Scientists have detected a 30% slowdown of the deep ocean currents that form in Antarctica, with profound consequences for Earth’s climate, sea level and marine life.
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Articles on Ocean currents
Displaying 1 - 20 of 44 articles
Working with underwater robots, scientists show how deep sea mountains and fast currents between Antarctica and South America play a crucial role in stabilizing the climate.
In a plot reminiscent of the 2004 movie The Day After Tomorrow?, Australian scientists are warning that the Southern Ocean’s deep “overturning” circulation is slowing and headed for collapse.
Remote islands in the Indian Ocean are now strewn with plastic waste – the origin of this waste has until now not been established.
Our oceans have absorbed almost all the extra heat we’ve trapped with our emissions. Now we know how this heat moves in ocean currents.
The direction a beach faces, relative to wind direction, largely determines how many bluebottles are pushed to shore.
Studying these deposits gives scientists information about how past environments change. That, in turn, gives us informed estimates on how climates and environments will change in the near future.
Ida exploded from a weak hurricane to a powerful Category 4 storm in less than 24 hours, thanks to heat from an ocean eddy. An oceanographer explains its rapid intensification.
New research suggests that an effective way to locate and track large concentrations of microplastics in the ocean could be from high in the sky.
Thousands of shipping containers are lost at sea each year, dispersing Lego, inkjet cartridges and rubber ducks across the world’s beaches.
Our team discovered clear changes in the distribution and strength of ocean eddies. These changes have never been detected before.
The grisly discovery of a disembodied foot on a NSW beach was a tragic twist in the mystery of missing woman Melissa Caddick. Such tragedies can also reveal hidden currents connecting the planet.
How Pacific winds interact with the sea to bring colder waters up from the depths.
But these ‘cold-water coral’ are threatened by accelerating sea currents.
The Atlantic Ocean is still growing physically, but humans are over-harvesting its rich fisheries. The most famous one – North Atlantic cod – has become a textbook example of harmful overfishing.
Here’s how microplastics from your clothes end up in the deep sea.
Fish can’t read maps, and their eggs and larvae drift across national boundaries. Recent research shows that local problems in one fishery can affect others across wide areas.
Great areas of rubbish – known as ‘garbage patches’ – are known to form in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, but not the southern Indian Ocean. Why is that?
It’s good to know how currents are formed in the ocean, as they can be quite dangerous!
If you’ve ever wondered where the ocean currents flow around Australia’s coastline then we have a great map for you.
Top contributors
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Professor in Oceanography and Public Engagement, Utrecht University
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Professor of Coastal Oceanography, The University of Western Australia
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Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO
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Scientia Professor and Deputy Director of the ARC Australian Centre for Excellence in Antarctic Science (ACEAS), UNSW Sydney
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Research Fellow, Australian National University
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Professor, Australian National University
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CSIRO Fellow, CSIRO
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Senior Lecturer in Ocean and Earth Science, University of Southampton
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Assistant Professor, UWA Oceans Institute, The University of Western Australia
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Professor, National Oceanography Centre, University of Southampton
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Professor in Oceanography, UNSW Sydney
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Professor, Cetacean Research Unit, Murdoch University, Murdoch University
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Professor and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research), University of Sydney
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Senior Lecturer in Mathematics and Oceanography, UNSW Sydney
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Senior Lecturer in Conservation Biology, Queen Mary University of London
