Federal consistency is a provision in the Coastal Zone Management Act that requires the federal government to comply with a state's Coastal Management Program when taking actions that are likely to ...

The saltiness of the ocean is the result of several natural influences and processes; water from rivers entering the ocean is just one of these factors. Braided river delta at low tide Lower Cook ...

The name “tidal bore,” also called a “bore tide,” is a bit of a misnomer — these natural occurrences are anything but boring. Also called mascaret (French), pororoca (Brazilian), and “the Bono” ...

Salt marsh within Narragansett Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. Salt marshes are coastal wetlands which are flooded and drained by tides. Salt marshes are coastal wetlands that are flooded and ...

The most famous glass sponge is a species of Euplectella, shown here in the northwestern Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico). Commonly called the “Venus flower basket,” this sponge builds its ...

VIDEO: What is an ocean glider? Here's an overview in under two minutes. Transcript Scientists are now experimenting with using gliders to locate populations of spawning fish. The glider illustrated ...

A depiction of the United States geoid. Areas in yellow and orange have a slightly stronger gravity field as a result of the Rocky Mountains. Do you have access to a 3D printer? Print your own scale ...

Looking for information on tides? The Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services, also known as “CO-OPS,” is where you want to head. CO-OPS and its predecessors have gathered tide ...

Climate change is the greatest global threat to coral reef ecosystems. Scientific evidence now clearly indicates that the Earth's atmosphere and ocean are warming, and that these changes are primarily ...

Whales are the largest animals on Earth and live longer than all other mammals in the contemporary animal kingdom. While many ocean lovers can easily identify the iconic sperm whale, the charismatic ...

NOAA’s National Geodetic Survey is modernizing the National Spatial Reference System (NSRS), the nation’s authoritative framework for defining position, to provide more accurate, consistent, and ...

Beaufort Sea, north of Alaska. One part of the cryosphere is ice that is found in water. This includes frozen parts of the ocean, such as waters surrounding Antarctica and the Arctic. There are places ...