Ocean Science Radio

Join us as we explore the cutting-edge world of underwater technology with Liz Taylor, President of DOER Marine Operations. Discover how this innovative company has been transforming ocean exploration since 1992, from developing human-occupied submersibles to creating mobile science labs from shipping containers.

In this fascinating conversation, Liz shares the story behind the Honu project - a groundbreaking initiative creating dual-purpose submersibles for scientific research and tourism in Mission Blue Hope Spots. Learn how DOER is tackling "parachute science" by building local capacity and creating sustainable ocean exploration models.

As the daughter of legendary oceanographer Dr...

It is February, so it is time for another OCEAN-LOVING episode. In this episode, we will discuss some of the coolest and weirdest reproduction strategies in the Ocean. In this episode, we cover the mysterious gentle giants, the WHALE SHARK, and a recent accidental behavior observation in the wild with PhD candidate with the Australian Institute of Marine Science and the Harry Butler Institute at Murdoch University, Christine Barry. As always, Ocean Lovin covers adult topics and should be listened too in its entirety before shared with young people.

In this episode, we are highlighting the work of one marine biologist in particular whose research gives us a better understanding of how fish evolved through their bone structure. Specifically Dr. Kory Evans of Rice University, a Doctor who has spent a LOT of time looking at fish bones and went viral a few years ago after sharing a scan of a surprising interaction between two species.  

For the last episode of 2024, we at Ocean Science Radio wanted to end things on a high note, something that could act as an inspiration for the going into the next year and beyond. Today's episode is on the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary, the first-ever Indigenous-nominated and Indigenous-co-managed marine sanctuary in the United States. Join us as we speak with Violet Sage Walker, the chairwoman for the Northern Chumash Tribal Council  - the nominators for the now-designated National Marine Sanctuary Chumash Heritage Site.

The team sits down with Brian Connon, VP of Ocean Mapping for the ocean science technology firm Saildrone to talk about what the company does, why their tech is so interesting and versatile, and some of the cool projects the company has worked on.

Project 2025, otherwise known as the 2025 Presidential Transition Project. The Project aims to promote conservative and right-wing policies to reshape the United States federal government and consolidate executive power, under the premise that Donald Trump wins the 2024 presidential election. If you haven’t read it, we don’t blame you, it is literally 900 pages written in the most mind-numbing legalease and political speak that you can possibly imagine, but the contents have HUGE ramifications if they were enacted. Our guest, and long-time friend of the show, Dr. Andrew Thaler actually took the time to examine Project 2025 and look for what impa...

The Ocean Science Radio team chats with "Deep Sea" Dawn Wright, a geographer and oceanographer and Chief Scientist at ESRI (The Environmental Systems Research Institute) - one of the world's leading suppliers of GIS software, web GIS and geodatabase management applications. We cover why mapping the bottom of the ocean is important, some cool ocean mapping history, and her recently released book "Mapping the Deep: Innovation, Exploration & the Dive of a Lifetime" about her 2022 dive to the deepest part of the ocean, the Challenger Deep.

Complex compositions made up of groans, moans, sighs, roars, and high-pitched squeals that can last for hours - The songs of whales are both beautiful and haunting. Humans have had a particular fascination with the sounds of cetaceans and the possible meanings behind it since Roger Payne, a marine biologist, first noticed the complex sonic arrangement of humpback whale sounds during a research expedition to Bermuda in 1967 But what if we could translate what they were saying? Really understand what the different clicks and codas actually mean? On this episode we're going to chat with the Cetacean Translation Initiative, also...

A new paper just dropped on incorporating environmental factors when determining conservation baselines for sharks on coral reefs by our very own Frances! (That's right, it is a META episode!)

In honor of the untimely passing of Ocean advocate, Turtle biologist, and author of the book "Blue Mind," Dr. Wallace J. Nichols, we are re-releasing our episode with him featuring the topic of "Blue Mind" and the benefits of being close to the ocean and other bodies of water.

