Science and the Sea Podcast

The University of Texas Marine Science Institute
  • 4.9 (14)
  • NATURAL SCIENCES
  • UPDATED BIWEEKLY

The goal of Science and the Sea is to convey an understanding of the sea and its myriad life forms to everyone, so that they, too, can fully appreciate this amazing resource.

Episodes

  1. 2D AGO

    Poopy Clouds

    Some of the clouds that waft across the Southern Ocean may have an icky source: penguin poop. Ammonia in the poo mixes with other chemicals in the air. That creates the “seeds” that form water droplets, which clump together to make clouds. Water doesn’t form droplets on its own. It has to have something to glom on to—a grain of dust, a bit of pollen, or some other solid particle. Some of the particles are known as aerosols. They form when different chemicals link up in the air. And the clouds they create are brighter than other clouds, so they reflect more sunlight—helping control Earth’s temperature. And that’s what appears to be happening with the poop. Researchers discovered the connection during the summer of 2023. They were studying the atmosphere from an island off the northernmost tip of Antarctica. That part of the continent has two large colonies of Adelie penguins—about 45,000 breeding pairs in all. When the winds blew across the island from the open ocean, the air contained almost no ammonia. But when the wind blew in from the continent, the amount of ammonia in the air increased by a factor of a thousand—picked up from the penguin poo. When the penguins moved to their winter grounds, the amount of ammonia dropped, but still remained high—carried from the leftover poo. The ammonia mixed with sulfur produced by microscopic organisms in the ocean to produce aerosols—the “seeds” for clouds over the Southern Ocean. The post Poopy Clouds appeared first on Marine Science Institute. The University of Texas at Austin.. ]]>

    2 min

  2. FEB 8

    Underwater Symphony

    A symphony is playing in the estuaries of South Carolina—the sounds of shrimp, fish, dolphins, and other creatures. To marine biologists, each sound is like a musical note. Individual notes reveal details about the species that produce them. The symphony reveals the rhythms and health of the complete estuary. Estuaries are shallow regions where rivers meet the sea. They host a wide variety of life. But the waters tend to be murky, so it’s hard to see what’s going on. So instead, researchers in South Carolina have been listening to estuaries since 2013. They’ve placed a network of underwater microphones on special platforms. They record the soundscape around the clock, along with water and weather conditions. And there’s plenty to hear: the clicks of snapping shrimp…the purring of weakfish…the grunts of black drum…the calls of bottlenose dolphins…the rat-a-tat of silver perch… Scientists use the recordings to learn about the habits of all these species—whether they’re more active during the day or at night, for example, or how their activity changes with the seasons. They also learn how each species reacts to hurricanes and other major weather events, as well as human activities, such as boating and underwater construction. The sounds also help scientists understand whether Earth’s changing climate is jumbling the notes—perhaps throwing the underwater symphony off-key. The post Underwater Symphony appeared first on Marine Science Institute. The University of Texas at Austin.. ]]>

    2 min

  3. FEB 1

    Swell Waves

    You don’t have to be anywhere near an ocean storm to feel its power. Big waves can travel far across the ocean, causing damage thousands of miles from the storm itself. These waves are called swells. They’re much longer from one peak to the next than typical waves. They can reach monstrous heights close to a storm, but they calm down as they move away from it. The waves are created by winds inside a storm. They push the water, building peaks. Individual waves overlap, creating even bigger waves. The waves can organize themselves into smooth, evenly-spaced groups. Scientists recently analyzed the swells produced by storms in 2023 and ’24. They used measurements made by a satellite that studies the surfaces of both the oceans and bodies of fresh water. It takes images of the surface, and uses a laser altimeter to measure its height. The scientists compared the results to those from other satellites dating back to 1991. They found that a storm in the Pacific Ocean in 2024 produced the biggest swells ever seen from space. The average height of the waves was 65 feet. Individual waves could have been much higher. And the waves were up to three-quarters of a mile long. The swell still packed a wallop when it hit the Americas, causing damage and deaths from Canada to Peru. Scientists tracked it as it rippled outward for more than two weeks. It ranged from the northern Pacific to the tropical Atlantic—a span of 15,000 miles for some really “swell” ocean waves. The post Swell Waves appeared first on Marine Science Institute. The University of Texas at Austin.. ]]>

