Ocean and You

More than ever, the fate of the ocean is in our hands. At work, at home, in the classroom, and on the go, we all have a role in protecting it. Explore the issues and the roles we all must play in caring for the ocean here.

EDUCATOR RESOURCES

LATEST BLOG POSTS

The Perfect Underwater Photo

Dec 19, 2011 - 10:57AMThere is of course, no such thing as the perfect photograph, as there is no perfect song, movie, or painting. Photography by its very nature is subjective and what appeals to one viewer may not interest another. There are...

Using Light Painting to Teach Biolumines...
Nov 21, 2011 - 11:00AM
What does a bioluminescent creature that lives more than two miles below the...

Swimming With Sharks
Oct 13, 2011 - 12:15PM
Lying in water only a foot deep, I watched the shark meander lazily through...

SPOTLIGHT

Sustainable Seafood

As a consumer, you can choose what kinds of seafood to buy. Some species are in good supply and make excellent choices....
MORE OCEAN AND YOU

AUDIO / VIDEO

  • Students from the Suquamish Tribal Early College High School document the impacts of ocean acidification on the Suquamish community.

    Ocean Acidification in the Puget Sound
  • Red lionfish are successful predators and can alter food webs in waters where they are invasive.

    Lionfish on the Loose
  • <p>It was a typical summer day in the <strong><a href="http://ocean.si.edu/about/about-sant-ocean-hall">Sant Ocean Hall</a></strong> at the National Museum of Natural History. Visitors were examining the <strong><a href="http://ocean.si.edu/ocean-life-ecosystems/giant-squid">giant squid</a></strong> and marveling at the life-size replica of <strong><a href="http://ocean.si.edu/ocean-stories/tale-right-whale">Phoenix, the right whale</a></strong>. The only thing odd was the high number of blue-clad people milling about.&nbsp;</p> <p>And then surfing-music filled the gallery.&nbsp;</p> <p>The blue crowd began to jam out. A <strong><a href="http://www.savethehighseas.org/worthsaving/home.cfm">Roundnose Grenadier</a></strong>&nbsp;and <strong><a href="http://www.eol.org/pages/206716">orange roughy</a></strong>&nbsp;-- both from the <strong><a href="http://ocean.si.edu/ocean-science/deep-ocean-exploration">deep sea</a></strong> -- joined in. The "splash" (flash) mob lasted a couple minutes and ended with bystanders and dancers alike doing the wave. Happy World Ocean Day!&nbsp;</p><p>To learn more about the ocean, watch <strong><a href="http://ocean.si.edu/ocean-videos/celebrate-world-ocean-day">NOAA's World Ocean Day video</a></strong>, read our blog post "<strong><a href="http://ocean.si.edu/blog/taking-ocean-personally">Taking the Ocean Personally</a></strong>," and find out about about <strong><a href="http://ocean.si.edu/ocean-and-you/find-your-blue">Five Simple Things You Can Do to Help the Ocean</a></strong>.</p>

    World Ocean Day 2011 'Splash' Mob
  • <p>This public service announcement is a dramatic example of what the "catch of the day" might be if fisheries are exploited.</p>

    The No-Seafood Grill 2050
  • <p>“Blue Planet” is a song on the <em>Oceans Are Talking</em> CD, produced by musician Sam Lardner.&nbsp;</p>

    "Blue Planet" Music Video
  • <p>While conducting field work in <strong><a href="http://ocean.si.edu/ocean-photos/curaçao">Curaçao</a></strong> in 2011, Smithsonian researchers encountered trash along remote beaches and deep in the water column. This video gives a brief glimpse of some of the marine debris they found.</p>

    Trash on the Beach and in the Ocean
  • a coral reef seen from underwater

    Podcast of Life: Coral Reefs
  • <p>The sea grape, <em>Caulerpa racemose var. cylindracea</em>, is a type of algae that is native to Australia, but in recent years has invaded many areas of the Mediterranean Sea.</p>

    Sea Grapes: A Google Earth Tour
  • It is estimated that the March 11, 2011 earthquake in Japan was 1,000 times more powerful than the quake that struck Haiti in 2010. Watch as Smithsonian geologist Dr. Liz Cottrell explains this and more about the major earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

    Understanding the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami
  • Engineers are using innovative methods to turn marine debris into usable energy.

    Recycled Fishing Gear Converted into Energy
  • a mangrove

    Podcast of Life: Mangroves
  • <p>The Smithsonian Institution's Dive Officer documents <a href="http://ocean.si.edu/blog/witness-plastic-invasion">a "swirling monster" of plastic trash</a> that she encountered while diving in Belize.</p>

    Diver Encounters a Floating Garbage Patch
  • <p>A video emphasizing that ocean fish aren’t as big as they used to be.</p>

    Really Small Fry, Shifting Baselines in Marine Fish Stocks
  • A real-time monitoring system helps to forecast and track tsunamis before they reach shore, giving people a chance to move to higher ground.

