Pacific Ocean faces threats that will render some coastal areas uninhabitable

September 24th, 2009 WASHINGTON - In a new research, scientists have determined that El Nino, the periodic eastern Pacific phenomenon credited with shielding the US and Caribbean from severe hurricane seasons, may be overshadowed by its brother in the central Pacific due to global warming. "There are two El Ninos, or flavors of El Nino," said Ben Kirtman, co-author of the study and professor of meteorology and physical oceanography at the University of Miami's Rosentstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science.

September 15th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new research conducted at Texas A and M University, US, has shown evidence of a possible link between El Nino and a severe flu pandemic in 1918 that adversely affected India. The findings are based on analysis of the 1918 El Nino, which the new research shows to be one of the strongest of the 20th century.

August 28th, 2009 Researchers: Pacific trash threatens marine lifeLOS ANGELES — A tawny stuffed puppy bobs in cold sea water, his four stiff legs tangled in the green net of some nameless fisherman. It's one of the bigger pieces of trash in a giant patch of garbage-littered water — one that's bigger than Texas — where most of the plastic looks like snowy confetti against the deep blue of the north Pacific Ocean.

August 28th, 2009 WASHINGTON - In an exploration of the 'great Pacific Ocean garbage patch', scientists from the Scripps Environmental Accumulation of Plastic Expedition (SEAPLEX) have discovered extensive plastic debris floating 1,000 miles from land. The Scripps research vessel (R/V) New Horizon left its San Diego homeport on August 2, 2009, for the North Pacific Ocean Gyre, located some 1,000 miles off California's coast, and returned on August 21, 2009.

August 27th, 2009 Researchers: Pacific trash possibly killing fishSAN DIEGO — Researchers say a Texas-sized garbage patch in the Pacific Ocean is possibly killing marine life and birds that are ingesting the trash. Scientists at Scripps Institution of Oceanography on Thursday announced findings from an August expedition to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, about 1,000 miles west of California.

August 9th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new research has found that the Pacific coasts of North America and Central America are important sources of the Earth's low-frequency vibration, or "hum". Previous studies had found that this hum is excited by infragravity waves, a type of ocean wave that originates in shallow water along coasts, but it was uncertain whether hum is generated primarily by infragravity waves in the deep ocean or along coastlines.

August 9th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new research has determined that seasonal winds might drive current variability in the northern Indian Ocean. The research was carried out by J.

July 15th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A team of scientists has successfully conducted the first remote detection of a harmful algal species and its toxin below the ocean's surface. The detection was made by scientists at NOAA's National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science and the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI).

July 11th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - A new study has determined that Pakistan is among those countries whose coastal areas are at risk from both local and regional tsunamis. According to a report in The Daily Times, officials at the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Pakistan, carried out the study.

July 11th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Expansion of coastal cities is accompanied by a decline in the quality of life of the people, says a new study. Many megacities such as Tokyo (population 36 million), New York (22 million) and London (12 million) are found in the coastal zone.

July 10th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new study has ranked 'hotspots' among coastal marine ecosystems that are at risk worldwide as a result of human activities. The study, by scientists at UC (University of California) Santa Barbara, US, is the first integrated analysis of all coastal areas of the world.

July 5th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A team of scientists is developing novel underwater laser networking and imaging technologies that will be used onboard a group of small, co-operating robots, which will be able to rapidly identify and communicate potential threats in murky coastal waters. The new technology is being developed by scientists at the Ocean Visibility and Optics Laboratory at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute at Florida Atlantic University.

June 18th, 2009 Feds want to keep protections for Pacific seabirdSEATTLE — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says the marbled murrelet in Washington, Oregon and California should remain protected as a threatened species.

May 3rd, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new study has documented for the first time the process in which increased mercury emissions from human sources across the globe, and in particular from Asia, make their way into the North Pacific Ocean and as a result contaminate tuna and other seafood. The study, by researchers at the US Geological Survey (USGS) documents for the first time the formation of methylmercury in the North Pacific Ocean.

April 30th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new research has refuted the hypothesis that 'chevrons', large U- or V-shaped formations found in some of the world's coastal areas, are evidence of megatsunamis caused by asteroids or comets slamming into the ocean. The research was done by University of Washington (UW) geologist and tsunami expert Jody Bourgeois.