Fish behavior, toxic algae, and the role of the sea in climate. These are some of the topics that marine research can address. Diverse subjects, but with a common goal: to better understand what happens beneath the surface.
The oceans cover more than 70 percent of the Earth’s surface. Despite this, we know less about what happens in the ocean than in space. Marine research is about trying to fill these knowledge gaps. Increasing the fundamental knowledge about the ocean without directly pointing to any application is usually called basic research. But sometimes, basic research sparks thoughts on how the knowledge could be applied in society. Then, basic research becomes the foundation for so-called applied research that aims to solve a problem with direct benefits for society. Since the connection between humans and the sea is so significant, it is not uncommon for research projects to shift between basic and applied research.
The oceans are studied by a multitude of researchers in physics, chemistry, biology, and geology. All these subjects can be linked to oceanography, which is the study of the movements and properties of the sea. This is usually done through observations from expeditions, satellites, and the creation of models. Understanding the movement of water is crucial because it affects the climate worldwide.
Many oceanographers work on environmental, energy, and climate issues in government or the private sector. As an oceanographer, one can also engage in research. Oceanography is a science with a broad spectrum of topics such as ecosystem dynamics, ocean currents, and the flow of various substances in the sea. One who has dedicated her life to the sea is the oceanographer Sylvia Earle, who has become one of the internationally known forces for protecting and restoring the world’s oceans.
Oceanography differs from marine biology because it does not always involve studying what lives in the sea. A marine biologist focuses on living organisms in all parts of the ocean and seeks to understand dynamic interactions on different scales, from a specific location to global.
To understand the complexity of the ocean, oceanographers and marine biologists often combine several fields such as biology and chemistry. Weighing in multiple disciplines is particularly important today to create a comprehensive picture that can contribute to the efforts against climate change, pollution, and other factors threatening the oceans and marine life.
Since many places in the ocean are relatively inaccessible to researchers, technological measuring aids are often used today to study these areas. They can remain in the sea and keep measuring the water’s characteristics around the clock. This makes it easier to obtain more measurement values than if researchers had to travel to the measurement site for each reading.
Oceanographic measurement stations at sea are sometimes called ocean observatories where relevant data is collected for researchers. This can include temperature, salinity, and oxygen levels, as well as wind and waves. The Voice of the Ocean (VOTO) Foundation, for example, works to facilitate data collection for researchers. The team working on research and data collection at VOTO consists of oceanographic technicians and researchers. They use so-called gliders to collect data from five locations along the coast of Sweden, and this information can be closely followed through their observation portal.
When this year’s seal hunt begins on Monday, 1,350 gray seals, 200 harbor seals, and 200 ringed seals may be hunted. That is more than last year, and the increased quota has outraged the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation, which believes the seal population is at risk in the long term.
In February 2026, historically low water levels were recorded in the Baltic Sea, in some places, the lowest in almost 100 years. This was mainly due to a stable high-pressure system and strong easterly winds over Scandinavia, which pushed water out of the Baltic Sea. There was hope that fresh, oxygen-rich and salty water would flow in from the North Sea to the heavily tested inland sea and its oxygen-depleted seabed – but that did not happen. Find out why in the news report.
Penguins in Argentine Patagonia can act as environmental monitors. In this way, researchers have discovered that PFAS – so-called ‘forever chemicals’ – are present even in this remote region.
From 3 April this year, commercial fishing is permitted within the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument. The area, which covers a surface area as big as Connecticut, is located in the Atlantic Ocean off the US east coast and was established to protect and preserve these unique and pristine marine environments for future generations.
This is the story of what went on behind the scenes as we filmed our report on bottom trawling in Sweden’s Gullmarsfjorden. With the help of Voice of the Ocean (VOTO) and MidOcean, we ventured out into the fjord and filmed using both an ROV and deep-sea divers.
From drones and smart cameras to biodegradable packaging, EU-funded researchers are working to remove plastic from rivers before it ever reaches the sea.
Sharks off the coast of the Bahamas have tested positive for caffeine, painkillers and even cocaine, according to a new study.
