the Greek island of Antikythera in the Aegean Sea. The first skeleton recovered from the wreck site during the era of DNA analysis, this find could provide insight into the lives of people who lived 2100 years ago.

Free-swimming Ocean Gliders Help Scientists Understand Storm Intensity

Free-swimming Ocean Gliders Help Scientists Understand Storm Intensity

September 5, 2016

A regional team from WHOI, Rutgers University, the University of Maine, the University of Maryland, and the Gulf of Maine Research Institute mobilized Friday in advance of Hurricane (now Tropical Storm) Hermine’s arrival in the Northeast to gather data from new ocean instruments that will help better predict the intensity and evolution of future tropical storms along the US East Coast

WHOI Receives $1 Million Award for Early-Career Scientists  from Grayce B. Kerr Fund

WHOI Receives $1 Million Award for Early-Career Scientists from Grayce B. Kerr Fund

September 2, 2016

The Grayce B. Kerr Fund has awarded the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) $1 million to establish an endowment in memory of WHOI Life Trustee Breene Kerr.

The Sound of a Healthy Reef

The Sound of a Healthy Reef

August 26, 2016

A new study from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) will help researchers understand the ways that marine animal larvae use sound as a cue to settle on coral reefs. The study, published on August 23rd in the online journal Scientific Reports, has determined that sounds created by adult fish and invertebrates may not travel far enough for larvae – ”which hatch in open ocean – ”to hear them, meaning that the larvae might rely on other means to home in on a reef system.

Moore Foundation Supports WHOI Effort to Revolutionize Ocean Research

Moore Foundation Supports WHOI Effort to Revolutionize Ocean Research

August 22, 2016

A $250,000 award from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation supports WHOI scientists and engineers to explore a new path for ocean research focused on rapid software and hardware innovation.

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Announces Innovative Wind Turbine Monitor

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Announces Innovative Wind Turbine Monitor

August 16, 2016

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) announces the issuance of U.S. Patent No. 9,395,338 for self-regulating terrestrial turbine control through environmental sensing. Wind energy is a widespread clean alternative to energy from fossil fuels. The increasing number of wind turbine installations…

WHOI Announces 2016 Ocean Science Journalism Fellows

WHOI Announces 2016 Ocean Science Journalism Fellows

July 28, 2016

Seven writers, radio, and multimedia science journalists from the U.S., England, and India have been selected to participate in the competitive Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) Ocean Science Journalism Fellowship program. The program takes place September 25-30, 2016, in Woods Hole, Mass., on Cape Cod.

WHOI is a 'Rising Star' in Research Performance

WHOI is a ‘Rising Star’ in Research Performance

July 27, 2016

The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) was named one of the top 25 institutions in North America in the Nature Index 2016 Rising Stars, which identifies the countries and institutions that have significantly increased their research studies published in high-quality research journals.

Scientists Now Listening for Whales in New York Waters With Real-time Acoustic Buoy

Scientists Now Listening for Whales in New York Waters With Real-time Acoustic Buoy

June 27, 2016

Scientists working for WCS’™s (Wildlife Conservation Society) New York Aquarium and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) now have an “ear” for the New York region’™s biggest “voices and singers”‘” the whales of New York Bight.

Swansea University Professor Receives Prestigious Fulbright Award to Study at WHOI

Swansea University Professor Receives Prestigious Fulbright Award to Study at WHOI

June 26, 2016

David Lamb, a professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at Swansea University in Wales, will conduct research at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) as part of an All Disciplines Scholar Fulbright Award—one of the most prestigious and selective scholarship programs operating worldwide.