Radio Program
Our regular Science and the SeaTM radio program presents marine science topics in an engaging two-minute story format. Our script writers gather ideas for the radio program from the University of Texas Marine Science Institute's researchers and from our very popular college class, Introduction to Oceanography, which we teach to hundreds of non-science majors at The University of Texas at Austin every year. Our radio programs are distributed at to commercial and public radio stations across the country.
When beluga whales want to communicate with each other, they just use the ol’ melon—a blubber-filled structure on their forehead. Researchers have found that the whales intentionally change the shape of the melon. That may convey different emotions or intentions—whether they want to play, mate, or just hang out.
Belugas live in and around the Arctic Ocean. They have a thick layer of blubber to protect them from the cold. And they don’t have a fin on their back, which allows them to easily glide below the ice.
The most powerful undersea volcano ever recorded had an impact on our entire planet—from pole to pole, and all the way to outer space. And it may continue to impact parts of the world for years.
The Hunga Tonga volcano is in the southern Pacific Ocean, well east of Australia. It staged a massive eruption in January of 2022. It blasted more than two cubic miles of rock and ash into the sky, and created tsunamis all across the Pacific. Shock waves in the atmosphere raced around the planet for days.
One of the changes that goes along with aging is hair color. Red, blonde, black—regardless of the original color, our hair almost always turns gray or silver.
Fish don’t have hair, but many of them do change color as they age. They can take on different color schemes as they move through different stages of life.
Fish change color for many reasons. Some of the changes happen in a flash—a fish might blend into the background to protect itself from predators. Other changes are more gradual. A fish might change color when it switches gender, for example.
Some of the largest cities in Southeast Asia could be hit by bigger, badder tropical cyclones in the decades ahead. A recent study found that warmer seas and air could change where storms in the region form, how quickly they ramp up, and how long they hang around. The changes could be especially deadly for major cities along the coast.
Storms on the Sun can have both beautiful and annoying results. They create widespread displays of auroras—the northern and southern lights. But they can damage satellites, disrupt radio communications, and knock out power grids on the ground. They might even cause some whales to strand themselves.
The female blanket octopus glides through the ocean like a winged phantom. When she’s threatened, she extends some of her arms. That spreads the webbing between the arms, like a flowing cape. The shiny cape makes the octopus look bigger—perhaps scaring away predators.
The mangrove tunicate is a mild-looking little creature. It’s a type of sea squirt. It’s only about an inch long, and it feeds by pumping seawater through its body and filtering out the goodies. It’s found in colonies in the roots of mangrove forests around the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean, and the Atlantic coast of the United States.
Marine scientists can’t be everywhere at once. To really understand what’s happening below the waves, though, they need a lot of observations—from many places at many times. So they’re getting help from recreational divers. The divers can carry instruments, or just log what they see.
One project is set to begin in December. Known as BlueDot, it’ll provide insights into how the Mediterranean Sea is warming up—not only at the surface, but down to more than a hundred feet.
Hotter oceans are bad for just about everyone. They can destroy coral reefs, cause fish to move to new ranges, and rev up monster hurricanes.
There are problems for octopuses as well. Adults of some species aren’t getting as big as they used to, for example. And a recent study found that the still warmer waters we’ll see in the future could cloud their vision. That would make it harder to catch a meal or get away from predators.
The ocean floor is turning into a dumping ground. A recent study found that millions of tons of plastic litter the bottom of the world’s oceans and seas. About half of that debris sits in shallow waters near coastlines. And a lot more is expected to settle in the oceans over the coming decades.
The world generates millions of tons of plastic every year—enough to fill a garbage truck every minute. And a lot of it finds its way into the ocean—through runoff, offshore dumping, lost fishing gear, and other sources.
