MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

Microbes are tiny but mighty organisms that play an essential role in ecosystem function across our planet. Now, these invisible communities finally have a seat at the global conservation table. 🌍🦠

The new IUCN Microbial Conservation Specialist Group seeks to elevate microbial perspectives within global conservation and policy. They will also develop a microorganism-specific Red List, a globally recognized system for classifying species at high risk of extinction.

MBARI President and CEO Antje Boetius, whose expertise has provided vital insight into the impacts of climate change on marine microbial communities, is a part of the working group. By combining voices from across the world, including Indigenous knowledge experts, early-career scientists, and researchers from regions often overlooked, the group will build better criteria and tools to identify and protect threatened microbial ecosystems.

Read more: scripps.ucsd.edu/news/new-species-survival-commiss…

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MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

Some of our favorite snailfish sightings to celebrate our most recent video!

Most snailfishes (family Liparidae) live near the seafloor, riding the currents that sweep along the bottom. A hungry snailfish may swim against the currents to hover above the seafloor while searching for snacks buried in the mud. In some species, frilled fins probe the seafloor for hidden morsels of food.

Snailfishes make their homes in a variety of ocean habitats, from shallow tide pools to deep-sea trenches. In fact, a snailfish holds the record for the deepest-dwelling fish.

Scientists have described more than 450 different species of snailfish worldwide. Snailfishes have a large head, a jelly-like body covered in loose skin, and a narrow tail. Many have fins on their belly modified into a disk that can hold on tight to rocks, seaweed, or even larger animals like deep-sea crabs for shelter. Most are small and feed on tiny invertebrates.

Our observations have revealed the mysterious lives of deep-sea snailfishes. MBARI’s work helps resource managers and policymakers understand how threats like climate change, mining, and pollution affect deep-sea animals and ecosystems. What we learn can help guide their decision-making about the future of the ocean.

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MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

Did you see the newest (and cutest) addition to the snailfish family? 🐟

MBARI collaborators at SUNY Geneseo, with scientists from the University of Montana and the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, have described three new deep-sea snailfishes, including one first discovered using MBARI’s remotely operated vehicle Doc Ricketts.

Snailfishes make their homes in a variety of ocean habitats—from shallow tide pools to deep-sea trenches. The newly described bumpy snailfish (Careproctus colliculi), observed in the depths of Monterey Canyon nearly 3,300 meters (10,800 feet) underwater, has a distinctive pink color and a bumpy texture.

MBARI’s technology is helping researchers document deep-sea biodiversity, and our collaborations with expert taxonomists around the world are helping to advance the discovery of life in the largest living space on Earth. What we’ve learned can help resource managers and policymakers make informed decisions about the future of the ocean to safeguard marine life and environments from threats like climate change and mining.

Learn more: www.mbari.org/news/mbaris-advanced-underwater-tech…

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MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

Using robots and AI to unlock the secrets of a remote ocean 🌊🤖🌊

Robotic floats outfitted with advanced sensors developed at MBARI collect robust data on oceanographic conditions in the Southern Ocean. Applying machine learning algorithms to this trove of data has improved estimates of ocean productivity and carbon export in the Southern Ocean.

A new study led by MBARI Postdoctoral Fellow Guillaume Liniger, in collaboration with the University of Washington Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean, and Ecosystem Studies (CICOES) and the Southern Ocean Carbon and Climate Observations and Modeling (SOCCOM) project, has revealed that this remote region may absorb more carbon than previously estimated.

The Southern Ocean plays an important role in global climate and carbon cycling. Understanding carbon export in this region is critical for modeling Earth’s changing climate and evaluating potential ocean-based climate interventions. Using innovative technologies from state-of-the-art research vessels to advanced AI, MBARI researchers are working to explore the integral role of the ocean in Earth's carbon cycle and climate.

