The tall ship Tecla, a Dutch North Sea sailing herring dragger built in 1915, was bound for Tenerife in the Spanish Canary Islands. It was tied by three heavy hawser lines to the ferry quay in Ullapool, Northwest Scotland, a town of white-washed buildings packed together for the herring fishery. We were ready to sail…
Massachusetts officially declared April 24 as Right Whale Day to raise awareness about the endangered: North Atlantic right whales, the state’s official marine mammal. Right whales have been coming to Cape Cod Bay in April for as long as there has been a Cape Cod Bay. These sandy, shoaly waters warm faster than deeper, dark-bottom…
“Greenland lost a record amount of ice during an extra warm 2019, with the melt massive enough to cover California in more than four feet (1.25 meters) of water.” This report was alarming for many who relied on experts’ findings, particularly regarding climate change. It was not scary for those who paid attention in Geography…
The tall ship, Tecla, a Dutch North Sea sailing herring dragger built in 1915, was tied by three heavy hawser lines to the ferry quay in Ullapool, Northwest Scotland, a town of white-washed buildings packed together for the herring fishery. Most of us had arrived the evening before and we were ready to sail except…
Off the coast of Maine, an explosive exhalation of air swept my attention over the sailboat’s starboard rail. A broad stretch of hide rose like a pebbled sand bar the length of the twenty-seven-foot boat. The right whale wheeled forward, sliding into opaque water while I stammered and pointed. I was alone at the helm…
We’ve been experiencing a lot of severe weather systems this past year. From flash floods to hurricanes to wildfires, this year has not been without climate-driven challenges. There is something else that could make the severe weather systems we’ve been experiencing even worse. Two new studies, published in Nature and the Journal of Climate, looked…
Pummeled by rising sea levels, extreme weather events, and increasing ocean acidity, headlines tell of climate change giving the ocean another punch. “A crucial system of ocean currents is faltering.” “A critical ocean system may be heading for collapse due to climate change.” “Climate crisis: Scientists spot warning signs of Gulf Stream collapse.” Yet, as…
To meet the ravages of climate change, Congress has introduced the Ocean Based Climate Solutions Act (HR.8632). The ocean covers nearly three-quarters of the planet. Nothing has more of an impact on the climate than does the ocean. About one out of every four carbon dioxide molecules emitted into the atmosphere are drawn down into…
