From: http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/news/100419_p01_korea.jpg

Korea is in the development of underwater robots that are being used for crawling on the ground floor in the ocean for unmanned exploring. The Seoul administration is planning to create these underwater vehicles within the next five years. The ministry’s director Joo Hyun-jong said that the robot is able to swim at a speed o 18 meters per minute and walk 30 meters per minute to explore and search for organisms or minerals. The robots strongest feature is the precision camera so it could identify and fin sunken ships so divers don’t need to go into deep waters and places where they cannot reach. This drone is going to be equipped with six-paddle like legs for moving and is going to be under a two-phase plan. By 2012 the first-phase will be in effect and is expected to have a prototype by 2015 and to be able to go as deep as 6 kilometers

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Do you think that this project would be very effective?
Do you think that America will follow this plan as well?

The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is a good example. Exxon claims in this article that they will help clean the spill.  Oil companies should be more prepared for these spills. There going to happen and I am sure one day another spill could happen here. We need to learn how to clean these disasters up. I am glad everyone is helping each other in this disaster.

What are the best methods for cleaning oil?

How can Oil companiess prevent spills in fishing areas or habitats?

Science Daily’s article “New Understanding of Marine Ecology Will Enable Better Management of Resources” discusses a recent discovery concerning life cycles. Dr. Frédéric Guichard, a McGill Biologist, found that “marine life can communicate over thousands of kilometers, calling into question current fishery management and marine preservation practices.” For example, if mussels in San Diego are killed the mussels in Seattle will be affected.

Through “mathematical modeling and data from natural populations” Guichard discovered that marine animals, such as mussels follow a pattern comparable to the ‘butterfly effect.’ Guichard learned that mussels are able to interact from miles away, by passing away or laying larvae. How far away exactly are they able to communicate from?

Scientists have been seeking this information for quite some time and now they are able use this discovery to ‘manage their numbers.’ This not only applies to mussels but many other species as well. What other types of animals does this pertain to?

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100503111752.htm

From: http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/2010/04/100411214117-large.jpg

I was reading here, A team of British scientist has discovered the deepest under water volcano in the world. This underwater vent is about 3.1 miles or 5000 meters deep. This black smoker is located in the Cayman trough in the Caribbean. Scientists used an ROV from the British research vessel James Cook. Near the black smoker the scientists found spires of iron and copper ore rising from the sea floor. The water that erupts form the underwater volcano is hot enough to melt lead.

Near this under water volcano researchers are also finding abundant marine life. Scientists were stunned to find life in these areas. Up until this discovery scientists thought it was highly unlikely for creatures to live in such harsh environments. At this depth the pressure is over 500 times the atmospheric pressure. Because of this discovery scientists believe there could be life on other planets.

Do you think there is life on other planets?

What are some of the animals that live down there?

In this article I read that the Aral Sea used to be the fourth largest lake in the world that was fed by 2 rivers, but in the early 1960’s the Soviet Union changed the flow of the water from the inflowing rivers to supply water to their cotton crops and increase rice production in Central Asia. So over the years the Aral Sea experienced an intense drop in water levels, which pushed the shoreline to move further back by 100km, this caused the salt content to increase, and it killed all known 20 fish species that once lived in the Aral Sea. The water level in Aral Sea dropped by 16 meters and the water volume fell by 75%.

Drinking water supplies decrease dramatically, but the remaining water is contaminated with toxic chemicals called pesticide, bacteria and viruses, which made people become very ill. You think this is really bad? Well there’s more, the most serious effects of this catastrophe was the change of the climate in that region. This lake used to absorb summer heat and keep winters mild, but now that the lake is gone, the climate became extreme, summers are much longer and the winters are way colder.

Do you think there’s a way to fix this problem?

If there was a way to fix it, how long do you think it will take to fix?

“This discovery is truly amazing. Today, gray whales only inhabit the Pacific Ocean, so to find one in the North Atlantic, let alone the Mediterranean Sea, is bizarre in the extreme,” says Nicola Hodgins of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society. The WDCS has thus far been unable to explain this lone whales appearance.

“Gray whales are well known for performing one of the world’s longest migrations, making a yearly round trip of 15,000-20,000 km,” says Ms Hodgins.

“Over a lifetime, a gray whale migrates the equivalent distance of a return trip to the moon.

This incident is unfortunate in the fact that it raises more questions than answers.

Does this mean other animals that have gone extinct in the area may return?

Have other whales or even other whale species been sighted in the area that are no longer extant species of the area?

Scientists say that the world’s largest squid is not fast or not a fierce predator. The giant squid was feared as sea monster and it is rarely seen. It can reach up to 15m long and its eye is 11 in. across, and is thought to roam around in the deep waters of the Southern Oceans. Scientists believed that this squid was the “kraken” from the myths. On its tentacles it has swiveling hooks, and its eye is used to avoid predators and not used for hunting. Its main prey is Antarctic toothfish and a single 5kg toothfish would keep it nourished for 200 days.

I think that seeing a squid that big would be so bomb. It is amazing that something so big is not very fast or eats very much. It is pretty ridiculous that it only eats every 200 days and he is not even that big of a predator. That would be cool if there are a lot more of these huge squids.

Are there more of these big squids?

Why is it not more of a fearsome predator?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8664000/8664542.stm

“Heavy metals such as copper, lead and zinc find their way into Sydney Harbour from stormwater runoff, industrial waters and motorised watercraft. These seaweeds “bioaccumulate” metals inside their tissues and scientists use them to monitor environmental pollutants.” says Dr Emma Johnston

1) What actions are humans going to take to fix the metal contamination in seaweed?

2) How will this effect species higher in the food chain?

Do you think the Grey whales will return to the North Atlantic?

Will this effect the ocean habitat?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8672000/8672970.stm