Oceans

Sea otters float amid a forest of kelp off California’s Central Coast.

Sea Otters Have Helped Bolster California’s Kelp Forest

A study that looks back more than 100 years shows that where the animals have thrived, underwater forests have, too

Imagine dragons—or go for a dive in the Pacific Ocean and keep an eye out for this astonishing two-inch sea slug known as Goniobranchus sp. 1.

Dive Into the Exotic World of Nudibranchs, the Spectacular Slugs of the Sea

Psychedelic hedgehogs, purple pineapples, living strawberries—these tiny creatures show off their big personalities off the Australian coast

Since Titanic premiered in 1997, skeptics have been insisting that Jack and Rose could have both survived on their makeshift raft. 

Floating Board From 'Titanic' Sells for Over $700,000

The infamous prop has long been the source of heated debate: Did Jack really have to die?

A diver documents one of the five cannons found during a recent archaeological survey of the wreck in Dry Tortugas National Park.

Sunken British Warship That Left Crew Marooned for 66 Days Has Been Identified

Found off the coast of Florida, the HMS "Tyger" left some 300 crew members stranded on Garden Key in 1742

Eastern coyotes—a subspecies that has coyote, wolf and domestic dog DNA—run in a West Virginia forest.

Five Shocking Animal Hybrids That Truly Exist in Nature, From Narlugas to Grolar Bears to Coywolves

The now-famous “virgin” stingray Charlotte is not having hybrid babies, scientists say. But in nature, distinct species sometimes interbreed to produce surprising offspring

Curator Frances McIntosh says the collection's survival is "nothing short of a miracle."

Shells From Captain Cook's Final Voyage Were Rescued From a Dumpster

Long presumed lost, the collection of rare shells is now on display in England

Mars' orbit has an impact on Earth's oceans and climate in cycles of 2.4 million years, new research finds.

Mars Has an Unexpected Influence on Earth's Oceans and Climate, Repeating Every 2.4 Million Years, Study Finds

The gravitational interactions between Mars and Earth as they orbit the sun may have periodically promoted a warmer climate and changes in ocean circulation on our home planet

Beluga whales are one of five species of whale that undergo menopause. The new study finds that females in these five species live decades longer than females of similarly sized species.

Whales That Go Through Menopause Live Longer and May Help Care for Grandchildren

Alongside humans, five species of toothed whales are known to experience menopause. A new study suggests they evolved the trait to increase their lifespan

The otherworldly form of the octopus has inspired millennia of fear and awe from humans.

Ten Wild Facts About Octopuses: They Have Three Hearts, Big Brains and Blue Blood

These bizarre creatures have been around for hundreds of millions of years, and for humans, they’ve inspired horror, admiration and culinary prestige

Penguins surround the post office at Port Lockroy, a British outpost on Goudier Island.

You Could Run a 'Penguin Post Office' in Antarctica

Three new hires will spend five months living among gentoo penguins and sorting postcards at the world's southernmost post office

Researchers drove a car equipped with ground-penetrating radar over the land near Utstein Monastery on the island of Klosterøy.

Archaeologists May Have Found Traces of a Viking Marketplace in Norway

Ground-penetrating radar found evidence of a trading hub buried near the island of Klosterøy's historic monastery

Maui-based photographers Lyle Krannichfeld and Brandi Romano spent about 30 minutes observing and photographing two male humpback whales on January 19, 2022.

These Photos Are the First to Show Humpback Whales Mating—and Both Are Males

Photographers spotted the interaction in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Maui in 2022

An orca hunting sea lion pups on an Argentinian beach in 2006. Before the recent study, killer whales had only been observed hunting white sharks in groups.

Single Orca Spotted Killing a Great White Shark for the First Time Ever

In less than two minutes, the marine mammal attacked a juvenile white shark and ripped out its liver in an encounter off the coast of South Africa last year

Without enough food, humpback whales become thinner, more susceptible to disease and less likely to reproduce.

7,000 Humpback Whales May Have Starved to Death During the 'Blob' Heatwave

The unprecedented marine heat between 2013 and 2016 in the North Pacific likely drove the whales' 20 percent decline, a trend revealed by citizen science observations

An adult humpback whale and calf. In the new study, the researchers blew air into the larynxes of three deceased whales, including a humpback, to learn how the the organ makes sound.

Scientists Discover How Some Whales Can Sing While Holding Their Breath Underwater

Baleen whales have evolved unique voice boxes essential for song, a new study finds—but these low-frequency vocalizations must compete with the noise of humans' ships

Northern gannets plunge into the water to hunt in Shetland. This image won the British Waters Wide Angle category.

See 15 Otherworldly Images From the Underwater Photographer of the Year Awards

A hunting monkey, 'kissing' scorpionfish and playful dolphins feature in just a few of the 130 striking photographs distinguished with honors in the competition

The USS Jacob Jones, an American destroyer, sank off the southwest coast of England in December 1917.

Divers Recover Bell From Wreck of American Destroyer Sunk in World War I

Sixty-four American sailors died when a German torpedo hit the USS "Jacob Jones" on December 6, 1917

Charlotte, a round stingray, was determined to be pregnant, despite not having a male ray companion for at least eight years.

A Female Stingray That Hasn't Had a Mate in Eight Years Is Mysteriously Pregnant. Is a Shark the Father?

Though the round stingray, named Charlotte, shares her aquarium tank with two male sharks, experts say it is impossible for a shark to impregnate a ray

A diver prepares to enter the water of Malakal Harbor in Palau, where the plane flown by U.S. Navy pilot Jay Ross Manown Jr. was shot down in September 1944.

Recovering the Lost Aviators of World War II

Inside the search for a plane shot down over the Pacific—and the new effort to bring its fallen heroes home

A reconstruction of how the newly discovered wall could have served as a hunting structure during the Stone Age, trapping deer alongside a body of water.

Stone Age Wall Discovered Beneath the Baltic Sea Helped Early Hunters Trap Reindeer

Made up of some 1,600 stones, the submerged “Blinkerwall” might be Europe's oldest known megastructure

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