ECO Magazine

An expedition to international waters off the coast of Brazil used state-of-the-art to confirm new midwater species and observed the living 3D cellular structure of a microbe—a first for .

An international team of midwater experts on board Schmidt Ocean Institute’s research vessel Falkor (too) discovered over two dozen new on a recent expedition off the coast of Brazil in the tropical South Atlantic Ocean. The scientists used advanced technologies to explore the ocean’s midwater—the water between the sunlit layer and the seafloor—which is Earth’s largest and least explored habitable ecosystem.

Researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) have developed a new method to predict five to six months before it occurs, giving reef managers valuable time to protect vulnerable ecosystems.

In the new study, published in Communications Earth and Environment, researchers demonstrate that coral bleaching on the Caribbean island of Curaçao occurs when three major climate patterns in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans align in specific ways that intensify .

By monitoring these climate modes months before peak summer heat, the team created a new, early-warning tool called the Bleaching Event Early Predictor (BEEP). This highlights how large-scale climate dynamics can be used to anticipate extreme marine heat stress at local reefs, an advance that could significantly improve coral reef management worldwide.

Jan De Nul Group has taken an important step in the of in the Belgian North Sea. On the seabed of a protected marine area, 2,000 stones were placed, inoculated with a total of 400,000 young, hatchery-grown oysters. With this intervention, the team is directly contributing to the recovery of an ecosystem that once played a key role in the North Sea.

Oyster reefs are highly valuable habitats. They increase , support fish production, and strengthen the natural functioning of . This is precisely why restoring this habitat is a priority.

NOAA Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) is expanding its (HAB) monitoring website with new regional products for the coastal Northeast United States and demonstration high-resolution areas in the Great Lakes.

The new Coastal Northeast US satellite imagery supports bloom tracking in the Gulf of Maine and coastal waters off New York and New Jersey. These products provide satellite-based information to help partners better understand potential bloom conditions across a broad coastal region.

Find Schmidt Ocean Institute on the cover of eco magazine’s issue II

📸 | Tully Rohrer holds the sediment trap line from the telescopic crane before deployment at the aft deck aboard R/V Falkor (too). (Image credit: Bernarda Cornejo Pinto, Schmidt Ocean Institute)

Read issue II and Schmidt Ocean Institute’s latest news with the link in the comments 🔗

Monterey Bay Aquarium biologists completed an expedition to Guide Seamount aboard MBARI 's flagship research vessel David Packard. Led by Monterey Bay Aquarium Curator of Fishes and Invertebrates Megan Olhasso in partnership with MBARI Senior Education and Research Specialist George Matsumoto, the team deployed MBARI's remotely operated vehicle (ROV) Doc Ricketts to explore the seamount's rocky ridges and collect animals for the Aquarium's Into the Deep/En lo Profundo exhibition.

Researchers deployed Ocean Diagnostics’ portable Surface Sampler to collect genetic material in areas too remote and extreme to obtain with existing tools. These samples, analyzed back in the laboratory, revealed Chinook salmon in a location historically believed to be beyond their migratory reach. This data supports tribal fisheries managers in understanding how human activities may be altering salmon behavior across the Pacific Northwest and introducing and activities to protect them.

TouchWind has successfully installed its turbine prototype at Fieldlab Green Economy Westvoorne in the Netherlands. Following the installation, the POWER project has now entered the in-water field testing phase, marking the next step in the demonstration program.

The POWER project—‘POsitive Wake Effects of turbines with tilted Rotors’—investigates how turbines with tilted rotors can deflect wakes and draw higher-energy wind from upper air layers. Combining these effects could enable wind farms with significantly higher power density.

While recent studies have reported changes in animal populations in Arctic waters, the causes were poorly understood, as there have been few in-depth analyses of the ocean’s chemical makeup.

Now, researchers from The University of Edinburgh have gained new insights into the changing nutrient levels in the Arctic Ocean by analyzing data spanning a 20-year period. The team assessed more than two decades of sampling data from the Fram Strait, the main gateway through which Arctic waters flow into the Atlantic.

Woolpert ’s team of subject matter experts uses state-of-the-art technologies to create robust geospatial data products for decision-making. Advanced tools like uncrewed surface vehicles (USVs) and multibeam sonar significantly enhance offshore data collection capabilities and are increasingly being used for deep-ocean missions.

Read the OpEd, "Expanding Access to Critical Ocean Data," by David Neff, C.H., Maritime Market Director, Woolpert, with the link in the comments 🔗