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earth matters
science and insights for people who care about Earth, its resources and its environment

Oceans

Map of circulation flows
February 22, 2016

Intense deep-ocean turbulence in equatorial Pacific could help drive global circulation

The findings could help solve an outstanding mystery about the global ocean conveyor belt and improve future climate forecasts.

Climate Change, Oceans
Green hills
February 16, 2016

Oxygen-starved oceans held back life's recovery after the 'Great Dying'

 Analysis of ancient seabed rocks from disparate locations reveal that life did not rebound until anoxia had fully ebbed.

Evolution of Earth and Life, Oceans
January 4, 2016

Timelapse of Ocean Acidification Effects on Coral

David Attenborough's Great Barrier Reef

Stanford Earth's Cassandra Brooks contributed footage to a new interactive David Attenborough project about the Great Barrier Reef. Brook's video shows the effects of ocean acifidification on the limestone skeleton of a sand dollar.

Climate Change, Oceans
November 5, 2015

A plea for Adélie (penguins)

National Geographic

Cassandra Brooks is hopeful that a Southern Ocean Marine Protected Area can be created that will protect Anarctic wildlife, including the Adélie penguins for which her daughter is named. 

Oceans
Ship
October 21, 2015

Antarctic species threatened by willful misinterpretation of legal treaty

Stanford School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences

Some countries argue that setting up marine protected areas in the Southern Ocean would interfere with their right to “rational use” of natural resources.

Food and Agriculture, Oceans
September 4, 2015

Ice sheets may be more resilient than thought

Stanford School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences

A new study by PhD students Matthew Winnick and Jeremy Caves suggests that today's ice sheets may be more resilient to increased carbon dioxide levels than previously thought.

Climate Change, Oceans
Rain over San Francisco, photo by Brocken Inaglory
August 21, 2015

El Niño May Bring Record Heat, and Rain for California

New York Times

This year's El Niño might be one of the strongest on record. Stanford Earth PhD candidate Daniel Swain discusses what to expect in California.

Climate Change, Oceans
Scientists on a zodiac in West Antarctic Peninsula
August 11, 2015

Melting glaciers feed Antarctic food chain

American Geophysical Union

New Stanford Earth research reveals that large areas of open water in the Southern Ocean are benefiting phytoplankton blooms that help support the Antarctic food chain and mitigate the effects of climate change.

Climate Change, Oceans
March 4, 2015

Animal functional diversity started out poor, became richer over time

Stanford School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences

New research by Jonathan Payne's lab refutes a hypothesis by the famed evolutionary biologist Stephen J. Gould that marine creatures underwent an “early burst” of functional diversity during the dawn of animal life.

Oceans, Evolution of Earth and Life
February 10, 2015

Bold solutions for high seas marine conservation

Stanford School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences

Two-thirds of high seas fisheries are depleted or overfished, with impacts of climate change and marine pollution compounding the problem. Technology and political will can reverse the downward trend and move toward sustainability.

Food and Agriculture, Oceans
January 8, 2015

Chinese aquaculture can tip the balance in world fish supplies

Stanford FSI

A new study by Roz Naylor and postdoctoral scholar Ling Cao offers the clearest picture to date of China’s enormous impact on wild fisheries. The study also presents a more sustainable alternative to the current practice of using wild-caught fish to feed farm-raised fish.

Food and Agriculture, Oceans

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