Learn more: www.mbari.org/news/new-ai-approach-sharpens-pictur…

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MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

MBARI researchers last encountered the giant phantom jelly (Stygiomedusa gigantea) in November 2021 during a dive in Monterey Bay. While exploring the midnight zone, this ghostly giant emerged from the darkness. The bell of this jelly reaches more than one meter (3.3 feet) across and trails four ribbon-like oral (or mouth) arms that can grow more than 10 meters (33 feet) long.

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1 month ago | [YT] | 1,470

MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

First mission in the books ✅

MBARI’s flagship research vessel David Packard has returned home to Moss Landing from a successful expedition to map the deep seafloor of the coast of Oregon. This 17-day expedition was the ship’s first science and engineering mission since its arrival at MBARI’s headquarters in March.

The David Packard is outfitted with several state-of-the-art systems for studying the ocean, including an advanced multibeam echosounder that can visualize the deep seafloor in remarkable detail. During the expedition, MBARI researchers produced a high-resolution map of Oregon’s Rogue Canyon system—an undersea landscape in the Cascadia Subduction Zone that holds vital clues to predicting future earthquakes and tsunamis.

MBARI engineers and marine operations crew will continue to adapt, test, and fine-tune the ship’s systems to meet MBARI’s unique needs, and we look forward to more science missions in the coming months.

🔗 Read the full story: www.mbari.org/news/mbaris-new-flagship-research-ve…

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MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

Uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUVs), including autonomous underwater vehicles and remotely operated vehicles, have become essential tools for ocean exploration, providing access to vast and challenging environments. Their ability to operate under extreme conditions enables a wide range of applications, including environmental monitoring, sample collection, subsea intervention, seafloor mapping, and underwater structure inspection.

In a new study, researchers from the CoMPAS Lab and their collaborators introduce the Robust and Energy Efficient Framework (REEF) DRL, designed for precise control of UUVs while minimizing energy consumption. This work represents a significant advancement in applying Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) to underwater robotics, offering a promising way to help UUVs operate autonomously for longer periods of time.

Learn more about these remarkable robots: ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/11020757

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MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

Setting the stage for ocean conservation 🌊

The UN High Seas Treaty is an important opportunity for ocean conservation, but international efforts to protect marine life and ecosystems depend on robust data about marine biodiversity so policymakers can implement effective and equitable solutions.

A new publication in Ecology Letters led by William Oestreich—a National Science Foundation postdoctoral fellow at MBARI—with MBARI Principal Engineer Kakani Katija and collaborators from the University of California, Santa Barbara, Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, and ETH Zürich quantifies biodiversity data coverage and makes actionable recommendations to fill the significant gaps.

The team shares that the most effective solutions depend on collective actions across the global scientific community. These collective actions can ensure that robust biodiversity data is accessible to all, providing the basis for safeguarding the ocean ecosystems on which our planet and society depend.

Learn more: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ele.70168?af=R

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MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

MBARI technology reveals new insights about deep-sea octopus and opens the door for future bioinspired robots 🐙🤝🤖 

MBARI Principal Engineer Kakani Katija and a team of researchers were able to observe deep-sea pearl octopus as they crawled across the rugged rocky terrain of the famous Octopus Garden offshore of Central California.

The 3D visual data provides new insights about octopus locomotion that can open the door to designing exciting new octopus-inspired robots and other technologies in the future!

Learn more: 
www.mbari.org/news/mbari-researchers-deploy-new-im…

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1 month ago | [YT] | 310

MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

Dissolved oxygen enters the ocean in the icy waters of the North Atlantic and Southern Ocean. From there, it sinks and travels slowly (600 to 1,500 years) through deep-ocean basins before eventually rising back to the surface in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. 🌊💨

Over the past several decades, dissolved oxygen concentrations in the global ocean have been declining. This decline is most evident in the surface to mid-depths. In a new study, researchers from MBARI, the Central & Northern California Ocean Observing System (CeNCOOS), and other collaborators examined deep-ocean time series over several decades to track long-term changes in dissolved oxygen. Learn more about this important research: www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0967063…

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