Oceans

Sleep With the Fishes: The Best Places to Spend a Night Underwater

As the weather heats up, escape to these hotel rooms beneath the waves

Six Ways to See Bioluminescence in the World's Oceans

From shimmering squid in Japan to illuminated clams in France, here are some of the top spots for basking in nature's glow

Visit the Pacific’s Deepest Hydrothermal Vents With Underwater Robots

Researchers spotted the vents nearly 12,500 feet beneath the surface during an expedition mapping the floor of the Pescadero Basin

This Surfboard Maps Waves and Gathers Ocean Data for Researchers

Sensors would make surfers into citizen scientists

A rendering of the USS Nautilus, the world's first atomic submarine. The real Nautilus is now open to the public, docked in Connecticut so that visitors can walk around inside and explore the torpedoes and living quarters.

Step Inside a Famous Submarine

Where to visit historic subs this summer—or ride in a modern one

Researchers collected this mixture of plankton – small zooplanktonic animals, larvae and single cell protists – in the Pacific Ocean with a 0.1 mm mesh net.

How Will Climate Change Impact Plankton?

A global plankton survey aims to help us understand how the tiny organisms that live at the ocean surface will fare in a warming world

A Beginner's Guide to the Santa Barbara Oil Spill

Cleanup efforts are underway at Refugio State Beach after more than 100,000 gallons of crude oil spilled

Data from satellites and sensors show the Pacific Ocean conditions in March 2015, including an increase in warm waters (shown in red). The warming has strengthened since then, prompting agencies to declare 2015 an El Niño year.

El Niño Is Here, But It Can’t Help Parched California (For Now)

Three national agencies have confirmed that the natural phenomenon has arrived, but not in time to bring much-needed rains in the West

Revealing the Deep Secrets of Deepwater Waves

Scientists hope their study of 1,600-foot underwater waves can help improve climate modeling

Sinbad the Coast Guard dog surrounded by sailors.

The Adorable and Heroic Animals of the Museum of Maritime Pets

Telling the stories of dogs in sailor hats and cats in life jackets

Single-use cigarette lighters, collected by Mandy Barker, represent our transition to a consumerist, throw-away society.

This Artist Transforms Beach Trash Into Stunning, Majestic Images

Mandy Barker didn't have spend too much time on the shores to collect enough debris for her masterpieces

A worker rescues a severely oiled brown pelican along the Louisiana shore in June 2010.

The Gulf Oil Spill Isn't Really Over, Even Five Years Later

Two Louisiana scientists reflect on the event and how its lingering effects are continuing to change the Gulf Coast

Five Things The Gulf Oil Spill Has Taught Us About the Ocean

While researching the spill, scientists tracked deep-sea sharks, found new mud dragons, and discovered a type of ocean current

Droves of Elegant Blue Jellies Wash Up on Pacific Shores

Unusually strong winds have pushed Velella velellas, or "by-the-wind sailors," onto West Coast beaches by the thousands

This Man Plans to Spend a Year Living in a Giant Ball on an Iceberg

Adventurer Alex Bellini wants to watch a Greenland iceberg melt while he dwells in a "survival pod"

A blue whale surfacing in the Gulf of St. Lawrence

Maybe the World's Loneliest Whale Isn't So Isolated, After All

Some evidence indicates that the singer of a higher-pitched whale song may not be alone

Urchin Spheres, (Echinoidea sp.), Thailand, Philippines, United States, Mexico.

10 Gorgeous Mosaics Made From Real Animal Specimens

Artist Christopher Marley's meticulous arrangements capture the incredible variety within families, genera and species

Ocean Acidification Could Have Driven Earth’s Biggest Mass Extinction

Study shows the world's oceans were dangerously acidic during the Permian Extinction Event

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Meet a Hermit Crab Who Has Shacked Up in a Lego

Weird things can become home sweet home when you are a tiny soft crustacean

This "Stars and Stripes" toadfish living in Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium in Japan is one member of a very noisy kind of fish

At Night, Fish Communicate With Special Calls, Whistles and Grunts

Dropping a hydrophone into an underwater cave helps researchers make sense of the din

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