-
50 years ago, President Nixon signed the Marine Mammal Protection Act into law. The act has been hugely successful in restoring the abundance of the marine species it protects. But Washington tribes say their treaty rights to fishing are now under threat because too many seals and sea lions are feasting on endangered salmon.
-
U.S. researchers say the number of gray whales off western North America has continued to fall over the last two years, a decline that resembles previous population swings over the past several decades.
-
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says high tide flooding has become more common as sea levels rise and is affecting residents of coastal towns and states. Floods that used to only occur during large storms now occur more regularly from simple causes.
-
The Biden administration has released two reports arguing that removing dams on the lower Snake River may be needed to restore salmon runs to historic levels in the Pacific Northwest. The reports say replacing the electricity created by the dams is possible but will cost $11 billion to $19 billion.
-
The Bell M. Shimada is designed to gather scientific information. But the collaborative effort of the crew and officers makes scientific endeavors at sea possible.
-
Foraminifera, or forams for short, are a single-celled oceanic organism that could provide big answers to questions about climate change.
-
Phytoplankton make up an extremely important part of the ocean’s food chain, serving as food for organisms that feed young salmon and other fish in the ocean.
-
A long-awaited decision on the Makah tribe’s application to conduct a whale hunt will come within a year, according to federal regulators with NOAA Fisheries who issued a supplemental environmental impact statement on July 1. The supplemental EIS includes a new preferred alternative that the agency is recommending for approval.
-
Scientists aboard the Bell M. Shimada keep an eye out for whales. One scientist hopes to help predict where whales will show up by studying the food they eat.
-
At least twice a year, a team of scientists on NOAA's research vessel Bell M. Shimada survey waters along the Washington and Oregon coast.