Sargassum levels in the Atlantic basin hit a record 37.5 million metric tons in May 2025, the most recorded since monitoring began. The sharp increase has inundated coastlines, affected tourism, and raised health concerns across parts of the Caribbean.
Thousands of Velella velella, also known as by-the-wind sailors, washed ashore on beaches in Ventura County, California, from late April to early May 2025. The mass stranding, driven by onshore winds and warm ocean conditions, reflects seasonal oceanographic changes along the California coast.
Rip currents claimed one life and left two injured on Saturday, April 12, 2025, after pulling three teens into the water while swimming at Lake Worth Beach in Florida.
An international team exploring the seafloor after iceberg A-84 broke off the George VI Ice Shelf in January 2025 discovered a previously unseen ecosystem, raising questions about how life adapts to some of the harshest environments on the planet. Since the area became accessible, at least six new species have been identified in the region.
A comprehensive investigation headed by Lewis P. Bailey of the National Oceanography Centre and involving global collaborations revealed the complicated and unpredictable behaviour of deep-sea currents. This four-year study offshore North Mozambique investigates how these currents interact with the seafloor, challenging existing models and bringing new insights into marine ecosystems.
Recent advancements by the USGS EROS Center, led by Minsu Kim, developed a new algorithm using Landsat data for bathymetry, supporting initiatives like Seabed 2030. Landsat Next, launching around 2030, promises even greater accuracy and resolution than ever before.
The 2024 Atlantic hurricane season is expected to be significantly more active than usual, with NOAA predicting 17 to 25 named storms, 8 to 13 hurricanes, and 4 to 7 major hurricanes. The North Atlantic hurricane season runs from early June to late November.
Scientists from the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) and the University of Maryland have provided evidence of a significant slowdown in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), a key climate regulator. Published in Frontiers in Marine Science, the research utilized over six decades of oceanic data to track the health of this vital oceanic component. This slowdown, observed primarily in the last two decades, could have profound implications on global climate patterns.
A severe marine heat wave was recorded off Canada’s East Coast this summer, according to data compiled by Fisheries and Oceans climate scientist Peter Galbraith. The event, lasting from the last three weeks of July to the first week of August, saw a weeklong temperature spike off Newfoundland averaging 6.7 °C (12.1 °F) above normal.
A recently published study in the journal Geophysical Research Letters has revealed that the Gulf Stream transport of water through the Florida Straits has weakened by approximately 4% over the past 40 years. Researchers state with 99% certainty that this is more than what would be expected from random variations, marking the first definitive evidence of significant change in the current.
