News archives

A gray wahle breaching. Photo: Alisa Schulman-Janiger

Research Highlight: Scientists Find Key Changes in Gray Whale Migration Routes off Southern California

Increasing numbers of gray whales migrating closer to shore could put whales at risk for ship strikes, entanglements, and pollution

two people tag a fish

Early Results Suggest California Marine Protected Areas are a Success

Seven years after completion of network, rebounds of certain species seen

a compilation image of microscopic plastic

Explosion in Plastic Pollution Post-World War II Seen in Marine Sediments

Surge in microplastics could serve as marker for “the Great Acceleration”

Master's student Jessica Sportelli on a Zodiac in the Churchill River in Canada.

Scripps Student Spotlight: Jessica Sportelli

Marine biology master’s student is studying whale acoustics to identify why killer whales are migrating to new places

An opalescent fish with a black spot

Scientists Identify New Species of Damselfish

New study co-authored by Scripps Oceanography identifies Corazon’s Damsel, a previously unknown species of damselfish found off Madagascar

A woman leans over to touch a succulent in a garden.

Around the Pier: Scripps Succulent Garden Sheds Light on Coral Reefs

Graduates of Scripps Oceanography program develop coral reef-inspired succulent garden on campus to bring science out of labs

The seaweed Digenea simplex on the beach.

Scientists Develop New Production Method for Seaweed Chemical Used in Brain Research

Researchers find an affordable and effective way to produce kainic acid, an important natural chemical used by neuroscientists

A woman holds a flask of seaweed in her hand.

Around the Pier: Usurp the Burp

How seaweed could help curb cow burps—one of California’s greatest sources of methane emissions

Portrait of a smiling man who is wearing a pink shirt

A Scientist's Life: Octavio Aburto-Oropeza

Marine ecologist and photographer studies ways to use technology to improve fisheries, considers economic value of flourishing ecosystems

At a depth of 58 meters (190 feet), Paul Dayton with a camera flash unit in McMurdo Sound, 1968

How Marine Life Responds to Upheaval

Recent episode in Antarctica set off a chain of ecological events and offered a study in resilience

A man in a light blue sweater poses for a portrait in an outdoor setting near the beach

A Scientist's Life: Jeff Bowman

Biological oceanographer studies how microbes, plankton interact with their habitats

Microscopic view of domoic acid producing Pseudo-nitzschia diatom

Domoic Acid Decoded: Scientists Discover Genetic Basis for How Harmful Algal Blooms Become Toxic

Sequencing genes of microscopic algae helps determine how toxins are produced

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