Deep Connections: Ocean Observation Systems
While tracers have proven immensely valuable as tools with which to monitor and analyze ocean circulation, the sheer size of the world ocean presents an enormous data-gathering challenge. Many oceanographers believe the solution lies in profiling sy...
Deep Connections: Water Masses
Water masses are layers of water distinguished by a particular temperature and salinity. Understanding how water masses form and move around is critical in understanding global climate.
Deep Connections: Thermohaline Circulation
The movement of water due to differences in density is called thermohaline circulation. This process is responsible for not only the vertical movement of ocean water, but for the circulation of the global ocean as a whole.
Dirty Water: Marine Absorption of Carbon Dioxide
Many scientists believe that the greenhouse gas problem would be far worse today if the ocean didn't absorb as much carbon dioxide as it does. Some in the scientific community are looking into the feasibility of increasing the amount of carbon dioxi...
Dirty Water: Pollution in Bays and Estuaries
Among the areas hardest hit by marine pollution are bays and estuaries which, under normal circumstances, are extraordinarily productive. Estuaries are vulnerable to more than just oil spills and harbor development. They can also be harmed by the ch...
Dirty Water: Eutrophication
Among the greatest threats to estuaries and other closed bodies of water is eutrophication. This is the process by which abnormally high levels of nutrients are introduced into the environment. This can create an imbalance in the local ecosystem, wh...
Differences Between Oceans and Continents (Part 1)
Geophysicist and geologist Tanya Atwater talks about the very different ways in which oceans and continents are formed and how each changes over time.
On the Coast: Protecting the Coastal Environment
Given the extensive use of the coast by humans, the task of protecting the coastal environment is enormously challenging.
Dirty Water: Urban Runoff
The amount of oil that reaches the ocean from urban runoff and other terrestrial sources greatly exceeds the oil that comes from tanker spills.