    2 min

  4. JAN 25

    Feast or Fast

    It’s easy to gain weight on a road trip—restaurant meals and junk food add up. But that’s not the case for some humpback whales. According to a recent study, a group of humpbacks lost an average of 24,000 pounds per adult during its annual migration—the equivalent of a city bus. The whales feed around Antarctica. They filter the tiny organisms known as krill from the water. So by autumn, the whales are nice and fat. The 103 adults in the study averaged about 33 tons apiece. When autumn arrives, the humpbacks head into warmer waters. They cruise along the Pacific coast of South America, and settle in their summer breeding grounds, near Colombia—a trip of several thousand miles. But they don’t feed along the way, so they lose weight. Researchers used drones to shoot pictures and video of the whales at both ends of their journey. They measured the sizes of the whales, and found them to be a lot thinner from late winter through spring. From that, they calculated the change in body mass. The whales lost most of their blubber—more than a third of their total body weight. The scientists also calculated what it would take to pack on that much weight: 125,000 pounds of krill for every whale. And that’s a problem. Our changing climate has reduced the supply of krill. It’s also changed where the krill are found. So, in the years ahead, it might be harder for the whales to fuel up before they hit the road. The post Feast or Fast appeared first on Marine Science Institute. The University of Texas at Austin.. ]]>

    2 min

  5. JAN 18

    Tonga Trench

    Second place doesn’t get a lot of attention: the second-tallest mountain, the second expedition to reach the North Pole, silver medalists in the Olympics. The second-deepest spot in the oceans isn’t exactly a household name either: the Tonga Trench. The deepest spot is in the Mariana Trench, in the western Pacific Ocean. It’s about 36,000 feet deep—almost seven miles. That’s a few hundred feet deeper than the lowest spot in the Tonga Trench. The Tonga is in the southern hemisphere, northeast of New Zealand. It’s more than 800 miles long, and runs parallel to the islands of Tonga. Its deepest spot is the Horizon Deep. It’s named for the ship that discovered it back in 1952. The trench is created by the motions of two of the plates that make up Earth’s crust. One plate is plunging below the other. The Tonga Trench is a groove where the descending plate disappears below the other. And the crust along one section of the trench is disappearing faster than at any other spot on Earth—about nine inches per year.           A couple of expeditions have taken a close look at the trench. They found an abundance of life along its steep walls and all the way to the bottom. One thing they didn’t find was evidence of humans. Explorations of the world’s other major trenches have all found trash—even in the deepest parts. But the Tonga Trench is pristine—a top ranking for the second-deepest spot in the oceans. The post Tonga Trench appeared first on Marine Science Institute. The University of Texas at Austin.. ]]>

    2 min

  6. JAN 11

    Missing Protectors

    Kelp forests are some of the most important habitats in coastal waters around the world. They provide breeding grounds for fish and shellfish, and protect juveniles from predators. They absorb carbon dioxide, which helps control climate change. But the forests are vanishing—they’re being devoured by sea urchins. In part, that’s because the forests are losing their protectors. In New Zealand, one of those protectors is rock lobsters—known locally as kōura. But they’re vanishing, too, as the result of overfishing. Kōura are different from the lobsters in the United States—they don’t have the big claws, and their bodies are spikier. Sea urchins are among their favorite prey. So a healthy population keeps the urchins in check—and the kelp beds lush. Much of New Zealand is bordered by big beds of kelp. They’re populated by two main species. One of them is the fastest-growing organism on Earth—it can grow by more than two feet in a single day. But warming oceans have damaged some of those beds. Sea urchins like the warmer waters, so they move in and feast on the weakened kelp. Commercial fishing operations began harvesting huge numbers of kōura in the early 1900s. Today, there are some restrictions—including complete bans in marine reserves. Even so, the population continues to drop. With fewer kōura, urchins not only devour the kelp, they can block any recovery—unmolested by the one-time protectors of the forests. The post Missing Protectors appeared first on Marine Science Institute. The University of Texas at Austin.. ]]>

    2 min

  7. JAN 4

    Rapid ID

    Sharks and rays are in trouble. A study a few years ago found that the global population had dropped by more than 70 percent since 1970. And three-quarters of all shark and ray species could face extinction in the next few decades. The main threat is overfishing. Sharks and rays are valued for their meat, fins, and liver oil. Some countries provide strong protections. Others—especially those where the fish are big business—have weak protections or none at all. And even where sharks and rays are protected, it can be hard to keep track of them. A recent study found that some fairly new techniques could help: rapid DNA testing and environmental DNA—finding out which species are present in a region just by analyzing the water. That could help scientists monitor populations and movements. And it could help management and enforcement agencies know if protected species are being caught and sold illegally. The study looked at 25 years of research into rapid DNA and environmental DNA testing. These techniques are much faster than traditional DNA testing. They’re also much less expensive. So it might be possible to deploy them in the field—identifying shark and ray species on the spot. The study said there’s a lot of work to be done to make that happen. The technology has to get easier to use. And scientists have to compile a more thorough database of shark and ray DNA. Still, the technique offers a possible way to ease the stress on these troubled fish. The post Rapid ID appeared first on Marine Science Institute. The University of Texas at Austin.. ]]>

