Oceans | sciencenewsnet.in

Greenland Melting Likely Increased by Bacteria in Sediment

January 14, 2021 sarah Jonas Bacteria, Cities, Climate Change, Climate Models, cloud cover, coastal storms, Cyanobacteria, Drones, Environment, global warming, Greenland, Greenland Ice Sheet, ice, Islands, Melting, microbes, New Jersey, NJ, Oceans, Organic Matter, Research, RU, Rutgers, Rutgers University, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Rutgers-New Brunswick, Science, Sea-level rise, Sediment, Solar energy, Streams, sunlight

Bacteria are likely triggering greater melting on the Greenland ice sheet, possibly increasing the island’s contribution to sea-level rise, according to Rutgers scientists. That’s because the microbes cause sunlight-absorbing sediment to clump together and accumulate in the meltwater streams, according to a Rutgers-led study – the first of its kind – in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. The findings can be incorporated in climate models, leading to more accurate predictions of melting, scientists say.

Research Results

Big Differences in How Coral Reef Fish Larvae are Dispersed

January 11, 2021 sarah Jonas Adaptation, Biology, Climate Change, Clownfish, Conservation, Coral, Coral Reefs, Corals, Currents, Dispersal, Ecology, Environment, Evolution, Extinction, genetic, Habitats, Larvae, Monsoons, New Jersey, NJ, Ocean, Oceans, Philippines, Reef Fish, Research, RU, Rutgers, Rutgers University, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Rutgers-New Brunswick, Science, Species, Waves, Winds

How the larvae of colorful clownfish that live among coral reefs in the Philippines are dispersed varies widely, depending on the year and seasons – a Rutgers-led finding that could help scientists improve conservation of species. Right after most coral reef fish hatch, they join a swirling sea of plankton as tiny, transparent larvae. Then currents, winds and waves disperse them, frequently to different reefs.

Research Results

How to Identify Heat-Stressed Corals

January 4, 2021 sarah Jonas Algae, Biology, Climate Change, Coral, Coral Bleaching, Coral Reefs, Ecology, Engineering, Environment, fish, Fishing, Food, global warming, Hawaii, Health, Heat Stress, Invasive Species, Lab-on-a-chip, Marine Debris, Metabolites, National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration, New Jersey, NJ, Ocean, Ocean Acidification, Oceans, proteins, RU, Rutgers, Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, Rutgers University, Rutgers University–New Brunswick, Rutgers-New Brunswick, Sea-level rise, Seafood, Tech, Technology, Tropical Cyclones

Researchers have found a novel way to identify heat-stressed corals, which could help scientists pinpoint the coral species that need protection from warming ocean waters linked to climate change, according to a Rutgers-led study.

Research Results

COVID-19 Pandemic had Big Impact on Commercial Fishing in Northeast

December 17, 2020 sarah Jonas Adaptation, Asian, Commercial Fishing, Consumers, COVID-19, Environment, European, Exports, fish, Fish Stocks, Fisheries, Fishermen, Fishing, Food, Mental Health, New Jersey, NJ, Northeast, Ocean, Oceans, Oil Spills, outdoor dining, Pandemic, Restaurants, Retailers, RU, Rutgers, Rutgers University, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Rutgers-New Brunswick, Scallops, Seafood, Squid, Well-being

With restaurants and supply chains disrupted due to the global coronavirus pandemic, two-fifths of commercial fishermen surveyed from Maine through North Carolina did not go fishing earlier this year, according to a Rutgers study that also documented their resilience and adaptation. Of those who kept fishing, nearly all reported a decline in income compared with previous years, according to the survey of 258 fishers in the Northeast published in the journal PLOS ONE.

Research Results

Planning Ahead Protects Fish and Fisheries

December 11, 2020 sarah Jonas Canada, Climate Change, Conservation, East Carolina University, Environment, fish, Fisheries, Fishing, global warming, Marine Life, marine species, National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration, New Jersey, NJ, NOAA, North America, Ocean, Oceans, offshore wind, Planning, Recreation, Renewable Energy, RU, Rutgers, Rutgers University, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Rutgers-New Brunswick, Seafood, Shipping, Stanford University, Sustainability, United States, wave energy

Conservation of fish and other marine life migrating from warming ocean waters will be more effective and also protect commercial fisheries if plans are made now to cope with climate change, according to a Rutgers-led study in the journal Science Advances.

