ocean

Is there an ocean under Pluto's surface? A new study suggests that there may indeed be one beneath the dwarf planet's surface.

During a recent exploration of the waters near the Channel Islands, the crew of the E/V Nautilus encountered a truly mysterious purple orb just floating amid some rocks.

NOAA researchers with the Okeanos Explorer expedition recently captured a video of a glowing shrimp with some crazy antennae.

Here are 10 of the strangest deep sea creatures recently spotted by ocean explorers.

Southern California Officials just can’t seem to keep Wally the dead whale from haunting ocean shores. The whale’s dead carcass was spotted two miles from shore at Dana Point, California, on July 13th after several previous attempts to give the 45-foot, 40-ton whale a proper burial. Wally first washed up at Los Angeles’ Dockweiler State Beach just before […]

During a dive near the California coastline, the E/V Nautilus team captured footage of a siphonophore in action.

The oceans are home to many fascinating and dazzling creatures, and recently NOAA's Okeanos Explorer team captured a mesmerizing video of one of them.

A sea cucumber recently caught on camera by the NOAA crew during the Okeanos Explorer mission dazzles and mesmerizes.

Update: Multiple media reports seemed to suggest this jellyfish is a new species. We asked the NOAA and this is their response: Michael Ford, NOAA oceanographer and jelly expert, is confident the jellyfish is of the genus Crossota. Its physical attributes and depth at which it was sighted (~3,700 meters) are consistent with Crossota. We […]

Spotting a killer whale in the Monterey Bay south of San Jose may not be that rare of a sight. But spotting a pack of them ambushing a pod of dolphins and catching the whole thing on camera—that’s something special. At least it was for Michael Sack, captain and co-owner of Sanctuary Cruises, who offers […]

Malaviya pushed against the cultural current.

The NOAA's Okeanos Explorer mission has encountered quite a few life forms during the 2016 Hohonu Moana expedition.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has revealed that a remotely operated vehicle spotted a ghost-like octopod during underwater surveying off the Hawaiian islands.

Antarctica and Greenland may be two of the most remote places on Earth but what happens in both these vast landscapes can significantly impact on human activity further afield.

As giant icebergs bob across the open seas they leave behind a trail of nutrient-rich meltwater, sparking new life in the world’s remotest and least hospitable oceans.

Scientists at the Wildlife Conservation Society’s New York Aquarium report that a nursery for sand tiger sharks—an area where juvenile sand tiger sharks aggregate, has been discovered just off the shore of Long Island’s Great South Bay. Sand tiger sharks are actually born in the South around the Carolinas, but migrate north to nursery sites during their maturing years, which is […]

This meat-eating sponge is called the harp sponge, a name that becomes self-explanatory after you see its image (it resembles a turned-over harp). It is an extraordinary species of carnivorous sponges, which were first found to exist around two decades ago. The unique sponge was discovered in 2000 off the coast of California by a team of […]

A scary new predator has been discovered on the ocean floors. The scientific name of this shark is Etmopterus benchleyi, named after Jaws author Peter Benchley. Its common name is the “ninja lanternshark.” But why does this shark hold a “ninja” prefix? Characteristics of this type of shark are that they are all-black, and they emit light from their organs. This […]

Not much is known about the whiplash squid in this video. It lives so deep in the ocean that it's rarely seen alive.

For most marine biologists, myself included, it wasn’t until 2005 that it dawned on us that a third of all human-caused carbon dioxide emissions are dissolving into and acidifying the sea.