Scientists discover extensive plastic debris in ‘great Pacific Ocean garbage patch’

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.

August 28th, 2009 WASHINGTON - In a new research, scientists have determined that subtle connections between the 11-year-solar cycle, the stratosphere and the tropical Pacific Ocean work in sync to generate periodic weather patterns that affect much of the globe, an understanding which would help in predicting the intensity of the Indian monsoon. "It's been long known that weather patterns are well-correlated to very small variations in total solar energy reaching our planet during 11-year solar cycles," said Jay Fein, program director in the National Science Foundation (NSF)'s Division of Atmospheric Sciences, which funded the research.

August 28th, 2009 Pacific Ocean garbage patch worries researchersLOS 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 sprawling mass of garbage-littered water, known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, where most of the plastic looks like snowy confetti against the deep blue of the north Pacific Ocean.

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 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 20th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new study has determined that plastics, which are reputed to be virtually indestructible, decompose with surprising speed and release potentially toxic substances into the water. This is the first study to look at what happens over the years to the billions of pounds of plastic waste floating in the world's oceans.

August 20th, 2009 Study says plastic decomposes at seaWASHINGTON — Environmentalists have long denounced plastic as a long-lasting pollutant that doesn't break down. A new study indicates that, in the oceans, plastic does decompose, but says that's not a good thing either.

July 9th, 2009 WASHINGTON — El Nino's back. Government scientists say the periodic warming of water in the tropical Pacific Ocean that can affect weather around the world has returned.

July 5th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new study by scientists has shown a dramatic increase in the amount of fresh water in the Arctic Ocean. Fresh water flowing into or out of the Arctic Ocean plays an important role in ocean circulation and may be a factor in the response of the world ocean to climate change.

June 25th, 2009 Ship of plastic bottles to send eco-messageSAN FRANCISCO — You've heard of a ship in a bottle. How about a ship made of plastic bottles? That would be the Plastiki, designed to sail the Pacific on an 11,000-mile voyage highlighting the dangers of living in a throwaway world.

June 1st, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new research by scientists has determined that the Pacific Ocean, occupying a third of the planet's area, faces threats that will render some coastal areas uninhabitable. According to a report in ENN (Environmental News Network), pollution such as sewage, runoff from land and toxic waste; habitat destruction; over-fishing; and climate change leading to sea level rise, ocean acidification and warming will all interact to damage the ocean's ecology and coastal economies.

May 6th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists have discovered the oldest patch of ground on Earth in Israel's Negev desert, which remains virtually the same as it was 1.8 million years ago. According to a report in Live Science, the patch of ground is an expanse of "desert pavement" in Israel's Negev Desert, and is claimed by scientists as the oldest continuous surface on earth.

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 27th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists in The Netherlands are reporting development of a new plastic with a "self-healing polymer" that has potential for use in the first easy-to-recycle computer circuit boards, electrical insulation, and other electronics products that now wind up on society's growing heaps of electronic waste. Antonius Broekhuis and colleagues note in the new study that so-called thermoset plastics are widely used in consumer electronics due to their hardness and heat resistance.

March 12th, 2009 WASHINGTON - British explorer, environmentalist, and celebrity David de Rothschild, is all set to go on an 11,000-mile (17,703-kilometer) journey across the Pacific Ocean at the end of March, in a boat made of plastic bottles. According to a report in National Geographic Magazine, the boat, which is a 60-foot (18-meter) catamaran called 'Plastiki', has been created from a special composite of recycled plastic.