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BLOG POST Listening for Clues About Sonar’s Effects on Marine Mammals Many animals depend on their eyes to navigate, find food, locate mates, and for other important activities. But marine mammals often rely on sound—sometimes far more than sight—for such crit...MORE STORIES


	OCEAN STORY MORE STORIES The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Two Years Later On April 20, 2010, an explosion on the oil-drilling rig Deepwater Horizon caused...
	VIDEO MORE VIDEOS Investigating Nutrient Pollution's Impact on Mangroves At Carrie Bow Cay in Belize, Dr. Candy Feller explains her research on the effec...
	BLOG POST MORE STORIES Witness to a Plastic Invasion It blew in for two solid days: a flotilla of plastic forks, soda bottles, rubber...

EDUCATOR RESOURCES

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					The Great Pacific Garbage Patch May 6, 2013 - 8:10AMThe “garbage patches,” as referred to in the media, are areas of marine debris concentration in the North Pacific Ocean, circulated by the North Pacific gyre. The gyre spreads across the Pacific Ocean from Japan to the western US...

Investigating Nutrient Pollution's Impact on Mangroves

Apr 26, 2013 - 9:47AM

At Carrie Bow Cay in Belize, Dr. Candy Feller explains her research on the...

Oil’s Impact on Marine Invertebrates

Oct 9, 2012 - 9:17AM

In the aftermath of the Gulf oil spill, what is the effect of oil on...

SPOTLIGHT


Ocean Trash Plaguing Our Sea In the Pacific Ocean, four ocean currents merge to form the North Pacific gyre, also known as the North Pacific Subtropical...

New Findings on the Effects of Noise on Whale and Dolphin Behavior Mar 29 2011 - 1:27pm Marine mammals around the world face many challenges due to interactions with people, from overfishing and entanglement to vessel strikes and disturbance from human sounds. Dr. Brandon Southall discusses recent findings from SOCAL‐10, a research project about the effects of noise on the behavior of...	Marine Ecologist Jeremy Jackson Discusses Oil Spills Jun 23 2010 - 12:38pm Marine ecologist Dr. Jeremy Jackson and a team of researchers conducted an in-depth study of the effects of a 1986 oil spill on the coast of Panama. In this video, Dr. Jackson discusses the study, its lessons for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, and major threats to the ocean...
Lecture: One Year After the Gulf Oil Spill Apr 26 2011 - 5:02pm On April 20, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded, opening up a well that pumped nearly 5 million barrels of oil into the ocean. It was the largest spill in U.S. history. In this presentation given at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History on April 19, 2011, experts discuss...	Diver Cleaning Up Reef Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am A diver cares for the reef by cleaning up discarded fishing gear and garbage. Even if you don't have scuba gear, you can help protect the ocean and coral reefs!
Animals and the Oil Spill: What Can You Do? Jun 16 2010 - 1:40pm Lately we’ve been fielding questions from Smithsonian visitors wondering how they can help with the oil spill cleanup in the Gulf of Mexico. If there is any good news coming out of this situation, it’s that thousands of people across the U.S. care deeply and are finding ways to respond to the oil...	Official Report on Gulf Oil Spill Released Jan 11 2011 - 11:52am The National Oil Spill Commission has released findings from its investigation into the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Read the final report or watch the video summary. Then, save the date for the panel discussion One Year After the Gulf Oil Spill here at the Smithsonian...
Teaching Your Students About Marine Debris: a Classroom Activity Sep 15 2011 - 11:14am Have you ever gone to your favorite coastal or lakeside beach and instead of having a fun day in the sun you were faced with a trove of trash? How heartbreaking it is to see waters and shorelines littered with items that you have at home, that maybe you’ve even recently thrown away.	The Invisible Loss: The Impacts of Oil You Do Not See Jun 9 2010 - 9:23am Since late April, the world has watched a devastating oil spill from a BP drilling rig spread throughout the Gulf of Mexico and become one of the worst environmental disasters in the history of the United States.
Recycled Fishing Gear Converted into Energy Jan 14 2011 - 2:37pm Instead of adding castaway fishing nets to already crowded landfills, Hawaii’s multi-partner marine debris group has developed a method of converting marine debris into usable electricity. The Nets-to-Energy Program is reducing the effects of marine debris on the ocean and keeping shorelines...	Red Tide Sep 6 2012 - 11:05am In the ocean, microscopic forms of algae, known as dinoflagellates, can "bloom" into dense patches near the surface, often referred to as "red tides." Some of these harmful algal blooms (HABs) are dangerous, producing toxins that can kill marine organisms, taint shellfish, cause skin irritations,...
Marked Storm Drain Jun 7 2010 - 12:11pm A placard warns residents that water—and anything else—that goes own this storm drain makes its way into the Potomac River and, eventually the ocean.	Diver Encounters a Floating Garbage Patch Apr 26 2011 - 1:31pm The Smithsonian Institution's Dive Officer documents a "swirling monster" of plastic trash that she encountered while diving in Belize.
Cleaning an Oiled Pelican in Louisiana Jun 2 2010 - 9:25am Dr. Erica Miller of the Louisiana State Wildlife Response Team cleans oil form a pelican in Plaquemines Parish, LA. Wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico have been heavily impacted by an ongoing oil spill that began April 20, 2010 when the Deepwater Horizon oil drilling platform exploded and sank.	Science in a Time of Crisis: Sampling the Source May 10 2011 - 2:27pm Part 3 of a 6-part series describing Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution's efforts to understand the scope and impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. "Sampling the Source" describes successful efforts by WHOI scientists to obtain the only samples of oil and gas directly...
Reef Rescue: Protect Coral Reefs with Your Actions Dec 15 2009 - 12:25pm Coral reefs are beautiful, vibrant ecosystems that house roughly one quarter of all marine species and provide billions of dollars in products and services to humans each year. But they are also vulnerable to human activities – both direct disturbances and small, indirect effects that build up over...	How Coastal Seagrass Feeds the Deep Feb 11 2013 - 1:53pm It is a well-known fact that for animals living in the deep sea, food can be scarce. The food that is around usually rains down from above as dead animals and organic particles from plankton living near the ocean’s surface. Occasionally, a bonus in the form of a good-sized dead fish, a porpoise, or...