Research Results

Atmospheric Rivers Help Create Massive Holes in Antarctic Sea Ice

November 11, 2020 sarah Jonas Algae, Antarctica, Atmosphere, atmospheric rivers, Climate Change, Coastal Communities, coastal storms, Ecology, Environment, Flooding, heat, marine food web, New Jersey, NJ, Ocean, ocean circulation, Oceans, Phytoplankton, Polar, Research, RU, Rutgers, Rutgers University, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Rutgers-New Brunswick, Science, Sea Ice, Sea-level rise, South America, Southern Ocean, Spring, Water Vapor, Winter

Warm, moist rivers of air in Antarctica play a key role in creating massive holes in sea ice in the Weddell Sea and may influence ocean conditions around the vast continent as well as climate change, according to Rutgers co-authored research. Scientists studied the role of long, intense plumes of warm, moist air – known as atmospheric rivers – in creating enormous openings in sea ice. They focused on the Weddell Sea region of the Southern Ocean near Antarctica, where these sea ice holes (called polynyas) infrequently develop during the winter.

Research Results

A better understanding of coral skeleton growth suggests ways to restore reefs

November 9, 2020 sarah Jonas Climate Change, Coral Reefs, Oceans, Physics

In a new study, University of Wisconsin–Madison physicists observed reef-forming corals at the nanoscale and identified how they create their skeletons. The results provide an explanation for how corals are resistant to acidifying oceans and suggest that controlling water temperature, not acidity, is crucial to mitigating loss and restoring reefs.

Expert Pitch

Rutgers Expert Can Discuss 10 Ways to Adapt to Coastal Flooding

October 14, 2020 sarah Jonas Adaptation, BAYS, Climate Change, Coastal Communities, Coastal Flooding, Coastal resilience, Environment, FEMA, Flood, flood insurance, Flood Risk, Flooding, Floods, Government, Homeowners, Jacques Cousteau National Estuarine Research Reserve, Marshes, Mitigation, New Jersey, Ocean, Oceans, Residents, Resilience, Rivers, RU, Rutgers, Rutgers University, Sea-level rise, Wetlands

New Brunswick, N.J. (Oct. 14, 2020) – Rutgers coastal expert Vanessa Dornisch is available for interviews on 10 steps residents

Research Results

Study First to Tally Biomass from Oceanic Plastic Debris Using Visualization Method

October 13, 2020 sarah Jonas Biodiversity, Biofilm, Biomass, Diatoms, Ecology, Environment, microalgae, microplastics, Microscopy, Oceans, Pollution, Polystyrene

Scientists examined cell abundances, size, cellular carbon mass, and how photosynthetic cells differ on polymeric and glass substrates over time, exploring nanoparticle generation from plastic like polystyrene and how this might disrupt microalgae. Conservative estimates suggest that about 1 percent of microbial cells in the ocean surface microlayer inhabit plastic debris globally. This mass of cells would not exist without plastic debris in the ocean, and thus, represents a disruption of the proportions of native flora in that habitat.

Research Results

Marine animals live where ocean is most ‘breathable,’ but ranges could shrink with climate change

September 16, 2020 sarah Jonas Climate Change, Marine animals, Marine Biodiversity, Marine Biology, Marine Conservation, Marine Ecology, Metabolism, Ocean, Oceans, Oxygen, Physiology

Research shows that many marine animals already inhabit the maximum range of breathable ocean that their physiology allows. The findings are a warning about climate change: Since warmer waters harbor less oxygen, stretches of ocean that are breathable today for a species may not be in the future.

Research Results

Ocean Algae Get “Coup de Grace” from Viruses

September 15, 2020 sarah Jonas Algae, Algae blooms, algal blooms, Calcium, Carbon, Carbon Dioxide, Cells, Chemicals, Coastal Waters, Cycling, deep ocean, Earth, Ecosystems, Environment, Infection, iron, Model, New Jersey, NJ, Norway, Ocean, Oceans, Oregon State University, Oxygen, Phosphorus, Phytoplankton, Research, Rutgers, Rutgers University, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Rutgers-New Brunswick, Science, Sequestration, University of Bergen, University of California, Santa Barbara, Viruses, water

Scientists have long believed that ocean viruses always quickly kill algae, but Rutgers-led research shows they live in harmony with algae and viruses provide a “coup de grace” only when blooms of algae are already stressed and dying. The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, will likely change how scientists view viral infections of algae, also known as phytoplankton – especially the impact of viruses on ecosystem processes like algal bloom formation (and decline) and the cycling of carbon and other chemicals on Earth.

Research Results

UCI and international institutions link Southeast Asia megadrought to drying in Africa

August 21, 2020 sarah Jonas Anthropology, Climate, Climate Change, Collaboration, Drought, earth system science, Environment, Faculty, Oceans, Research, Society, Weather

Irvine, Calif., Aug. 21, 2020 – Physical evidence found in caves in Laos helps tell a story about a connection between the end of the Green Sahara – when once heavily vegetated Northern Africa became a hyper-arid landscape – and a previously unknown megadrought that crippled Southeast Asia 4,000 to 5,000 years ago. In a paper published today in Nature Communications, scientists at the University of California, Irvine, the University of Pennsylvania, William Paterson University of New Jersey and other international institutions explain how this major climate transformation led to a shift in human settlement patterns in Southeast Asia, which is now inhabited by more than 600 million people.

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