Researchers undertook a study of the ocean’s topography to better understand its impact on Earth’s climate. They discovered that the shape of the ocean floor does affect the global climate system. Their research was published in the journal Ocean-Land-Atmosphere Research on August 25, 2026.

A review published in SCIENCE CHINA Earth Sciences synthesizes current knowledge of nitrous oxide (N₂O) production by marine planktonic ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA), an important microbial group involved in ocean nitrification. The authors summarize the potential metabolic pathways of AOA-derived N₂O and examine how environmental factors including oxygen, temperature, pH, substrate availability, and organic carbon regulate this process. The review highlights the need to understand multifactorial effects of ocean warming, acidification, and deoxygenation to better predict marine N₂O emissions under future climate change.

Tiny plantlike organisms called phytoplankton that form the base of marine food webs topped by orcas, whales, and sharks usually get eaten or slowly sink to the seafloor, carrying carbon as they go. 

Across most of the ocean, the descent from sunlit surface layers takes weeks. But in the Arctic’s Chukchi Sea, scientists have found that a convergence of currents pushes phytoplankton from under the ice to the seafloor at four times the usual speed. 

Two new papers led by researchers in the lab of Stanford biological oceanographer Kevin Arrigo detail this unusual descent and reveal that blooms of phytoplankton, which use energy from the sun to grow, can be 10 times denser in the darker waters below thick sea ice than out in the open water.

A new study published in Science China Earth Sciences presents a comprehensive plan for scientific ocean drilling in the Huatung Basin, a key region in the western Pacific. Researchers propose a four-site drilling strategy for China’s new drilling vessel, Mengxiang, to resolve long-standing debates about the basin's age and the origin of the adjacent Gagua Ridge. The plan aims to determine if the Huatung Basin is a remnant of Mesozoic oceanic crust and to clarify the region's tectonic evolution, marking a potential shift for China’s role in leading international ocean drilling.