Oceans
Science News for Students articles on oceans
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AnimalsLet’s learn about whales and dolphins
Whales, dolphins and porpoises are all cetaceans — mammals that live in water and have a streamlined body similar to a fish.
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AnimalsA common antibiotic might save some sick corals
The antibiotic amoxicillin stopped tissue death in corals for at least 11 months after treatment.
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EcosystemsUrchin takeover underlies California’s vanishing kelp forests
Some 95 percent of kelp forests along its northern coast are gone. Meanwhile, sea otters are helping slow the loss of surviving kelp farther south.
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MicrobesSeveral plant-like algae can morph into animal-like predators
Single-celled green algae swim through water as free cells. Most use only photosynthesis for their energy. But not all of them, a new study shows.
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EarthFin whales could help scientists map what lies below the seafloor
Fin-whale calls are loud enough to penetrate into Earth’s crust, offering scientists a new way to study the properties of the ocean floor.
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EarthRock rising from below the Atlantic may drive continents apart
Molten rock rising from the deep mantle at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge may drive plate tectonics there more than had been expected.
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Climate2020 was warmest year on record for Earth’s oceans
2020 continued the trend of record-breaking heat for the world’s oceans. The three previous warmest years on record were 2019, 2017 and 2018.
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AnimalsChoked by bacteria, some starfish are turning to goo
For years, researchers thought gooey, dying starfish were infected. Instead, these sea stars are suffocating. And bacteria may be behind it all.
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EnvironmentUnmasking the pandemic’s pollution problem
Discarding all the materials people use to protect themselves from COVID-19 has created a growing environmental problem.
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AnimalsLet’s learn about sharks
This ancient group of fish can use scent and even electricity to detect their prey. And they fill an important niche in the ocean.
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OceansAnalyze This: Shipwrecks provide a home for bottom-dwelling fish
Fish have found a habitat in a submarine and freighter that sunk to the seafloor during World War II.
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AnimalsWhales get a second life as deep-sea buffets
When a whale dies and sinks to the seafloor, it becomes a feast for hundreds of different types of creatures.