A new study from the University of Oxford has revealed that an incentive programme increased live releases of endangered species caught as bycatch. However, unexpectedly, the overall positive impact was reduced by some vessels increasing catches of these species. The study is the world’s first randomised controlled trial to conclusively assess the effectiveness of an incentive-based marine conservation programme, with the findings published today (23 April) in the journal Science Advances.

Researchers from Syracuse University and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette discovered tiny features on sculpins’ fins which may enable them to cling firmly in harsh underwater environments.

The BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in Climate Change and Environmental Sciences goes in this seventeenth edition to Camille Parmesan (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, France; University of Texas, United States; and University of Plymouth, United Kingdom) for her pioneering studies showing that “wild species shift their geographical ranges in response to climate change,” said the committee in its citation.

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — The U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) highlighted its latest advancements in defense technology at the Sea-Air-Space Conference and Exposition, held April 7-9, 2025, at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center. As the premier maritime exposition in the United States, Sea-Air-Space provided an ideal platform for NRL to demonstrate its innovative contributions to national defense.

Scientists have created a method capable of driving a ferry over a predetermined route relying solely on air motors.

The American Meteorological Society (AMS), in partnership with the National Weather Association (NWA), today released a statement regarding the proposed elimination of NOAA Research. It reads in part, "If enacted, [the administration's 2026 budget passback plan] would close all of NOAA’s weather, climate, and ocean Laboratories and Cooperative Institutes. ... In effect, the scientific backbone and workforce needed to keep weather forecasts, alerts, and warnings accurate and effective will be drastically undercut, with unknown — yet almost certainly disastrous — consequences for public safety and economic health."

A new study by researchers at ProtectedSeas highlights the potential of marine radar technology to monitor speed of small vessels. The research, aimed at testing the accuracy of radar in assessing potential violations, found that the technology could detect speed violations with 95% confidence, offering a promising solution to help reduce the threat of vessel strikes on whale populations. The analysis was recently published in the journal Sensors.

In the global carbon cycle microorganisms have evolved a variety of methods for fixing carbon. Researchers from Bremen and Taiwan have investigated the methods that are utilized at extremely hot, acidic and sulfur-rich hydrothermal vents in shallow waters off the island of Kueishantao, Taiwan. A team working with first author Joely Maak of MARUM – Center for Marine Environmental Sciences at the University of Bremen has now published their study in the professional journal Biogeosciences.