Ocean sciences articles from across Nature Portfolio

In 2023, global full-depth ocean heat content (OHC) reached a record increase of 464 ± 55 ZJ since 1960, with strong heat gain observed in the Southern and Atlantic Oceans. OHC was 16 ± 10 ZJ higher than in 2022, continuing the long-term increasing trend that started in 1960.

Reconstructions of the strength of a powerful current that circles the South Pole reveal that it has undergone no long-term change in the past five million years, even though Earth cooled substantially over that time.

Volcanism after large, caldera-forming eruptions is thought to be muted. Exploration of the partially submerged caldera of Santorini reveals that large explosive eruptions have occurred since the caldera formed.

It is useful to be able to equip marine animals with sensors, but it can be challenging to attach these to soft marine organisms. Here, the authors use an adhesive hydrogel to achieve rapid attachment of sensors to marine life including jellyfish, squid and lobster.

The authors show that the influence of the western Indian Ocean on Antarctic sea ice variability in austral spring has been weakening under greenhouse global warming.

In 2023, global full-depth ocean heat content (OHC) reached a record increase of 464 ± 55 ZJ since 1960, with strong heat gain observed in the Southern and Atlantic Oceans. OHC was 16 ± 10 ZJ higher than in 2022, continuing the long-term increasing trend that started in 1960.

A new international agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ) was adopted and subsequently opened for signature in September 2023. Yet on average, recent multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) have taken over four years to move from signature to entry into force, while ocean-focused MEAs have taken nearly twice as long. Rapid ratification of the BBNJ Agreement is crucial for multiple reasons, not least to achieve the Kunming-Montreal Biodiversity Framework target for 30% of the marine environment to be protected by 2030. It is also vital to fulfill the Agreement’s stated ambition to contribute to a just and equitable future for humankind, considering today’s unprecedented expansion of commercial activities into the ocean.

Restoration supports the recovery of ecological attributes such as cover, complexity, and diversity to slow the areal decline of natural ecosystems. Restoration activity is intensifying worldwide to combat persistent stressors that are driving global declines to the extent and resilience of coral reefs. However, restoration is disputed as a meaningful aid to reef ecological recovery, often as an expensive distraction to addressing the root causes of reef loss. We contend this dispute partly stems from inferences drawn from small-scale experimental restoration outcomes amplified by misconceptions around cost-based reasoning. Alongside aggressive emissions reductions, we advocate urgent investment in coral reef ecosystem restoration as part of the management toolbox to combat the destruction of reefs as we know them within decades.

Reconstructions of the strength of a powerful current that circles the South Pole reveal that it has undergone no long-term change in the past five million years, even though Earth cooled substantially over that time.

Why are companies and governments determined to start commercial-scale mining for rare metals, when so little is known about its wider impacts?

Volcanism after large, caldera-forming eruptions is thought to be muted. Exploration of the partially submerged caldera of Santorini reveals that large explosive eruptions have occurred since the caldera formed.