Using eDNA to Search for Nessie in Scotland and Angel Sharks Off Corsica

Posted on by October 2, 2023

Angel Shark

Until fairly recently, scientists attempting to establish the existence, health, or migration of marine life had to use nets, cameras, or other means to identify and count the number of animals involved. Now researchers have a new and powerful tool, environmental DNA, or eDNA, a revolutionary technology that is helping scientists detect in real time the genetic information that animals leave in their wake.

Scientists have refined ways of extracting strands of genetic material from salt water, soil, and air. Depending on conditions, DNA can last for days in the ocean after an animal has shed it. Using small water samples collected at differing depths researchers can track where a specific species has swum, by checking DNA samples against reference databases.
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Two Ships of US Navy “Ghost Fleet” Visit Japan

Posted on by October 1, 2023

LUSV Ranger

In August, we posted about how Ukrainian naval drones are redefining warfare in the Black Sea in Ukraine’s battle against the ongoing Russian invasion. On the other side of the globe, two US Navy unmanned surface vessels (USV) arrived in Yokosuka, Japan in mid-September, during a period of increasing tensions with China. 

The USVs are significantly different from the Ukrainian drones in both size and strategy. The USVs Mariner and Ranger are a part of the US Navy’s Ghost Fleet Overlord, a program for prototyping multi-mission unmanned vessels that was started in 2018. Ghost Fleet Overlord is a program of the Department of Defense’s Strategic Capabilities Office being executed in partnership with the US Navy.

In the month prior, the ships participated in exercises including the Large Scale Exercise 2023 — operating in conjunction with the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson and its strike group — while the Navy evaluated the new technology, according to Cmdr. Jeremiah Daley, head of Unmanned Surface Vessel Division One.

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Rare Dumbo Octopus Videoed by ROV in Deep Waters of North Pacific

Posted on by September 28, 2023

The ROV Hercules, operated by the E/V Nautilus, a research vessel owned by the nonprofit Ocean Exploration Trust, has captured video of a rare dumbo octopus at a depth of over 1,600 meters deep.  The research vessel was exploring the Woollard Seamount in the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument in the North Pacific. 

The octopus is named dumbo because it resembles the title character of the 1941 Disney film, using its ear-like fins to swim. Dumbo octopuses are the deepest living octopuses known and have an average life span of three to five years. They do not have an ink sack, unlike other cephalopods, and lack the ability to change color.

“Ghostly” Dumbo Octopus in the Deep Sea | Nautilus Live

Thanks to David Rye for contributing to this post.

Playful Humpbacks & Other Whales “Kelping” — Wearing Seaweed as a Hat

Posted on by September 27, 2023

Photo: Whale Watch Western Australia

There is so much that we do not understand about the social behaviors of whales and dolphins. Dolphins off the Australian coast, for example, have been observed wearing sponges as hats in what is believed to be an attempt, though not often necessarily successful, to attract a mate. Likewise, in 1987 off the coast of Washington, at least three groups of teenaged orcas inexplicably began wearing dead salmon as hats. The behavior spread in what appeared to be a “fad” for a few months before disappearing again.

Humpbacks and other baleen whales have been observed “kelping”, balancing seaweed on their rostrum —  their flat upper head.  In a recent study from Griffith University in Australia, researchers have observed that this behavior is far more common than previously appreciated. Also, while the activity appears playful, it may have other benefits for the whales. 

The researchers collected over 100 examples on social media of whales playing with seaweed, known as “kelping”. They note that it’s not just one species –  gray whales, southern and northern right whales, and humpback whales all do it.

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MSC Orders Two Cruise Ships With Green Multi-Fuel Options

Posted on by September 27, 2023

The headline on Cruise&Ferry.net reads “MSC confirms orders for hydrogen-powered ships for Explora Journeys.” The headline is somewhat misleading as the new ships on order from Fincantieri for MSC’s luxury cruise brand Explora Journeys, will not be hydrogen-powered, per se, but will apparently be configured with the capability to burn a range of green or at least greener fuels. 

