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 […]
The Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) prohibits “take” of marine mammals unless an exception or exemption applies such as the take exemption for subsistence harvests by Alaska Natives. The MMPA defines “take” as “to harass, hunt, capture, or kill, or attempt to harass, hunt, capture, or kill, any marine mammal.” The MMPA defines “harassment” as “any act of […]