Press Room
Scientists have long recognized that the collision of the earth’s great crustal plates generates mountain ranges and other features of the Earth’s surface. Yet the link between mountain uplift and river drainage patterns has been uncertain. Now scientists have used…
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) has announced a $200-million comprehensive campaign to raise endowment and unrestricted operating funds to support staff and ongoing research and education activities. The campaign is the largest the Institution has conducted, with nearly $133…
Results from a July 2005 cruise in the Black Sea may settle a longstanding debate over evidence of a megaflood in the Black Sea, the so-called “Noah’s Flood.” Multibeam bathymetry and sub-bottom profiling reveals ridges, some more than 12 meters…
New scientific findings are strengthening the case that the oceans and climate are linked in an intricate dance, and that rapid climate change may be related to how vigorously ocean currents move heat between low and high latitudes. The research,…
Advances in undersea imaging systems, the development of new vehicles and instruments, and improved seafloor mapping capabilities have enabled scientists to explore areas of the deep sea in unprecedented detail. One such area is the TAG hydrothermal mound in the…
Check the WHOI blog for news updates from the American Geophysical Union (AGU) fall meeting. More than 10,000 Earth, space and ocean scientists are converging on San Francisco this week for the premier annual meeting in their field. Hundreds of…
The strongest climate cooling event in the last 10,000 years occurred about 8,200 years ago. Known as the 8.2 ka event, it was an abrupt release of freshwater to the ocean as the superlake Agassiz drained through Hudson Strait into…
Deploying two or more underwater vehicles from a single vessel makes better use of ship time and personnel, but requires specific technical capabilities and careful scheduling. In the past, one vehicle has been recovered before the other was deployed, and…
WHOI scientists exploring the largely unknown currents beneath the polar sea ice have designed and successfully tested a new float that drifts at various depths through the oceans measuring water temperature and salinity. The float is programmed to rise to…
For years, some engineers believed squid likely propelled themselves through water by creating vortex rings, forcing fluid out of their pipe shaped funnels to create smoke-ring-like structures. But the experience of WHOI researchers suggested otherwise, so they set up experiments…
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution scientists (WHOI) and engineers have designed a portable deep-sea light post to illuminate the dark ocean floor. Up to now, scientists have been able to see only a few yards, like shining a flashlight on a…
James Yoder, a professor of oceanography and former associate dean at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography, has been chosen Vice President for Academic Programs and Dean at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI). Yoder was elected…
A sensitive new genetic test can now detect a crippling disease called QPX occurring in clam beds from Cape Cod south to Virginia and north to Canada. Although it does not affect humans and it is not as well known…
Two journalists from The Boston Globe and a radio host/producer for Canadian Broadcasting Corporation will receive the 2005 Ocean Science Journalism Award from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) for excellence in communicating ocean science to the public. Beth Daley…
Every day, the average person on the planet burns enough fossil fuel to emit 24 pounds of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, out of which about nine pounds is then taken up by the ocean. As this CO2 combines with…
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) held commencement ceremonies September 24, awarding 34 master’s and doctoral degrees in ocean sciences and engineering as part of the Institution’s Joint Graduate Program with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Commencement ceremonies for the…
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Celebrates 75th Anniversary With Public Open House September 10
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) is celebrating 75 years of ocean research, education and exploration in 2005 with a series of activities this summer and fall. A public open house, the first in 25 years, will be held Saturday,…
The Deep Submergence Vehicle Alvin will return home to Woods Hole in mid-October after two years and be taken apart right down to its titanium frame. The scheduled refit and overhaul occurs every three years or so and takes about…
Research Vessel Knorr will pass another milestone in its long career when it reaches one million miles traveled for ocean science this month. The 279-foot ship is working in the Southern Pacific off Chile on climate studies in the Southern…
Two Institution scientists spent the past six weeks crossing the Arctic Ocean from Barrow, Alaska, to Svalbard, Norway, onboard the Swedish icebreaker Oden, which has been working with the U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker Healy to collect data about the stratigraphy…