The new ships, Explora V and VI will reportedly make use of liquid hydrogen with fuel cells for their hotel operations while docked in ports to enable them to switch off their engines and eliminate carbon emissions. Propulsive power will be provided by a new generation of liquefied natural gas (LNG) engines that will reduce the issue of methane slip, in which unburned fuel escapes into the atmosphere. 

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Disappointing Results of Largest Loch Ness Monster Hunt in 50 Years

Posted on by September 22, 2023

Over the weekend of August 26th and 27th, hundreds of volunteers gathered on the shores and on the waters of Loch Ness for what was billed as the largest search for the Loch Ness monster in 50 years. What was discovered during the “quest” weekend?

The so-called monster proved to be elusive, despite hundreds of searchers using everything from binoculars and webcams to thermal-imaging drones and hydrophones. With live streaming of the event, the world was invited to observe, but sadly for the Nessie enthusiasts, the monster did not show.

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Update: SS Badger — MARAD Approves $600,000 Study to Convert Coal-Burning Steamship to Zero-Emissions

Posted on by September 21, 2023

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) has awarded nearly $12 million in grants to eight marine highway projects across the nation under the United States Marine Highway Program (USMHP). 

One of these grants, $600,000 awarded to Lake Michigan Carferry, Inc., is to study the feasibility of converting the historic steamship SS Badger, the last coal-fired, passenger car ferry operating on the Great Lakes, to a zero-emission ferry vessel. 

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“Hero” Humpbacks Attempt to Protect Seal From Orca Attack

Posted on by September 16, 2023

Recently, Bertie Gregory, a National Geographic Explorer and host of Animals Up Close on Disney+, observed a remarkable attempt by two humpback whales to protect a seal under attack by a pod of orcas in Antarctica’s Weddell Sea.

National Geographic reports that Gregory and his crew had traveled across the Drake Passage that separates South America from the southernmost continent to film a rare orca population called B1. Known for their unique strategy of creating waves that knock seals off pieces of ice, these genetically distinct Antarctic orcas, likely number only around a hundred.

Gregory and his crew of filmmakers and scientists began following a small pod of B1s hunting seals in the driving snow. Soon, the pod zeroed in on their prey—a Weddell seal lying smack-dab in the middle of a large piece of ice.

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British Endurance Swimmer Lewis Pugh Swims 315 Mile Length of Hudson River

Posted on by September 15, 2023

On August 13 2023, British endurance swimmer and environmental activist Lewis Pugh began his 315-mile (507-km) swim down the Hudson River, from its source at Lake Tear of the Clouds, to its end at New York City. He finished the swim, ‘exhausted but rejuvenated’, on Wednesday, September 13, at Battery Park.  Pugh made the epic swim to raise awareness of water quality.

The 53-year-old endurance swimmer emerged from the water off the lower tip of Manhattan after a month-long journey, clad in a Speedo, cap and goggles. He smiled and raised his fist in triumph as he climbed out. Supporters who had gathered despite light rain cheered.

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Guessing the Deployment After Royal Navy Vanguard Class Sub Returns Looking Like a “Sea Monster”

Posted on by September 14, 2023

Photo: Sheila Weir / Royal Navy

The War Zone column from the Drive.com blog recently featured photographs of a Royal Navy Vanguard class submarine returning to HM Naval Base Clyde, which is also known as Faslane, on the west coast of Scotland, after a 197-day nuclear deterrent patrol. The nuclear ballistic missile sub looked like what they describe as a “sea monster that had emerged from a long slumber at the bottom of the ocean.”  The hull is indeed covered by an impressive growth of marine fouling.

Of course, the mission of ballistic missile submarines, often referred to as “boomers,” is to serve as undetectable launch platforms for intercontinental missiles, which is to say that their job is to go find a place to hide in the ocean for extended periods of time.  The opportunity to keep the hull free of maritime growth is, at best, limited, even with the latest anti-fouling coatings now available.