Few would say there is anything beautiful about an oil platform far out at sea. But if you dive beneath the surface, the picture is often quite different. Reefs may have formed around the platform’s foundations, teeming with soft corals, fish and other marine life. In 2018, two marine biologists from California, Amber Sparks and Emily Hazelwood, founded the Blue Latitudes Foundation to save these soft coral reefs.
Everything points in the wrong direction. Never before has the Earth’s climate been so out of balance, warns the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).
Every year, a climate barometer is commissioned by WWF to present the views of different social groups on specific election issues. An ongoing study in Lund and Örebro shows preliminary figures suggesting that young people have put the climate issue behind them. Deep Sea Reporter spoke to young adults in Stockholm about their thoughts on the ocean and climate.
The oldest recording of whale song to date has been discovered. This could open up new avenues of research into changes in whale behaviour, reports The Guardian.
The search for sites in Sweden where carbon dioxide can be stored beneath the seabed has been underway for three years. Two potential sites have now been identified. ‘We've received some excellent samples and the results so far are very promising,’ says Sofie Lindström of the Geological Survey of Sweden (SGU).
The average sea level is 30 cm higher than previously thought. In some places, such as Southeast Asia, it is even higher, up to one and a half metres. New research has shown that previous calculations of sea levels were based on incorrect models that gave misleading results.
Ocean devotion: Dr. Richard Smith. The ocean’s tiniest seahorses are drawing global attention thanks to a pioneering work of Dr. Richard Smith, a British marine biologist and underwater photographer. He has become the world’s leading authority on pygmy seahorses.
Various climate models show what the future may hold for us on this planet. An important factor is how much carbon dioxide the ocean can absorb without having too great an impact on the climate. New research now shows that if fish and plankton are included in the models, the results will be completely different from previous calculations. Quite simply, the impact of marine animals on the ocean has been excluded in the past. And since we are currently fishing our oceans to extinction, this fact could have devastating consequences – on the climate.
An EU-funded project has been tasked with developing alternatives to everyday products such as food colourings, oils for cosmetics and packaging materials using microalgae.
The Baltic Sea is suffering from a serious ecological crisis. Above all, it is the high levels of phosphorus that cause oxygen-depleted areas and severe recurring algae blooms. Phosphorus is an essential element and an important component in agricultural fertilisers, but when it leaks into the Baltic Sea, it has a severe impact on the sea.
The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency has now decided on this year's hunt for grey seals, harbour seals and ringed seals. Licensed hunting of grey seals will increase by 350 animals this year compared to last year, with a total of 1,350 grey seals allowed to be shot until the beginning of next year. The protective hunt for harbour seals and harbour porpoises remains at the same level as last year, with 200 ringed seals and 200 harbour porpoises.
Since 2023, the fourth global mass bleaching event affecting the world's coral reefs has been underway. It is the most extensive and deadly one to date. And for those who have devoted years of their lives to try to preserve them, the devastation is difficult to cope with.
Over 54 million salmon died in Norwegian fish cages last year, and the total loss amounted to 67 million farmed salmon, according to the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries. This corresponds to a loss of 16-18 per cent, according to the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research.
Over the past 20 years, macroalgae blooms have increased at an unprecedented rate. This is shown by a new study, which warns that the spread could lead to major changes in the ecology of the sea.
Early in 2025, Holden Harris, Ph.D. was one of the hundreds of U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) employees fired by the Trump regime. Almost one year later, Trump wants to slash budgets for scientific and climate change research. But Congress has pushed back, passing a package of bills to maintain most research funding. The deadline for a budget agreement is January 30th. This is Holden Harris’s story.
It is well known that large amounts of rubbish float through Europe's rivers. But when researchers took a closer look at one of the continent's most important waterways, they made an unexpected discovery – the problem is much bigger than previously thought.
The costs of climate change almost double if the impact on the oceans is also included in the calculations. ‘If we don't put a price on the damage that climate change causes to the oceans, it will remain invisible to key decision-makers,’ says environmental economist Bernardo Bastien-Olvera.
