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Oceans & Coasts

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NOAA provides scientific expertise to aid oil and chemical spill response

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An oiled rock along the shoreline near New Orleans.

How does marine pollution affect you?

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Oil spill.

What is a tide pool?

February 27, 2019

Point Pinos tide pools in Monterey County.

Do your part: Please help protect our estuaries

February 20, 2019

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Winyah Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve.

Advisory panel to focus on sea level rise, coastal inundation

February 20, 2019

We are scientists, engineers, researchers, technicians, and more who remain united in our common mission: science, service, stewardship.

Whale Week: What is the longest-lived marine mammal?

February 14, 2019

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Bowhead Whale.

What is the cryosphere?

February 7, 2019

The Arctic.

What are Christmas tree worms?

December 14, 2018

Christmas tree worms.

Remote coral reefs in better condition than those near human populations in U.S. Pacific

December 13, 2018

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Corals at Pagan Island, an uninhabited volcanic island in the Mariana Islands archipelago in the Pacific Ocean, seem to have fared much better than other areas. Here is a close-up of an Acropora coral, typically more susceptible to bleaching events, which appears to be doing just fine.

Podcast: Get to know your American Samoa and the 'Fa'a Samoa'

December 6, 2018

Hideyo Hattori, Site Liaison, NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP) and NOAA Coastal Zone Management Program (CZMP).

It's #CoralsWeek at NOAA

December 3, 2018

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View of a coral reef just below the waterline in Midway Atoll, Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument.

Uncovering the mystery of harmful algal blooms

November 15, 2018

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harmful algal blooms (HABs)

Harmful algal bloom.

NFWF, NOAA announce $28.9 million in grants for the 2018 National Coastal Resilience Fund

November 9, 2018

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coastal restoration

The He‘eia National Estuarine Research Reserve was the 29th in the NERR system. The He'eia wetlands will see a new natural constructed wetlands system to protect and enhance the ecosystem and community of Kane'ohe Bay, Hawaii. The project will minimize flood events, reduce sediment and nutrient run-off, and create habitat and fish passage for marine and estuarine species.

NOAA team sees Florence and Michael storm surge devastation first-hand

November 9, 2018

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GOES-East satellite image of Hurricane Florence making landfall at Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina on Sept. 14, 2018

Veterans benefit from nature’s power to heal and teach

November 7, 2018

Veterans retrained as firefighters.

NOAA awards over $8.3 million to advance coral reef conservation science and management

November 8, 2018

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Pillar coral (Dendrogyra cylindrus) is rare in the Florida Keys. One of the grants announced today will aid restoration of Pillar coral in Florida.

What causes seasickness?

November 1, 2018

Large swell and wind waves.

Top 5 weird ocean phenomena

October 24, 2018

A waterspout.

NOAA awards $11 million to accelerate U.S. aquaculture research

October 17, 2018

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Joe Harned hauls in a line of floating oyster cages at Morris Family Shellfish Farms in Sea Level, North Carolina, where he’s sampling oysters grown using various gear tested by the Sea Grant National Aquaculture Initiative.

NOAA expands coastal opportunities for people with disabilities

October 17, 2018

Accessible trail.

Aerial images of damage from Michael available

October 12, 2018

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response and restoration

This aerial image shows extensive damage along the coast in Mexico Beach, Florida, caused by Hurricane Michael. NOAA's National Geodetic Survey began collecting damage assessment imagery in the aftermath of the storm October 11, 2018.

Elkhorn Slough designated ‘Wetland of International Importance’

October 5, 2018

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National Estuarine Research Reserves

Aerial photo of Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Reserve Reserve at Moss Landing, California.

Are there oceans on other planets?

October 3, 2018

Europa, a moon of Jupiter.

Elkhorn Slough named ‘Wetland of International Importance’

October 1, 2018

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National Estuarine Research Reserves

Aerial photo of Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Reserve Reserve at Moss Landing, California.

A guide to plastic in the ocean

September 27, 2018

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Plastic toys can become marine debris.

After landfall: 4 ways NOAA is helping your community recover from Florence

September 20, 2018

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natural disasters

response and restoration

A NOAA navigation response team from New London, CT, surveys the Port of Morehead City, NC, after Hurricane Florence. Photo taken September 19, 2018.

Conserving the cultural landscape of our coasts

September 19, 2018

Sapelo Lighthouse, Sapelo Island National Estuarine Research Reserve.

Evaluating Florence damage from above: Access our database of aerial images

September 16, 2018

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Hurricane Florence damage in North Carolina on September 15, 2018

Podcast: What you need to know about ocean noise

September 10, 2018

Noise pollution in the ocean has increased dramatically in the last 50 years.

Marine debris: A problem you can get your arms around

September 10, 2018

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This not where you'd like to have the empty bottle of your favorite drink end up. Please always be sure to properly recycle your plastics and other trash. --> Want to make more of a difference? Join a local International Coastal Cleanup in September to help rid the seas of marine debris.

All IOOS regional networks now NOAA-certified

August 28, 2018

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measurements and observations

A joint deployment of an environmental sensor processor off the Washington coast by NOAA and the Northwest Association of Networked Ocean Observing Systems, one of the certified IOOS regional associations. The sensor has a special sampling package on board designed to detect early signs of harmful algal blooms (HABs).

The social science of marine pollution

August 16, 2018

The main Hawaiian islands and the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument are prone to accumulating marine debris because of their central location in the North Pacific Gyre.

NOAA advisory panels to meet in Juneau, focus on Alaska and Arctic navigation

August 15, 2018

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Bering sea pollock fleet prepares to depart Dutch Harbor, Alaska, for another season of the largest commercial fishery in the U.S.

NOAA red tide forecasts available for Florida and Texas

August 14, 2018

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harmful algal blooms (HABs)

Red tide off the coast of Texas.

Scientists complete mission to map fast-moving fault off Alaska

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earth observations

nautical charts and maps

The crew of NOAA Ship Fairweather crew lower a launch into Puget Sound, Washington, for Hydrographic Systems Readiness Review testing. Since 2015, scientists have been gathering data on the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather fault system, a 746-mile long strike-slip fault line that extends from offshore of Vancouver Island, Canada, to the Fairweather Range of southeast Alaska. The team has gathered high resolution bathymetric data through multibeam sonar across 5,792 square miles of the ocean bottom