Artificial reefs are structures that humans put in place underwater that create habitat for sea life. A new study shows for the first time how much of the US ocean floor they cover.
Ophiojura, discovered living on a seamount deep in the Pacific Ocean, is the last known survivor of a unique group of animals that diverged from its closest relatives way back in the Jurassic period.
Deep sea mining could supply valuable rare minerals to green technology, but one project in the south-west Pacific is invoking the wrath of local spirits.
When you study volcanoes at mid-ocean ridges, doing fieldwork means becoming an aquanaut – diving thousands of feet to the ocean floor in the submersible Alvin, trading tight quarters for amazing views.
The sediments that accumulate beneath seagrass meadows can act as secure vaults for shipwrecks and other precious artefacts, by stopping water and oxygen from damaging the delicate timbers.
Life on the Antarctic seafloor is surprisingly diverse – and half of the species live nowhere else on Earth. Now scientists can accurately map this unique biodiversity.
Research suggests a new threat to life on Earth from the meteorite’s crash: Via seismic waves, the impact triggered massive undersea eruptions, as big as any ever seen in our planet’s history.
The ocean floor off Australia’s east coast bears the scars of numerous subsea landslides, which have potentially triggered tsunamis over the past several millennia.