Oceans & Coasts

The 1,385-acre He‘eia National Estuarine Research Reserve encompasses upland forests and grasslands, wetlands, reefs and seagrass beds, as well as the largest sheltered body of water in the Hawaiian Island chain. It is located within…

Two new Physical Oceanographic Real-Time Systems, also known as PORTSⓇ, are improving maritime safety near Kings Bay, Georgia, and Portsmouth, New Hampshire, near two U.S. Navy installations. NOAA and the U.S. Navy partnered to install…

Through the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s upgraded Environmental Studies Program Information System, hosted by NOAA’s Digital Coast, users can access data that can provide critical information for ocean plans and…

NOAA awarded an original $4.5 million last month, designed to help coastal communities improve their resilience to adverse events by aiding their ability to prepare for and respond to a variety of coastal threats, including extreme…

This is the second round of funds made available by the NOAA RESTORE Act Science Program, which supports research and its application in the Gulf of Mexico to promote the long-term sustainability of the Gulf’s ecosystem and fisheries.…

The dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico offsite link affects nationally important commercial and recreational fisheries. Hypoxic zones or “dead zones” are caused by high levels of nutrients, primarily from activities such as industrialized…

The anoxic portion of the zone, which contains no oxygen at all, is predicted to be 0.28 cubic miles in early summer, growing to 0.31 cubic miles by late summer – both of which are smaller than average. Low river flow and low nutrient…

While the bleaching event is global, it will hit the U.S. hard, especially in Hawaii, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Florida Keys, U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. The deeper reefs in the Flower Garden Banks…

The 2016 bloom is expected to measure 5.5 on the severity index, but could range anywhere between 3.0 and 7.0. The forecast is similar to conditions last seen from 2008 to 2010, although the bloom may be as small as that seen in the…

The annual cruise, which has been directed by Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium senior scientist Nancy Rabalais, Ph.D., has been conducted each summer for 30 consecutive years since 1985. The 2016 survey was slated to…

NOAA and its partners will visit what remains of the two ships, documenting World War II’s “Battle of the Atlantic,” which pitted U-boats of the German navy against combined Canadian, British, and American forces defending Allied…

This extensive study of the Hawaiian deep coral reefs, known as mesophotic coral ecosystems, led to some incredible finds published recently in the scientific journal PeerJ. offsite link These mesophotic coral ecosystems, the deepest of…

All projects focus on the three primary threats to coral reefs: global climate change, land-based sources of pollution and unsustainable fishing practices, and highly threatened coral regions and watersheds. “We’ve funded…

Among the projects the 10 awards will support are: coastal lowland habitat research in California; understanding and mitigating sea level rise and storm surge impacts on changing coastal…

The study, conducted by NOAA’s National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERRS), established a national baseline for monitoring the effects of climate change on estuaries. NERRS conducted this study at 16 sites in 13…

Sea level rise is occurring worldwide, but not at the same rate everywhere. Differences will also likely continue in the future, so decision-makers need local information to assess their community’s vulnerability. These new scenarios…

The report looked at the spending patterns of recreational visitors to the sanctuary region, as well as what they did there. About 41 percent of Washington state’s 2.62 million households visited the Outer Coast, benefiting the…

“We depend on the perspectives of the people who rely on NOAA maritime products, especially for safety at sea or commercial efficiency, as we plan for improvements of our navigation data, services, and products,” said Russell…

The latest economic figures show inflation-adjusted gross domestic product (GDP) from the ocean economy grew 15.6 percent from 2007 to 2014, outpacing the overall U.S. economy, which grew at 5.8 percent. The ocean economy includes…

The agreement between NOAA’s Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, off the coast of Massachusetts, and the Yarari Marine Mammal and Shark Sanctuary of the Caribbean Netherlands offsite link in the Dutch Lesser Antilles, provides…

Measurements for the Bay’s dead zone go back to 1950, and the 30-year mean maximum dead zone volume is 1.74 cubic miles. “Despite this year’s forecast, we’ve made great strides in reducing nutrient pollution from various sources…

Federal scientists forecast that this summer’s Gulf of Mexico dead zone – an area of low to no oxygen that can kill fish and other marine life – will be approximately 8,185 square miles, or about the size of New Jersey. This would be…

“These grants highlight the vital role NOAA plays in the Gulf of Mexico," said Secretary Ross. “The fisheries which will be studied through the RESTORE Act Science Program are critical to local economies along the Gulf.” The RESTORE…

This year’s bloom is expected to measure 7.5 on the severity index, but could range between six and 9.5. An index above five indicates a potentially harmful bloom. The severity index is based on a bloom’s biomass – the amount of its…

The projects cover 17 states and Puerto Rico, and will restore 1,100 acres of habitat and prepare more than 350 coastal communities to withstand extreme weather and related hazards. Every two dollars of federal funds must be…

