WHOI in the News
35 Years Ago: STS-51J – First Flight of Space Shuttle Atlantis
Space shuttle Atlantis, named after the two-masted research vessel used by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution between 1930 and 1966, was the fourth space-qualified orbiter to join the fleet
New Technology Can Save the Whales from Ship Collisions
In a bid to reduce the number of whale deaths, researchers Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and collaborators worked together to develop Whale Safe, a new detection system provides mariners with up to date information about whales present in shipping lanes.
Tenacious citizens take on the plastics industry over an insidious pollutant
Evidence of pellet pollution has been piling up for decades. R. Jude Wilber of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution returned to the area and found that pellet concentrations had nearly doubled.
Microplastics & The Textile Industry
The study of marine microplastics is not new. Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) has been conducting research and publishing on this subject since the 1970s. Other organizations have been active as well.
TECHNOLOGY Whale ‘roadkill’ is on the rise off California. A new detection system could help
Launched on September 16, Whale Safe is the result of a collaboration between the Benioff Ocean Initiative and several U.S. universities and oceanographic organizations, including the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the University of California Santa Barbara, and the Unive
Whale watching and learning
Whales aren’t the only large creature in the ocean; there’s also cargo ships. When the two collide, it’s fatal to whales and barely noticeable to large ships cruising through the Santa Barbara Channel.
‘The Blob’: Low-oxygen water killing lobsters, fish in Cape Cod Bay.
While it was valuable data for the team of marine fisheries scientists, the Center for Coastal Studies and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution that were trying to solve the mystery of The Blob, it also told fishermen when oxygen levels were low and it was time to move to another spot.
Starting Oct. 1, foam containers for carryout food will be banned throughout Maryland. Not everyone is happy
As the first state in the country to ban foam food containers, Maryland will be a “very good case study,” said Chris Reddy, a scientist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts.
Meet the new wash-ashore: Portuguese man-of-war
“They most likely arrive here via the Gulf Stream and then get blown or drift on shore,” Larry Madin, a retired senior scientist with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
Rising Sea Levels Push Woods Hole Science Community To Prepare for Change
Three world-renowned science institutions in Woods Hole are preparing their ocean-front facilities for the threats of climate change and will soon release an adaptation plan.
Antarctic ice loss expected to affect future climate change
In a new climate modeling study that looked at the impacts of accelerated ice melt from the Antarctic Ice Sheet (AIS) on future climate, a team of climate scientists reports that future ice-sheet melt is expected to have significant effects on global climate.
Studies Investigate Marine Heatwaves, Shifting Ocean Currents
Extreme warming events impact fisheries and economies; understanding processes beneath ocean surface is crucial for assessment and management.
Want to Save the Whales? Eavesdrop on Their Calls
“Moorings are typically made from chain, so they clank a lot,” says Mark Baumgartner, whale ecologist and senior scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, who helped develop the technology. “And that’s not really good when you’re trying to hear animals that are many miles away making sounds.”
A New Ship’s Mission: Let the Deep Sea Be Seen
Mr. Dalio was thinking of buying the Alucia when a team of WHOI experts used the vessel and an undersea robot to find the shattered remains of Air France Flight 447, which in 2009 had vanished over the South Atlantic with 228 passengers. Other search teams had failed, and Mr. Dalio saw the 2011 success as an indication of the field’s exploratory promise.
Why is it important to study life in the deep sea and even below the seafloor?
Dr Virginia Edgcomb heads a laboratory at WHOI in the US. She spent three months on a ship in the middle of the Indian Ocean conducting research as part of a quest to find evidence of microbial life within the lower oceanic crust.
The $500 Billion Question: What’s the Value of Studying the Ocean’s Biological Carbon Pump?
A new paper published in the journal Science of the Total Environment from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) puts an economic value on the benefit of research to improve knowledge of the biological carbon pump and reduce the uncertainty of ocean carbon sequestration estimates.
What did we learn from the Deepwater Horizon disaster?
All existing tests on the efficacy of dispersants had been conducted on the surface of water, says Elizabeth Kujawinski, a chemical oceanographer at WHOI. There was no guarantee that they would perform the same way in the crushing depths of the ocean.
Coalition, including UMass Dartmouth, backs expanded research of offshore wind
Seven Massachusetts research institutions late last month pressured Congressional leaders to pass legislation that would “update and expand” the federal government’s offshore wind energy program and related research opportunities.
145 invasive European green crabs caught in Drayton Harbor
Washington Sea Grant is working with Carolyn Tepolt, a researcher at WHOI in Massachusetts, who studies population genetics and has the most extensive dataset on West Coast green crab populations.
Ecology Research: Ocean acidification causing coral ‘osteoporosis’ on iconic reefs
New research by scientists at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution reveals the distinct impact ocean acidification is having on coral growth on some of the world’s iconic reefs.
Fighting algae with clay, sponges and floating barriers: Cape Coral canals are helping researchers find what works
As the Earth’s climate changes, blooms have become more frequent and severe, and the hunt for solutions has intensified, said algae scholar Don Anderson, senior scientist at WHOI in Massachusetts, where he’s been studying those solutions for decades.
New Sensor to Monitor Microplastics in Cape Cod Canal
An ocean technology company installed a particle sensor Tuesday in the Cape Cod Canal to monitor plankton and potential microplastics.
Disentangling influences on coral health
In a new study, Weifu Guo of WHOI and his colleagues have compiled records of existing and new skeletal growth of a stony, long-lived coral genus known as Porites to disentangle the competing effects.
Researching phytoplankton 2000 miles from shore aboard the R/V Atlantis
Don’t be fooled by phytoplankton’s microscopic size, the creature is among the most vital organisms for the ocean and planet’s survival.