Water is much denser than air, so its molecules are packed tighter together. This means that sound (which relies on molecules vibrating and pushing against one another) propagates muchfurther and faster under water than in air.
Oceans
“entanglements have long-term negative physical and reproductive effects (on whales)”
Entanglements have surpassed ship strikes as a leading danger to right whales in recent years. Forty-four percent of diagnosed right whale deaths were due to ship strikes and 35 percent were due to entanglements from 1970 to 2009, the study said. From 2010 to 2015, 15 percent of diagnosed deaths were due to ship strikes and 85 percent were due to entanglements, it said.
Wild Blue Mussels Disappearing
The Gulf of Maine stretches from Cape Cod to Canada and is a key marine environment and important to commercial fishing. Blue mussels are used in seafood dishes and worth millions to the economy of some New England states, but are also important in moving bacteria and toxins out of the water.
Concern for Puget Sound Orcas
“Historically, at this time of year, we would see nice little bunches (of orcas) swimming back and forth in front of the house,” said Ken, who lives on the west side of San Juan Island. But this year, the whales have broken up into small family groups and are traveling around in seemingly random patterns, presumably in search of whatever salmon they can find.
Protect Dolphins, Whales or Lose Access to U.S. Seafood Market
Each year around 650,000 whales, dolphins and other marine mammals are unintentionally caught and killed in fishing gear worldwide. Under the new rule, foreign fishermen must meet the same marine mammal protection standards applied to U.S. fishermen or their fish will be banned from the lucrative American seafood market.
Science Continues Melting Sea Ice Studies
In the vast and chaotic climate systems that govern our atmosphere and oceans, making sense of how one change — diminished sea ice — affects places or people thousands of miles away is a task of such extraordinary complexity that it strains even the most sophisticated supercomputers.
Understanding Ocean Acidification
“Oregon is ground zero for ocean acidification impacts–the water chemistry off our coast is already changing and has changed dramatically. For a glimpse into the science, the impacts and the information gaps behind ocean acidification in Oregon, check out the… Read More ›
Plastic Smog Continues to Spread in Oceans
An OP-ED by Dr. Chad Nelsen, Surfrider CEO Every single time I go for a surf or a swim in the ocean in Southern California, I find plastic floating in the sea. I usually grab the plastic bag, wrapper or… Read More ›
Unusual Warm Sea, Sharks & Otters
So the question is: Why have there been so many sightings outside late summer and early fall, the typical peak season for sharks?
The popular theory is that unseasonably warmer water has brought the change, but experts say it is much more complex than that.
How “The Blob” Impacted El Nino in California
“These past years have been extremely unusual off the California coast, with humpback whales closer to shore, pelagic red crabs washing up on the beaches of central California, and sportfish in higher numbers in southern California,” said Elliott Hazen of the Southwest Fisheries Science Center, a coauthor of the paper. “This paper reveals how broad scale warming influences the biology directly off our shores.”
Neptune 911! 