Breaking Waves: Ocean News

11/19/2025 - 06:00
Exclusive: A top official in Beijing’s Cop delegation says China is committed to clean energy – but US’s absence is a problem China is committed to the energy transition needed to avert climate breakdown – but does not want to take the lead alone in the absence of the US, one of the country’s senior advisers has told the Guardian. Wang Yi said China would provide more money to vulnerable countries, but the EU’s climate commissioner has warned Beijing is not doing enough to cut emissions. Continue reading...
11/19/2025 - 05:14
Drone footage shows hundreds of tonnes of rubbish piled up in a field in a small village in Oxfordshire. The illegal waste was left by fly-tippers between the River Cherwell and the A34 near Kidlington. It is said to be 150 metres long and at least 6 metres high, according to local media Fly-tippers dump ‘mountain’ of waste in Oxfordshire field Continue reading...
11/19/2025 - 05:00
Fallout from increased emissions linked to president’s ‘America First’ policies expected to most affect those in poor, hot countries This article is co-published with ProPublica, a non-profit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. New advances in environmental science are providing a detailed understanding of the human cost of the Trump administration’s approach to climate. Continue reading...
11/19/2025 - 03:56
Massive Sargassum blooms sweeping across the Caribbean and Atlantic are fueled by a powerful nutrient partnership: phosphorus pulled to the surface by equatorial upwelling and nitrogen supplied by cyanobacteria living directly on the drifting algae. Coral cores reveal that this nutrient engine has intensified over the past decade, perfectly matching surges in Sargassum growth since 2011. By ruling out older theories involving Saharan dust and river runoff, researchers uncovered a climate-driven process that shapes when and where these colossal seaweed mats form.
11/19/2025 - 02:24
Almost two out of three corals across popular tourism spots at the world heritage-listed Ningaloo reef have died after an unprecedented marine heatwave hit the Western Australia region, scientists have discovered. The areas in Ningaloo's northern lagoon have undergone a 'profound ecological simplification' with coral species that were keystones to the habitat among those killed 'Deathly silent': two out of three corals in world heritage-listed Ningaloo reef have been killed, scientists confirm Continue reading...
11/19/2025 - 01:00
Analysis of new-builds in Birmingham suggests all-electric homes not only use less energy but vary in peak usage Some of the first homes in the UK designed to meet new building standards put less pressure on the electricity grid than expected, a study has found. The all-electric properties in Handsworth, Birmingham, have heat pumps, which use electricity to provide heat rather than oil or gas. Continue reading...
11/19/2025 - 00:41
Researchers from New Zealand's conservation department conducting an annual grasshopper survey near Lake Tekapo on the South Island have spotted a rare pink grasshopper. The species – the robust grasshopper – is native to New Zealand and is the country’s largest lowland grasshopper. The pink hue is thought to be caused by a genetic mutation, as the insect is typically grey or brown like the river stones of its native habitat in the MacKenzie basin ‘Exceptionally rare’ pink grasshopper spotted in New Zealand Continue reading...
11/19/2025 - 00:00
Analysis published at Cop30 summit shows adhering to pledges offers world hope of avoiding climate breakdown Sticking to three key climate promises – on renewables, energy efficiency and methane – would avoid nearly 1C of global heating and give the world hope of avoiding climate breakdown, analysis published at the Cop30 climate summit suggests. Governments have already agreed to triple the amount of renewable energy generated by 2030, double global energy efficiency by then, and make substantial cuts to methane emissions. Continue reading...
11/19/2025 - 00:00
The Neoliner Origin set off on its inaugural two-week voyage from France to the US with the aim of revolutionising the notoriously dirty shipping industry It is 8pm on a Saturday evening and eight of us are sitting at a table onboard a ship, holding on to our plates of spaghetti carbonara as our chairs slide back and forth. Michel Péry, the dinner’s host, downplays the weather as a “tempête de journalistes” – something sailors would not categorise as a storm, but which drama-seeking journalists might refer to as such to entertain their readers. But after a white-knuckle night in our cabins with winds reaching 74mph or force 12 – officially a hurricane – Péry has to admit it was not just a “journalists’ storm”, but the real deal. Continue reading...
11/19/2025 - 00:00
npj Ocean Sustainability, Published online: 19 November 2025; doi:10.1038/s44183-025-00159-w A machine learning-based evidence map of ocean-related options for climate change mitigation and adaptation