December 10, 2020 – At least nine major groups of deep-sea animals, including jellies, corals, brittle stars, squids, and fish, use the same light-emitting chemical, coelenterazine, to power their displays.
December 7, 2020 – MBARI scientists confirm the first evidence of bioluminescence in a sponge, showing that the sponges contain the chemicals necessary to make light within their bodies.
Nov 23, 2020 – Researchers recently discovered the largest aggregation of fishes ever recorded at abyssal depths (below 3,000 meters or 9,800 feet) in the ocean.
November 17, 2020 – Underwater gliders carrying pH sensors can monitor ocean acidification over large areas and long periods of time.
Oct 29, 2020 – The National Science Foundation has approved a $53 million grant to build a global network of chemical and biological sensors that will monitor ocean health around the world.
Oct 27, 2020 – Last week, MBARI staff joined students, scientists, and engineers from across the country for the 2020 SACNAS National Diversity in STEM virtual conference.
Oct 1, 2020 – Recordings from MBARI’s deep-sea hydrophone show that blue whales mostly sing at night when they are feeding, but are more likely to sing during the daytime when they are migrating.
Sept 21, 2020 – Researchers from MBARI and the USGS recently published a paper showing how MBARI’s environmental sample processors can be used to monitor the health of rivers.
Sept 8, 2020 – MBARI scientists use sound to track day-to-day changes in the eruption of an underwater volcano.
August 18, 2020 – Using mapping AUV data, MBARI researchers worked with Frame 48 to develop the highest resolution animation of Monterey Canyon to date.
August 14, 2020 – Today the New York Times ran an editorial highlighting the potential effects of deep-sea mining on midwater animals.
August 4, 2020 – Using recordings from MBARI’s deep-sea hydrophone, researchers concluded that the sounds of seal-bombs could affect the behavior of harbor porpoises in and around Monterey Bay.
July 30, 2020 – MBARI’s Summer 2020 CANON experiment shows how robots can collect samples and data at sea even during the COVID-19 pandemic.
July 21, 2020 – Using a sweeping DNA analysis technique, MBARI researchers explored the boundaries between different communities of tiny drifting animals along the California coast.
July 13, 2020 – A new research paper shows that some of the most common and iconic deep-sea corals can create their own light.
July 8, 2020 – A new study argues that deep-sea mining poses significant risks not only to seafloor ecosystems, but also to animals in the vast midwater realm.
June 16, 2020 – A recent special issue of the journal Deep-Sea Research II features 16 new papers about MBARI’s long-term, deep-sea research site Station M.
June 4, 2020 – As an institution committed to better understanding and protecting our ocean and climate, we believe that, unless issues of inequality are addressed, it will be impossible to live sustainably.
June 3, 2020 – A new study published in Nature describes a unique laser-based system for constructing 3D models of diaphanous marine animals and their mucous structures in the deep sea.
April 28, 2020 – MBARI’s underwater mapping efforts off the Pacific Northwest have revealed almost 600 hydrothermal chimneys rising from the deep seafloor.
Research programs at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) encompass the entire ocean, from the surface waters to the deep seafloor, and from the coastal zone to the open sea. The need to understand the ocean in all its complexity and variability drives MBARI's research and development efforts.