Water temperature and pressure determine how far sound travels in the ocean. While sound moves at a much faster speed in the water than in air, the distance that sound waves travel is primarily ...

Closely monitoring marine life at home, around the world is key to better understand our changing ocean. Changes in marine biodiversity—the variety and variability of life in the ocean—can be an early ...

The international date line, shown here as a yellow line, defines the boundary between calendar dates. The international date line, established in 1884, passes through the mid-Pacific Ocean and ...

Sea ice is frozen water that forms, expands, and melts in the ocean. It is different from icebergs, glaciers, ice sheets, and ice shelves, which originate on land. For the most part, sea ice expands ...

Many factors determine how long it will take for debris to degrade, such as material type, size, thickness, and environmental conditions. Human-made products are not completely biodegradable. These ...

Estuaries are important natural places. In addition to essential habitats for birds, fish, insects, and other wildlife, estuaries provide goods and services that are economically and ecologically ...

The threats to coastal communities include extreme natural events such as hurricanes, coastal storms, tsunamis, and landslides, as well as longer-term risks of coastal erosion and sea level rise.

In addition to the lives that can be lost during an oil spill event (like the explosion that led to the Deepwater Horizon spill), spills can impact the livelihoods of communities that rely on ...

Several thousand marine scientists are busy at work in the United States dealing with a diversity of important issues — from climate change, declining fisheries, and eroding coastlines, to the ...

People often think that the underwater world is silent. In fact, numerous marine organisms use sound for communication, reproduction, and to seek prey. The hydrophone pictured here is located within ...

Coastal resilience means building the ability of a community to "bounce back" after hazardous events such as hurricanes, coastal storms, and flooding – rather than simply reacting to impacts. It ...

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 ...