Water science news, explainers, and statistics covering freshwater, hydrology, lakes, rivers, groundwater, ice, and Earth’s connected water systems.
A nautical chart and an ordinary map both describe places, but they are built for different decisions. A road map helps a traveler choose among established routes. A nautical chart gives a mariner the locations of hazards and navigation aids alongside the measured depths needed to choose a safe route across water where no lane…
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A container ship approaching a bridge has to fit through a space that keeps changing. The vessel’s height above the water stays nearly fixed, yet tides, wind and river flow can raise or lower the surface beneath it. Even the bridge can move slightly as temperature and traffic loads change. Mariners call the vessel’s height…
A restaurant fillet, a dried shark fin, or a carved piece of ivory can become evidence in a wildlife investigation. Marine forensic scientists identify the species behind those items and preserve their methods for legal scrutiny. Their work helps investigators enforce conservation laws while also detecting seafood sold under a false name. At NOAA Fisheries,…
Gold is present in the ocean, yet seawater is among the least practical places to look for it. Measurements from the Atlantic and North Pacific have found concentrations near one gram of gold per 100 million metric tons of seawater. A mining system would need to process an extraordinary volume of water to collect even…
