Breaking Waves: Ocean News https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-waves/index.php en Donald Trump is the accidental hero of a real-life feelgood climate tale even as a creeping horror story plays alongside | Clear Air https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/donald-trump-accidental-hero-real-life-feelgood-climate-tale-even-creeping-horror-stor <p>Despite a deadly heatwave sweeping through Europe, the US president’s ineptness has created reason for optimism on the climate crisis</p> <ul> <li> <p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/mar/10/sign-up-for-the-clear-air-australia-environment-newsletter-with-adam-morton?CMP=cvau_sfl">Sign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s free Clear Air newsletter here</a></p> </li> </ul> <p><a href="https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/donald-trump-accidental-hero-real-life-feelgood-climate-tale-even-creeping-horror-stor" target="_blank">read more</a></p> Thu, 02 Jul 2026 15:00:02 +0000 admin 103785 at https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org ‘A sanitized view of America’: inside Trump’s campaign to erase US history from national parks https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/sanitized-view-america-inside-trump-s-campaign-erase-us-history-national-parks <p>Critics say the Trump administration is trying to rewrite and whitewash history by removing and altering scores of signs on public lands</p> <p>Jerry Bransford, a former US National Park Service (NPS) ranger, has always had a deep connection with the land he grew up on – and the land hundreds of feet below it. His great-great-grandfather, Materson “Mat” Bransford, was one of the earliest explorers of Mammoth Cave in south-central Kentucky, the largest known cave system on the planet.</p> <p><a href="https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/sanitized-view-america-inside-trump-s-campaign-erase-us-history-national-parks" target="_blank">read more</a></p> Thu, 02 Jul 2026 13:00:14 +0000 admin 103784 at https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org Forecasters warn of record-breaking US summer heat amid intense El Niño https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/forecasters-warn-record-breaking-us-summer-heat-amid-intense-el-ni-o <p>More than 100 million people could be affected in week leading to 4 July, with increased risks of droughts and wildfires</p> <p>Meteorologists are anticipating a tumultuous summer that could rank as one of the US’s hottest ever.</p> <p>New data released on Tuesday showed the first six months of the year <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/wxjerdman.bsky.social/post/3mpiw3vfi5l2t">were the hottest ever measured</a> for parts of eight western states.</p> <p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/02/el-nino-summer-heat-record">Continue reading...</a></p> Thu, 02 Jul 2026 11:30:11 +0000 admin 103782 at https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org Côte d’Ivoire floods kill 59 as west Africa endures torrential rains https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/c-te-d-ivoire-floods-kill-59-west-africa-endures-torrential-rains <p>Authorities say rainy season getting deadlier, with Ghana reporting 13 dead and floods hitting Benin, Togo and Nigeria</p> <p>Floods in Côte d’Ivoire have killed 59 people since May, the communication minister told a cabinet meeting in Abidjan.</p> <p>There are fears the toll could further rise as rescue teams continue to search for victims during the rainy season, which runs from May until July, the minister, Amadou Coulibaly, added.</p> <p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jul/02/cote-d-ivoire-floods-dead-west-africa-rains">Continue reading...</a></p> Thu, 02 Jul 2026 11:01:32 +0000 admin 103780 at https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org Voyage to the end of the world: floating lab to explore life in Arctic adrift in ice https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/voyage-end-world-floating-lab-explore-life-arctic-adrift-ice <p>An eight-month expedition will set off soon from Norway on a mission to find new species before the climate crisis and pollution changes the northern ocean for ever</p> <p>Six scientists and six crew will travel next month to Kirkenes, a remote Arctic town in Norway near the Russian border, to begin an odyssey to one of the most inhospitable, inaccessible and least-studied regions on Earth. There, they will climb onboard a futuristic, floating laboratory – the French-built Tara polar station.