Scientists have determined this year’s Gulf of Mexico “dead zone,” an area of low oxygen that can kill fish and marine life, is 8,776 square miles, an area about the size of New Jersey. It is the largest measured since dead zone mapping…

In the first year, $1.68 million will fund research for projects in Alaska, California, Florida, Maine, Maryland, Ohio and Virginia. The grants are administered by NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science. Grant…

The new members of the panel are: Sean M. Duffy Sr., executive director, Big River Coalition, New Orleans, Louisiana Retired USCG Capt. Ed Page, executive director, Marine Exchange of Alaska,…

The Sixth International Marine Debris Conference, co-hosted by NOAA’s Marine Debris Program and the United Nations Environment Programme, will examine how marine debris can harm natural resources, human health, and national…

The panel will receive updates on regional activities and resource needs, the 2017 response to hurricanes Irma and Maria, and coastal and maritime community risk reduction. The panel will also consider information from this…

Through the use of NOAA’s Physical Oceanographic Real-Time System (PORTS®), super-sized ships coming through the recently expanded Panama Canal can now more safely and efficiently enter the Miami seaport. In addition to the improved…

The 2018 forecast is similar to the 33-year average Gulf dead zone of 5,460 square miles and is smaller than the 8,776 square mile 2017 Gulf dead zone, which was the largest dead zone measured since mapping began in 1985. Even though…

In its inaugural year, the National Coastal Resilience Fund will invest up to $30 million in the restoration or expansion of natural features such as coastal marshes and wetlands, dune and beach systems, oyster and coral reefs,…

NOAA and its research partners predict that western Lake Erie will experience a harmful algal bloom (HAB) of cyanobacteria this summer that is smaller than in 2017 but larger than the mild bloom in 2016. Scientists expect this year’s…

NOAA-supported scientists have determined that this year’s Gulf of Mexico “dead zone”— an area of low oxygen that can kill fish and marine life — is approximately 2,720 square miles (7,040 square kilometers), an area about the size of…

Since 2015, scientists have been gathering data on the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather fault system offsite link, a 746-mile long strike-slip fault line that extends from offshore of Vancouver Island, Canada, to the Fairweather Range of…

NOAA's Hydrographic Services Review Panel, which advises the NOAA Administrator on products and services related to navigation services, water levels and currents, and positioning, will focus on Alaska and the U.S. Arctic at a public…

NOAA has now certified the last of 11 Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) regional associations as Regional Information Coordination Entities. Data coming from all IOOS partners now adheres to common federal collection, storage and…

NOAA’s Coral Reef Conservation Program has awarded more than $8.3 million in grants and cooperative agreements, supporting conservation projects and scientific studies in seven U.S. states and territories, as well as international…

The 35 grants will generate $38.3 million in matching contributions for a total conservation impact of $67.2 million. Congress provided funding for Title IX of the National Oceans and Coastal Security Act, allowing grants to be awarded…

The reports, which cover coral reef ecosystems in American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Hawaii, and the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, say that more remote areas have few…

The new OceanReports web tool, available at provides users specialized “ocean neighborhood analyses” including maps and graphics by analyzing more than 100 ocean datasets instantaneously. U.S. ocean waters comprise nearly four million…

The 2019 forecast is close to the record size of 8,776 square miles set in 2017 and larger than the 5-year average measured size of 5,770 square miles. The annually recurring Gulf of Mexico hypoxic zone is primarily caused by excess…

Mallows Bay-Potomac River National Marine Sanctuary, about 40 miles south of Washington, D.C., will be the first national marine sanctuary designated since 2000.  “The designation of Mallows Bay as a national marine sanctuary is an…

Congressman Jimmy Panetta, California State Senator Bill Monning, State Assemblymember Mark Stone, and representatives from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, NOAA, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Elkhorn Slough…

The report, 2018 State of High Tide Flooding and 2019 Outlook, documents changes in high tide flooding patterns at 98 NOAA tidal gauges along the U.S. coast that are likely to continue in the coming years.  High tide flooding, often…

NOAA and its research partners are forecasting that western Lake Erie will experience a significant harmful algal bloom (HAB) this summer. This year’s bloom is expected to measure 7.5 on the severity index, but could range between 6…

This year’s Gulf of Mexico “dead zone”— an area of low oxygen that can kill fish and marine life — is approximately 6,952 square miles, according to NOAA-supported scientists. The measured size of the dead zone, also called the hypoxic…

NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) is allocating $10.2 million in FY 2019 to fund HAB research across the nation. Approximately $8.4 million of that will cover the first year of new 3- to 5-year projects, and…

NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science is awarding more than $1.5 million in fiscal year 2019, of an anticipated total of $4.4 million over the next three years, to more than 30 academic, government and…