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On the 22st Anniversary of 9/11, Remembering the Great New York Boatlift

Posted on by September 11, 2023

An updated repost. There is a line from a Paul Simon song, “these are the days of miracle and wonder.” One might not think to apply that lyric to the events of 9/11, 22 years ago today. Yet for at least part of that strange and horrible day, they fit.

The great New York boatlift was part of the “miracle and wonder.” The wholly unplanned boatlift was the spontaneous maritime evacuation of an estimated 500,000 people trapped in Lower Manhattan in less than 10 hours. The boatlift has been under-reported by the media, which is all the more reason to remember the mariners of New York who stepped up to perform what has been called the largest sea rescue in history.

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Update: North Korea Launches Submarine Claimed to be Capable of Launching Nuclear Missiles

Posted on by September 8, 2023

North Korea has unveiled a new “tactical nuclear attack submarine,” based on a remodeled Soviet-era vessel, equipped with multiple launching tubes capable of launching nuclear missiles. Submarine No. 841 – named Hero Kim Kun Ok – will be one of the main “underwater offensive means of the naval force” of North Korea, leader Kim Jong Un said at the launch ceremony on Wednesday.

But South Korea’s military expressed skepticism about the submarine on Friday, saying that it “doesn’t look capable of normal operation” and that there were signs of “deception and exaggeration” in the North’s report.

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Update: Reza Baluchi Attempts to Run Across the Atlantic in His “Hamster Wheel of Doom,” Arrested By Coast Guard

Posted on by September 6, 2023

Photo: FLAGLER COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE

Reza Baluchi is at it again. The US Coast Guard intercepted Baluchi in the Atlantic about 70 miles (110km) off Tybee Island, Georgia on August 26 in his most recent attempt to run across the ocean, this time from the US East Coast to London, in what the Coast Guard refers to as a “Hamster Wheel of Doom.”  

For over a decade, extreme runner Baluchi has set off on a series of quixotic voyages in a homemade bubble contraption with a metal frame that looks like a human hamster wheel. This is at least his fourth attempted transit, all of which have ended with his being rescued or stopped by the Coast Guard. 

This time the Coast Guard says its cutter encountered Baluchi while making preparations for an offshore hurricane. Officials said the 44-year-old marathon runner refused to leave the vessel for three days. Baluchi refused to step off the vessel and threatened to kill himself. He also claimed that he had a bomb on board, according to court papers.

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Update: Deadly Conception Dive Boat Fire, Where 34 Died, Started in Trash Can According to AFT

Posted on by September 5, 2023

The dive boat Conception smolders at sunrise on Sept. 2, 2019, before sinking. (National Transportation Safety Board)

The LA Times reports that the deadly fire that broke out four years ago aboard the Conception dive boat, killing 34 people, started in a plastic trash can on the main deck, a confidential report reviewed by The Times shows.

Investigators with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) built a full-scale mock-up of the middle deck of the 75-foot vessel in their quest to determine the fire’s point of origin and cause. They conducted a series of burn tests at their Maryland research lab, which concluded the blaze began in a rubbish container and then quickly spread. Within minutes, the boat’s main salon was in flames, the testing showed.

The findings shed new light on the deadliest maritime disaster in modern California history, adding to the mystery surrounding its cause. However, due to ongoing criminal and civil court proceedings related to the incident, the report has not been publicly disclosed.

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Inspired by FLIP, Polar Pod to Explore the Mysteries of the Southern Ocean

Posted on by September 2, 2023

We recently posted about the remarkable 61-year career of the one-of-a-kind research vessel FLoating Instrument Platform, known as FLIP. FLIP was essentially a massive 355-foot-long spar buoy used to study oceanic wave height, acoustic signals, water temperature, and density.

Now, if all goes to plan,  the Polar Pod, a new oceanographic research station in the form of a ‘vertical ship, inspired by FLIP, will commence operations in the Southern Ocean from 2024-2026.

In orbit around Antarctica, the Polar Pod will be carried along  on the circumpolar current, and will circle the earth between 50 ° and 55 ° S.

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