Today on the show we're diving into a story that might surprise you. It doesn't involve dazzling coral reefs or majestic whales, but something a little closer to home... canned salmon! In this episode, we’ll be discussing how Dr. Natalie Mastick - a postdoctoral associate at the Yale Peabody Museum and a marine ecologist - used this unusual technique of examining super super old canned fish to track changes in a salmon and their parasites.

In this episode, we talk about ocean superstructures - a new scientific phrase that our guests hope start up some important conversations about how the bottom of the ocean was formed. Guests: Dr. Kevin Konrad -Assistant Professor of Geoscience and Director of the Nevada Isotope Geochronology Laboratory (NIGL) University of Nevada, Las Vegas Dr Val Finlayson - Postdoctoral Associate Department of Geology University of Maryland Dr. Andrea Balbas - Assistant professor at California State University Long Beach

It is February and we once again have our seasonal episode of Ocean Lovin - covering cool and strange ways ocean creatures make little ocean creatures. We speak with  Dr. Christine Dudgeon, a senior research fellow at the University of Queensland and the University of the Sunshine Coast about sharks and a peculiar story of immaculate shark-ception.

As with every year, we want to remind our listeners that Ocean Lovin episodes cover adult themes not meant for children without supervision, please listen to the episode before sharing it with youngsters. 

Guest co-h...

The ocean is a vast and powerful carbon sink, absorbing about a quarter of the carbon dioxide we emit into the atmosphere. That carbon is pulled into the water column and is also buried under the layers of dirt and soil on the ocean floor. But this vital role could be jeopardized by a common fishing practice: bottom trawling. Today we will be talking to Dr. Tricia Atwood, an associate professor of watershed sciences at Utah State University who is also a researcher with the National Geographic Society’s Pristine Seas Program, whose team published a paper in the journal Fr...

People with disabilities are often marginalized, face isolation, lack representation and even ablism, no matter the industry or space. We speak to an old friend of the show about how this shows up in STEM and academia, and a project to collect stories from those impacted by this phenomenon in the form of a book of essays. So come join us where we talk about the book Uncharted, and learn about scientists navigating their health journey. Guests include: - Dr. Skylar Bayer from the NOAA Alaska Fisheries Regional Office - Dr. Gabi Serrato Marks - a co-founder at Stelli Communications...

With the passing of Ocean Explorer and all around nice guy Don Walsh, we wanted to revisit our episode where we interviewed him about the anniversary of the Triseste dive.

Dr. Farabaugh is out sick so this episode is solo Andrew. We speak with Mattie Rodrique - the Science program Director for OceanX- about their work in ocean exploration, discovery, and storytelling while ALSO training the next generation of ocean explorers.

Have you ever wanted to explore the bottom of the ocean? Discover new crazy and beautiful species? Have you ever wanted to explore the remains of a sunken ship, lost to time? Well good news! Today, we're going to be talking with members of the Ocean Exploration Trust a group of explorers and expedition leaders about the work they do, their discoveries and the technology they use. We speak with ROV Operations Manager Josh Chernov, Director of Education and Outreach Megan Cook, and Renato Kane a navigator and mapper for OET.

The Port of San Diego has been making incredible strides with its Maritime Clean Air Strategy which is rather comprehensive ranging from cool tech to green practices to amazing economic incentives. The Ocean Science Radio team chatted with Rafael Castellanos - Chairman of the Port of San Diego, Jason Giffen - Vice President for the Planning and Environment Division, and Paula Sylvia, Program Director of the Aquaculture and Blue Technology Department to talk about the advances and initiatives at the Port of San Diego.

Some new shark shows just dropped and you KNOW you want to check them out. From Discovery's Shark Week to Nat Geo's pieces there will be plenty of amazing shark content! From Sharkcano: Hawaii to Sharks vs Dolphins: Bahama Battle Grounds, these shows are set to thrill, chill and… hopefully educate about sharks. In this episode, we have Dr. Valeria Paz - dolphin scientist and star of Sharks vs Dolphins: Bahama Battle Grounds for a discussion about sharks, dolphins, and being on these types of documentaries.