</p> <p><a href="https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/voyage-end-world-floating-lab-explore-life-arctic-adrift-ice" target="_blank">read more</a></p> Thu, 02 Jul 2026 11:00:12 +0000 admin 103781 at https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org Fans in short supply as next UK heatwave approaches, says Currys https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/fans-short-supply-next-uk-heatwave-approaches-says-currys <p>Retailer says sharp rise in fan sales over the latest heatwave weekend left stores scrambling to source stock</p> <ul> <li> <p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/live/2026/jul/02/uk-cost-of-living-squeeze-diesel-record-fall-mortage-rates-stock-markets-us-jobs-report-live-news-updates">Business live – latest updates</a></p> </li> </ul> <p>The boss of Currys has said supplies of air conditioning and fans are “tight” ahead of another UK heatwave, expected next week, after a boom in sales sent retailers scrambling to source new stock.</p> <p><a href="https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/fans-short-supply-next-uk-heatwave-approaches-says-currys" target="_blank">read more</a></p> Thu, 02 Jul 2026 10:28:16 +0000 admin 103783 at https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org ‘Exploratory and curious animals’: mysterious rise in orca sightings off Northumberland coast https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/exploratory-and-curious-animals-mysterious-rise-orca-sightings-northumberland-coast <p>Reasons for increase not clear but experts say it could be welcome sign marine ecosystem is becoming healthier</p> <p>The Farne Islands off the Northumberland coast have long drawn fans of the natural world keen to catch sight of the resident guillemots and puffins.</p> <p>But as recently as last week, another much bigger black-and-white animal has been delighting wildlife spotters. Orcas have been appearing more regularly than ever before.</p> <p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jul/02/northumberland-coast-rise-orca-sightings">Continue reading...</a></p> Thu, 02 Jul 2026 05:00:05 +0000 admin 103777 at https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org Global boom in livestock farming since 2006 is piling pressure on nature, report finds https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/global-boom-livestock-farming-2006-piling-pressure-nature-report-finds <p>Wildlife at risk as demand for cropland and water grows to feed 50% rise in farmed animals, campaign alliance says</p> <p>The number of mammals and poultry farmed worldwide has increased by half in the last two decades, research shows, and the amount of cropland used for feeding livestock has increased by about a quarter.</p> <p>These increases are putting rising pressure on natural systems, threatening wildlife and plant species and adding to the climate crisis.</p> <p><a href="https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/global-boom-livestock-farming-2006-piling-pressure-nature-report-finds" target="_blank">read more</a></p> Thu, 02 Jul 2026 05:00:04 +0000 admin 103778 at https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org Can Bolivia’s historic big cat release help change jaguar conservation in the country? https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/can-bolivia-s-historic-big-cat-release-help-change-jaguar-conservation-country <p>Poaching and wildfires have driven the country’s jaguar population to a critical level, and until now even rescued animals faced life in captivity</p> <p>A tentative paw emerged from a steel cage on to the sandy riverbed deep in the Bolivian rainforest. Then, another. Slowly, the female jaguar looked right, left and right again, as if waiting to cross a busy road. Then, muscles stiff from the long journey, it strolled away and disappeared into the undergrowth.</p> <p><a href="https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/can-bolivia-s-historic-big-cat-release-help-change-jaguar-conservation-country" target="_blank">read more</a></p> Thu, 02 Jul 2026 05:00:03 +0000 admin 103779 at https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org Scientists fear seabird die-off as El Niño looms: ‘We don’t know how bad this will get’ https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org/breaking-wave/scientists-fear-seabird-die-el-ni-o-looms-we-don-t-know-how-bad-will-get <p>Many seabirds are starving to death as a marine heat wave lingers off California and fish seek deeper, cooler waters </p><p>Within minutes of walking on a San Diego beach, marine ornithologist Tammy Russell found the feathered carcasses – one after another.</p> <p>Some were mixed in with washed up kelp. Others were under rocks.</p> <p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/01/el-nino-birds-california">Continue reading...</a></p> Wed, 01 Jul 2026 19:37:09 +0000 admin 103776 at https://www.worldoceanobservatory.org