The Eddy and the Plankton

The ocean has storms and weather that rival the size and scale of tropical cyclones. But rather than destruction, these storms, better known as eddies, are more likely to bring life to the sea.

How Earth’s Next Supercontinent Will Form

The Earth has been covered by giant combinations of continents, called supercontinents, many times in its past, and it will be again one day in the distant future. The next predicted supercontinent, dubbed Amasia, may form when the Americas and Asia both drift northward to merge, closing off the Arctic Ocean, researchers suggest.

Clues to Tokyo’s Great Quakes Uncovered

Japan’s Kanto region, which includes the city of Tokyo on the main island of Honshu, is one of the most seismically active areas on Earth. Situated near the triple junction of the Pacific, Philippine and Eurasian plates, the Kanto region lies along the famed Pacific Ring of Fire and has experienced more than its fair share of earthquakes and tsunamis.

EPA Bans Sewage Discharge From Cruise Ships

Federal environmental regulators have given final approval to a rule that bans cruise ships and large cargo vessels from releasing all sewage into the state marine waters along California’s 1,624 mile coast from Mexico to Oregon and surrounding major islands, creating the largest Coastal No-Discharge Zone in the Nation. 77 percent of the State’s population lives on or near the coast and annually, over 150 million visitor-days are spent at California beaches.

Fish Farms at Sea: The Ground Truth from Google Earth

The fishing industry is notorious for underreporting the number of organisms that are being fished out of the world’s oceans every year. A study, published in the journal PLoS ONE, is the first to estimate seafood production using satellite imagery. Researchers used Google Earth to count and measure the number of coastal fish farms in 16 countries on the Mediterranean Sea.

Pyramids Planted to Revive Philippine Corals

Thousands of small “pyramids” are being planted off the Philippines’ famous Boracay’s coast in an effort to bring its nearly destroyed coral reefs back to life, an environment group said Thursday.

Researchers Probe 200-Year-Old Shipwreck off Rhode Island Coast

For two centuries it rested a mile from shore, shrouded by a treacherous reef from the pleasure boaters and beachgoers who haunt New England’s southern coast. ow, researchers from the U.S. Navy are hoping to confirm what the men who discovered the wreck believe: that the sunken ship off the coast of Rhode Island is the USS Revenge, commanded by Oliver Hazard Perry and lost on a stormy January day in 1811.

Delta State Government Bans the Dredging of Sand, Nigeria

The Niger Delta State Government has banned the dredging of sand in the 25 local governments. Commissioner for Environment Frank Omare said yesterday after a meeting with sand dredgers in Asaba, the state capital, that the directive was to save communities from ecological disaster.