You may have heard about it in the news, you may have seen the memes on social media but no mater what, it appears that there is a group of orcas that have gone rogue. These cetaceans around the Iberian peninsula seem to be ORCA-strating attacks against yachts in the area. To find out more, we brought on Cetacean scientist Chris Parsons to give us the scoop So join us now where we learn more about orcas, the teaching techniques of these whale-killers, and how serious a threat the cetacean uprising really is, on this episode of, Ocean Science Radio.

We get to chat with Brooke Fitzwater, a PhD Student in the Earley Lab of the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa who has made a big splash with her unique approach to science communication and learn about how she researches the mating habits of a cool species of sex-changing mangrove fish.

We are diving into deep ocean heatwaves. These extreme warming events in the ocean's depths have been linked to changes in ocean currents, weather patterns, and marine life, and we are learning more and more about the what and possibly why of these phenomenon. In a paper published in Nature Communications, researchers used a combination of observations and computer models to generate the first broad assessment of bottom marine heat waves in the continental shelf waters around North America. Today, we have with us Climate scientist Dillon Amaya of NOAA, the lead author on that very paper, so join us...

Something strange is growing in the middle of the Atlantic, it covers an insane amount of the surface, it smells of rotten eggs and it might be COMING FOR OUR BEACHES. While the truth of the matter isn’t as scary as social media and the news makes it seem, scientists still have a lot of questions about the annual sargassum mass. We sit down with Brian Barnes a research assistant professor at the University of South Florida College of Marine Science to get some answers.

It is February and it is time once again for our annual special on reproduction called Ocean Lovin. In this episode we talk about Snow Crab reproduction. You may have seen Snow Crabs popping up in the news recently.This is because back in October, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game cancelled the snow crab season because the population, which normally numbered in the billions, fell by an estimated 90%.The first time the fishery was shut down in recorded history. We speak with Chris Long, fisheries scientist at NOAA's Alaska Fisheries Science Center's Kodiak Laboratory about this species, why...

Marine Protected Areas are areas of the ocean where a government has placed limits on human activity. These areas range from no-take, no-impact, no-access, and multiple use - basically determining how much human impact is supposed to take place in these areas. On today’s episode, we speak with representatives of the NGO WildAid and some of the partners they are working with to make sure that ocean parks are enforceable, realistic, and work for the local population. The team interviews: - Meaghan Brosnan - Marine Program Director for Wildaid -Juma Mohamed - Head of Program for Mwambao Coastal Community Ne...

In this episode, we speak with science writer Shannon Stirone and Berkeley writing professor Ryan Sloan about their experiences being sent to the poles to try and capture the wonder of these locations to share with others.

With better and more affordable remote-operated vehicle and video technology, more data and footage is being collected every day. But that leads to another problem, how do you analyze petabytes worth of data? Join us on this episode of Ocean Science Radio, where we meet one of the minds behind FathomNet, and some of the teams that are using this fantastic big data tool for the ocean. We speak with: Dr. Kakani Katija - FathomNet co-founder and lead of the Bioinspiration Lab for MBARI Megan Cromwell - Research Program Manager for NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) Corinne Bassin...

The team speaks with Dr. Valero and Emma Lavaut, a graduate student at Sorbonne, who conducted an experiment to try and figure out the relationship between Gracilaria gracilis and the tiny crustaceans who feed on them. Come learn how isopods and red algae relate in this episode on ocean animal mediated fertilization.