    What is a Tsunami? A Smithsonian Scientist Explains the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami
  • a bowhead whale and her calf, seen from above

    One Species at a Time: Bowhead Whale
  • <p>Extracting DNA from fins helps scientists identify a shark's species and where it was born--information that is critical to conservation efforts.</p>

    Shark Fin Genetics
  • <p>On <strong><a href="http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqinthenews/2011/se082311a/#summary">August 23, 2011 a 5.8 earthquake</a></strong> emanated from the little-known Central Virginia Seismic Zone. The epicenter was near Mineral, VA, but the tremor shook homes, schools, and office buildings in Washington, DC and beyond. In this brief video, Smithsonian educator Catherine Sutera uses a Slinky® to demonstrate two types of seismic waves that people in the area may have felt: the <strong><a href="http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learn/glossary/?term=P%20wave">P wave</a></strong>&nbsp;and the <strong><a href="http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learn/glossary/?term=S%20wave">S wave</a></strong>. Both are known as "body waves," because they move through the planet's interior. The P wave, also called the primary wave, is the fastest seismic wave. But it's the S wave that creates much of the above-ground shaking during an earthquake. You can learn about body waves and the more complicated surface waves on <strong><a href="http://www.edcenter.sdsu.edu/ssc/3d/ssc3dproject.html">Michigan Tech's Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences website</a></strong>. Want more specifics on the Virginia earthquake? Smithsonian geologist Elizabeth Cottrell answers the main questions on&nbsp;<em><strong><a href="http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/Q-and-A-Smithsonians-Elizabeth-Cottrell-on-the-Virginia-Earthquake.html">Smithsonian Magazine's</a></strong></em> website.&nbsp;</p>

    Demonstrating an Earthquake's Seismic Waves
  • In this video marine ecologist Stuart Sandin, of Scripps Institution of Oceanography, explains why the structure of coral reefs matters and how human activity can impact it.

    Visit the Line Islands with Reef Ecologist Dr. Stuart Sandin
  • <p>Follow an artist from inspiration to installation in this short video. It features the work in the exhibit, "<strong><a href="http://ocean.si.edu/ocean-news/when-art-meets-science-exhibition-inspired-bioluminescence">The Bright Beneath: The Luminous Art of Shih Chieh Huang</a></strong>," at the <strong><a href="http://www.mnh.si.edu/">Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History</a></strong>. Huang created the installation of light-filled, animated objects after a careful study of bioluminescent marine animals in the museum's collection. Bioluminescence is the process of producing or emitting light; many organisms use it to communicate underwater. By suspending his billowing, bright, plastic creations high in the air, Huang encourages visitors to imagine <strong><a href="http://ocean.si.edu/ocean-videos/encounters-bioluminescent-creatures">what it might be like to encounter bioluminescent animals floating in the deep sea</a></strong>.&nbsp;</p>

    The Making of "The Bright Beneath"
  • <p>Dr. Shivji explains how shark DNA is used as evidence to prosecute poachers.</p>

    Shark DNA Helps Catch Poachers
  • Watch this short video tutorial to learn how to do light painting. Painting with light is a photographic technique that can be used in the classroom to help students understand bioluminescence.

    Light Painting Tutorial
  • <p>A fun day at the beach turns frightening when something mysterious appears in the water. It's not a shark!&nbsp;</p>

    Rethink the Shark
  • Scientists are looking to marine life—such as corals, sponges, and other organisms--as a source of new medicines to fight bacterial infections in humans.

    Medicines from the Sea
  • A photo of the cliffs at Mistaken Point, in Newfoundland

    Newfoundland's Ediacaran Fossils, Podcast

IMAGE GALLERIES

  • a photograph of a bioluminescent squid at Sunset Reef Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

    Ocean Views from Nature's Best Photos

  • Image Gallery: The Perfect Underwater Photo
  • An oceanic whitetip shark swims near a biologist in the Bahamas.

    Image Gallery: Swimming with Sharks

  • Coral Reefs In the Line Islands
  • An underwater photo of a school of jacks and a scuba diver

    Ocean Views Award Winners, 2011
  • Students study the effect of climate change on crabs.

    Teens Take Action on the Ocean & Climate
  • The People's Reef--Part of the Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef

    The Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef

  • Two Views of Coral Reefs: Thriving and Threatened

PHOTOS

  • Archaeological Site Map of Hare Harbor

  • Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Forms

  • Gyotaku Flounder

  • Squid at Sunset Reef Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

  • Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Burn

  • Underwater Archaeological Stratigraphy

  • Polar Bears, Cape Churchill, Manitoba, Canada

  • Gyotaku Fish Print

  • Inuit Soapstone Pot

  • Green Turtle, Armeñime, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain

  • Caribbean Reef Shark

  • 'Ocean' in Korean Calligraphy

  • Shortfin Mako Shark

  • Red Crab Migration, Christmas Island, Indian Ocean

  • Bring Your Own

  • Blue-veined Octopus at Anilao Batangas Pier, Philippines

  • Check the Pressure

  • Humpback Whale, Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, USA

  • Ad for Whale Baleen Products

  • Loggerhead Escapes from Fishing Net

  • Florida Manatee

  • Ship Flushing Ballast Water at Sea

  • Kemp’s ridley sea turtle recovers from oil

  • Tern and Loggerhead Sea Turtle, São Miguel Island, Azores, Portugal

  • Sperm Whale, Dominica

  • California Market Squid

  • Red Tide

  • Inside the Wave, Makena Beach, Maui, Hawaii, USA