Marine telemetry is the remote measurement and transmission of information from animals, instruments or vehicles in the ocean. Researchers attach tags to wildlife, moor sensors or deploy robotic platforms, then receive data by radio, satellite, acoustic signals or later recovery. The method reveals movement and environmental conditions that cannot be followed continuously by a ship.…
More
Coral jewelry can harm reefs when living colonies or slow-growing deep-sea corals are removed faster than they recover. The polished red, pink, black or gold material sold in ornaments is the skeleton of particular coral species, not an inert stone. Harvest can reduce habitat, disturb seafloor communities and create trade that is difficult for buyers…
Corals contribute to medicine in two distinct ways. Their limestone skeletons can serve as models or starting materials for bone repair, while chemicals made by corals and their microbial partners provide leads for drug research. A promising laboratory compound is not automatically an approved medicine and modern work increasingly relies on synthesis, aquaculture or related…
Ocean sand is not one substance. It is a size class of sediment made from rock fragments, mineral grains, shells, coral skeletons and other biological remains. The mixture on a particular coast records the nearby geology, the organisms living offshore and the waves or currents that sort material by size and density. NOAA’s account of…