Throughout the ocean, there are currents that act like giant, underwater highways. These currents transport nutrients, heat, carbon, and even animals and plankton across vast ocean spans. On this episode, we speak to a triumvirate of experts from McGill University, Princeton University, and the University of Washington in Seattle about the California Current Marine Ecosystem, or CCME and what effect humans are having on the species that rely on it to survive. Guests include: -Dr. Jennifer Sunday, Assistant Professor at McGill University -Dr. Evan Howard, Associate Research Scholar at Princeton University -Dr. Terrie Klinger, Professor and Co-Director of the Washington...

The crew speaks with Octopus researcher Dr. Eduardo Sampaio. Eduardo got his PhD studying octopus behavior, cognition, and social contexts and is a Nat Geo Explorer. Eduardo and his team studied octopuses in interspecies hunting parties that included eels and fish. The party is hunting when all of the sudden, one of the fishes gets smacked by the octopus. Eduardo walks us through what we currently think about the Cephalopunch. 

You can follow Eduardo on Twitter at OctoEduardo

In this episode the team is covering the latest exciting development out of the AUV/ROV market, Ocean Aero’s Triton. We interview Kevin Decker, the CEO of Ocean Aero and Andy Ziegwied, the Vice President of ocean data for Ocean Aero.

The month of June is National Ocean month in the United States and June 8th was World Oceans Day. Organizations across the globe use World Oceans Day and the month of June to make announcements on initiatives and commitments that relate to our oceans. This includes governments, nonprofits, and even large for-profit ventures.

We spoke with the director of Ocean Sustainability at Salesforce, Dr. Whitney Johnston to learn more about their endeavors with Ocean Sustainability

The team speaks with Dr Sarah McAnulty, a squid biologist, and the executive director of Skype a Scientist about going viral, cephalopods,  and how our world seems to expect free labor from the science communication community. 

We explore the ocean economy with the help of  Henrik Österblom, science director at Stockholm University and also a professor of environmental sciences. and John Virdin, director of the ocean policy research program at Duke University's Nicholas Institute for environmental policy solutions. Henrik, John, and their team published a paper revealing the dominance of the ocean economy by 100 companies and what the implications are with that consolidation of power and resources. 

March Mammal Madness, the annual tournament of imaginary combat pitting species against species is back, in its 9th year. Organizers cite scientific literature to substantiate likely outcomes when two species fight in glorious battle in environments both suited for their evolutionary traits, and completely random ones. The Ocean Science Radio team interviews founder Professor Katherine Hinde, of  Arizona State University, and fight "announcer" Professor Josh Drew, of SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, about this amazing event, how battles are decided, and how impactful this event has been in science communications efforts.  

Come for the...

It is February which means it is time for another episode of OCEAN LOVIN'. This time we speak with Michael Howard, Senior Aquarist at the Monterey Bay Aquarium about the reproductive strategies of deep-water hydrozoan jellies, and other related species, where some have the hydroid (jellybaby) stage of the life cycle on other living animals! We also talk about how aquariums and scientists collect species and keep them alive and provide the optimal conditions for them to reproduce. Come for the science, stay for the jellybabies!

Every year the ocean absorbs ludicrous amounts of energy, even more as a result of climate change and global warming. The team sits down with distinguished scholar Keven Trenbert of the National Center of Atmospheric Research about the recent paper he co-authored called "Another Record: Ocean Warming Continues through 2021 despite La Niña Conditions" and learn about why that is important.

Frances and Andrew let their hair down and do a quick review of some of the stories that made the ocean news pipeline in 2021. Stories include, but are not limited to, the UN Decade of the Ocean, 30 by 30 ocean protection, the circling hellhole of the ocean on fire, the Netflix shockumentary "SeaSpiracy," and more! 

Join us on the last show of the year! 

The team speaks with two experts from The Nature Conservancy; Steven R. Schill - Lead Scientist and Valerie McNulty - Spatial Ecologist about their work developing multi-layered and rich Caribbean benthic maps. Learn about how these maps are created and why they are so important in policy and conservation decision-making. Be sure to visit http://caribbeanmarinemaps.tnc.org/ to see them in action!