    2 min

  8. 12/28/2025

    Giant Crabs

    The Japanese spider crab is harmless to people. But it might not look that way if you happened across it at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. It can span 12 feet—the largest known crab on the planet. The crab’s hard body is typically about a foot long, and the crab weighs 35 or 40 pounds. It has 10 legs. Eight of them are for walking along rocky ocean bottoms. The other two hold powerful claws. The claw legs are longer than the walking legs on males, but shorter on females. Japanese spider crabs spawn in fairly warm, shallow waters, primarily off the Pacific coast of Japan. Juveniles are pretty small. As they reach adulthood, though, they grow to giant proportions. And they move to deeper waters—generally a few hundred feet to a thousand feet or deeper. The crabs can’t swim. Instead, they scuttle along the bottom looking for food. They nab small fish and crack open clams. They also scavenge for dead animals, and scrape algae off the rocks. Because of their size and hard shells, the crabs face few threats—mainly from fishers, because they’re considered a delicacy in parts of Japan. And they’re well disguised—their mottled, spiny appearance blends into the background. Just to be safe, though, juveniles sometimes disguise themselves. They pluck bits of kelp, sponges, or other organisms. They chew on them for a little while, then stick them on their shells. That helps keep these imposing but harmless creatures safe at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. The post Giant Crabs appeared first on Marine Science Institute. The University of Texas at Austin.. ]]>

    2 min

  9. 12/21/2025

    Holiday Greetings

    For many native Hawaiians, the centerpiece of just about any New Year’s celebration is onaga, a fish that’s also known as ruby snapper or longtail red snapper. It’s served at everything from weddings to birthdays, but it’s especially popular at year-end celebrations—in part because it’s a symbol of good fortune. It’s prized for its light pink flesh, mild flavor, and its texture—all of which are considered just right for sashimi. Onaga is one of the “deep seven” bottomfish—a culturally important group that includes six species of snapper and one species of grouper. All seven species are found throughout the Hawaiian Islands. A snapper known as ‘ōpakapaka is the most common, accounting for about half of the annual catch. Onaga ranks second. Adult onaga generally are about two to two-and-a-half feet long and weigh up to about 18 pounds, although they can grow to twice that weight. The top half of the body is red or pink, while the underside is white. The fish are found above rocky sea floors throughout the tropical Pacific Ocean, usually at depths of no more than a thousand feet.             Commercial fishing decimated many of the bottomfish stocks during the middle of the 20th century. Today, the bottomfish are protected by both state and federal regulations. Commercial fishers are limited to hook-and-sinker operations—no nets allowed. That’s helped the population rebound—ensuring happy New Year celebrations for years to come. The post Holiday Greetings appeared first on Marine Science Institute. The University of Texas at Austin.. ]]>

    2 min

  10. 12/14/2025

    Big-Beaked Dolphins

    The Franciscana dolphin has quite the schnozz. Its beak is longer in relation to the size of its body than that of any other dolphin or whale—up to 15 percent of the animal’s total length. The Franciscana has another distinction: It’s the only “river dolphin” that doesn’t actually live in freshwater rivers. Instead, it lives in saltwater. It’s found along the coast of South America, from southern Brazil to central Argentina. It’s in bays and estuaries, and up to a few miles out to sea in the Atlantic Ocean. Franciscana dolphins have several other names. The most common is La Plata, for a region of Brazil where it’s abundant. The dolphins are among the smallest of all dolphin species—no more than six feet long, and weighing up to a hundred pounds or so. They’re grayish brown on top, and lighter underneath. As they age, though, they turn gray-white, so fishermen have given them yet another name: “white ghosts.” That’s not just because of their color. Franciscanas move through the water slowly and quietly, perhaps to avoid attracting the attention of killer whales and other predators. But those aren’t their greatest threats. Hundreds of the dolphins are caught in fishing nets every year. Coastal pollution, habitat destruction, and other human activities are also problems. So while no one knows the exact population, Franciscanas are listed as “vulnerable”—threatened by people who can’t keep their own schnozzes out of the dolphins’ business. The post Big-Beaked Dolphins appeared first on Marine Science Institute. The University of Texas at Austin.. ]]>

    2 min
  • 10 Episodes

Ratings & Reviews

4.9
out of 5
14 Ratings

About

The goal of Science and the Sea is to convey an understanding of the sea and its myriad life forms to everyone, so that they, too, can fully appreciate this amazing resource.

Information

  • Creator
    The University of Texas Marine Science Institute
  • Years Active
    2015 - 2026
  • Episodes
    10
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026
  • Show Website
    Science and the Sea Podcast