What images do the words 'traumatic fertilization' conjur? If you are picturing deep-sea squid, you are either a fellow subscriber to Scientific American's daily digest or in dire need…

In the search for life beyond Earth, scientists 'follow the water' to find places that might be hospitable. However, every home gardener knows that plants need more than water, or even sunshine. They…

pH is a very sensitive thing, and anyone who's ever had a fish tank knows this delicate cycle of acids and bases. When water becomes either too acidic or basic, marine organisms cannot handle the…

Observations from satellites now allow scientists to monitor changes to water levels in the sea, in rivers and lakes, in ice sheets and even under the ground. As the climate changes, this information…

The thickness of sea ice in large parts of the Arctic declined by as much as 19% last winter compared to the previous five winters, according to data from ESA's Envisat satellite. Using Envisat radar…

Last winter, the thickness of sea ice in large parts of the Arctic fell by nearly half a metre (19 per cent) compared with the average thickness of the previous five winters. This followed the…

As more and more greenhouse gases are released into the atmosphere and the oceans warm, their chemistry also changes — seawater becomes more acidic as carbon dioxide from the atmosphere dissolves.…

The rise in atmospheric CO2 levels has been a talked-about subject for quite some time, but while scientists and politicians are coming to what they call a “solution,” the impact on marine…

Observations of ice coverage in the Arctic from space began 30 years ago so it's inflammatory to talk about record lows in such a short period of time but two consecutive years near this 'record'…

  It was two years ago that I first wrote about ocean dead zones. These are areas of the ocean that, due to a lack of oxygen, no longer sustain any life. While dead zones can happen naturally…