By Kayla Matthews Some of the U.S. Navy’s biggest tactical obstacles are tiny sea creatures. Intermediate trophic level (ITL) organisms can interfere with navigation and surveillance equipment, making it difficult to carry out some operations efficiently. To address the issue, the Navy started researching this marine life last year. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) oceanographer Brad Penta led the research project
Read more
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) uses navigational buoys to direct water traffic and to protect vulnerable benthic ecosystems such as seagrass communities and coral reefs in U.S. waters. However, most buoys are currently attached to the seafloor by concrete anchors, also called sinkers, and heavy metal chains that can have just as significant an impact on marine life themselves.
Read more
GeoHab (Marine Geological and Biological Habitat Mapping) is an international association of marine scientists studying biophysical (i.e. geologic and oceanographic) indicators of benthic habitats and ecosystems as proxies for biological communities and species diversity. The GeoHab 2018 annual conference will be held in Santa Barbara, California at the Fess Parker Resort from Monday May 7 to Friday May 11, 2018. The annual conference brings geologists, biologists,
Read more
A new study published Jan. 29 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) shows how ocean acidification makes it harder for corals to build their skeletons. The study is based on research by scientists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution who extracted core samples from corals near Palau. Their work details the effects of acidification and will allow better
Read more