So how does longlining work? I wasn’t sure myself before I got on the boat other than guessing that there was probably a line and it was probably pretty long. Turns out I was right. The line used is miles long and sectioned into groups of hooks called “skates.” In each skate there are 45 […]
The saildrones are completely autonomous, so they can sail along under their own power as long as there’s a little sun and wind to send them on their way. But aimlessly floating around might not produce the best science, so it’s our job to give them a place to go. All of our communication to […]
Pacific cod support a large commercial fishery in the Gulf of Alaska. In 2017, NOAA Fisheries scientists at the Alaska Fisheries Science Center who monitor this fish stock reported a steep loss in adult fish. This followed a three-year marine heatwave, known as the ‘Warm Blob,’ which occurred from 2014 to 2016. Such losses have challenged the fishery, prompting […]
Researchers are curious to see if they will come across a “cold pool” during this year’s annual Southeastern Bering Sea Shelf Bottom Trawl Survey given the unusually warm winter and the limited sea ice coverage in 2017/2018. They suspect they might not, and that would be a first. The “cold pool” is a large mass […]