Department of Earth Ocean and Atmospheric Science

FSU experts available to comment on science behind 2021 Nobel Prize in Physics

Published: October 5, 2021 | 3:15 pm | Posted in: Expert Pitches

The 2021 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to three scientists for their work to understand complex physical systems and applying that knowledge to model the Earth’s climate. Syukuro Manabe of Princeton University, Klaus Hasselmann of the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology and Giorgio Parisi of Sapienza University of Rome shared the prestigious award. Meteorologists […]

FSU researchers find endangered species remain vulnerable in some marine-protected areas

Published: September 30, 2021 | 10:36 am | Posted in: Science & Technology

Florida State University researchers have found that some marine-protected areas may not work as predicted in safeguarding and conserving endangered species. A team of international researchers found that hawksbill turtles in Brazil are most often searching for food and breeding outside the boundaries of marine-protected areas, which are designated regions of seas, oceans, the Great […]

FSU climate scientist named to Popular Science’s Brilliant 10 list of groundbreaking early career researchers

Published: September 20, 2021 | 12:00 pm | Posted in: News

A Florida State University researcher has been named to Popular Science’s Brilliant 10 list of early career scientists conducting groundbreaking research in their fields. Allison Wing, an assistant professor of meteorology in the Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science, part of the College of Arts and Sciences, has been named to the list in […]

Wave wash-over poses threat to endangered sea turtle nests and hatchlings

Published: August 23, 2021 | 9:18 am | Posted in: News

Waves breaking and hitting the shore are a familiar sight to any beachgoer, but these powerful acts of nature play a big role in whether sea turtle nests thrive in their coastal surroundings. Researchers from the Florida State University Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science have found that powerful ocean waves pose a significant threat to sea turtle nests, […]

FSU researchers refine estimate of amount of carbon in Earth’s outer core

Published: August 19, 2021 | 11:20 am | Posted in: News

An image of the interior of the Earth illustrating a simulation by Florida State University and Rice University researchers to investigate the composition of the planet's outer core. Dark circles in the core represent iron and tan circles represent carbon atoms. The paths taken by carbon atoms during the simulation are shown by the tan lines. (Illustration by Suraj Bajgain)

New research from Florida State University and Rice University is providing a better estimate of the amount of carbon in the Earth’s outer core, and the work suggests the core could be the planet’s largest reservoir of that element. The research, published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, estimates that 0.3 to 2.0 percent […]

FSU researchers find oxygen spike coincided with ancient global extinction

Published: August 2, 2021 | 12:32 pm | Posted in: Science & Technology

Rock samples are purified to test for thallium isotopes at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory. (Stephen Bilenky / National High Magnetic Field Laboratory)

Two hundred fifty-two million years ago, much of life on planet Earth was dying. In an event that marked the end of the Permian period, more than 96 percent of the planet’s marine species and 70 percent of its terrestrial life suddenly went extinct. It was the largest extinction in Earth’s history. Now Florida State […]

FSU researchers find La Niña increases carbon export from Amazon River

Published: July 29, 2021 | 12:36 pm | Posted in: News, Science & Technology

The Amazon River at Óbidos, Brazil. Researchers examined data taken at this city near the mouth of the river to investigate how La Niña events affect the amount of carbon exported from the river. (Photo by Rob Spencer)

When La Niña brings unusually warm waters and abnormal air pressure to the Pacific Ocean, the resulting weather patterns create an increase in the carbon export from the Amazon River, new research from Florida State University has found. In a normal year, the Amazon River exports about 10% of the world’s riverine dissolved organic carbon […]

FSU researchers find most nitrogen in Gulf of Mexico comes from coastal waters

Published: June 28, 2021 | 10:25 am | Posted in: Science & Technology

Researchers on the NOAA ship Nancy Foster recovering a CTD instrument that is used to collect water samples and algae from multiple depths in the ocean. (Courtesy of Michael Stukel)

Almost all of the nitrogen that fertilizes life in the open ocean of the Gulf of Mexico is carried into the gulf from shallower coastal areas, researchers from Florida State University found. The work, published in Nature Communications, is crucial to understanding the food web of that ecosystem, which is a spawning ground for several […]

Researchers reveal complex ecosystem changes cause more greenhouse gases to be emitted from peatlands

Published: June 15, 2021 | 4:21 pm | Posted in: Science & Technology

Jeff Chanton, Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor and John Widmer Winchester Professor of Oceanography, Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science. (FSU Photography Services)

Peatlands, which make up 3 percent of Earth’s total land area, are known by a number of names — moors, mires, bogs, swamps and portions of permafrost tundra. They also store a significant amount of the Earth’s carbon. A research team from Florida State University and Georgia Institute of Technology are paying close attention to these complicated systems […]

Sea Turtle Week: FSU marine biologist available to comment on importance of these keystone species

Published: June 7, 2021 | 2:14 pm | Posted in: Expert Pitches

A newly hatched pair of green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) make their way to the ocean. (Photo credit: Mark Sullivan, NOAA)

Sea turtles have existed on Earth for more than 100 million years. But today, most species of these oceangoing reptiles are threatened or endangered. Scientists and resource managers are working to better understand and manage their populations, and they’re using work like that led by Mariana Fuentes, an associate professor in the Department of Earth, […]

Expert ready to provide insight on global ocean health crisis

Published: June 3, 2021 | 3:40 pm | Posted in: Expert Pitches, News

For the past two weeks, a cargo ship has been burning off the coast of Sri Lanka filled with several tons of plastic pellets loaded with toxic chemicals. According to Sri Lanka’s Marine Protection Authority, this is “one of the worst beach pollutions in our history.” Ian MacDonald, a professor in the Florida State University Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science, is […]

Researchers find Greenland glacial meltwaters rich in mercury

Published: May 24, 2021 | 11:00 am | Posted in: Science & Technology

New research shows that concentrations of the toxic element mercury in rivers and fjords connected to the Greenland Ice Sheet are comparable to rivers in industrial China, an unexpected finding that is raising questions about the effects of glacial melting in an area that is a major exporter of seafood. “There are surprisingly high levels […]

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