Category: Coastal News

Large waves crash over a jetty as a large coastal storm bears down on the region on March 2, 2018 in Scituate, Massachusetts. A powerful nor'easter is bringing snow, rain and high wind to much of the U.S. Northeast. (Image credit: Scott Eisen/Getty Images)

Weekend nor’easter likely to bring damaging winds, coastal flooding

9/26/2026 - By noaa.gov, noaa.gov. Forecasters at NOAA’s National Weather Service (NWS) are monitoring a powerful nor’easter bringing damaging wind gusts and dangerous coastal flooding to the Northeast this weekend. The New York City metro area and New Jersey may be especially impacted by this storm. A rapidly deepening storm along the… SEE MORE

Endangered insular false killer whale HIPc0280 with her new calf. Credit: Captain Zodiac/Andrea McCormick (NOAA Fisheries Permit #26596)

Seeing Double: Good News for Rare False Killer Whales in Hawaiʻi

9/24/2026 - By fisheries.noaa.gov, fisheries.noaa.gov. Research partners spotted two endangered main Hawaiian Islands insular false killer whale calves this year, and they’re starting to grow up! This is a rare and exciting discovery for this small, resident population of only about 140 individuals [caption id="" align="alignright" width="437"] Range of the endangered main… SEE MORE

A scientist captures thousands of digital images to build a 3-D reef model during the 2026 National Coral Reef Monitoring Program survey at Swains Island. Credit: NOAA Fisheries.

2026 Pacific Coral Surveys Complete

9/23/2026 - By fisheries.noaa.gov, fisheries.noaa.gov. NOAA scientists returned from American Samoa and the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument after conducting coral reef monitoring surveys. The team sailed south from Honolulu to Jarvis Island, Palmyra Atoll, and Kingman Reef, where they completed their suite of surveys. After a 2,000 kilometer transit down… SEE MORE

Sugar Creek flows over a dam initially created with beaver dam analogues to help improve habitat for coho salmon and other wildlife. Photo courtesy of Scott River Watershed Council.

Start-Up Beaver Dams Transform Parched California Creeks into Salmon Havens, New Research Finds

Coastal News

9/17/2026 - By fisheries.noaa.gov, fisheries.noaa.gov. Battered by early gold mining and diminished by logging and diversions,the lower section of Sugar Creek often ran dry in summer. The tributary of the Scott River in Northern California’s Klamath Basin once supported coho salmon—but as it diminished, so did they. In 2014, NOAA Fisheries researchers… SEE MORE

Concrete Ships Hiding in Plain Sight: The Forgotten Breakwaters of America’s Harbors

9/11/2026 - By Jordan Hanssen, best4boats. There's a good chance a concrete ship is lurking in your local harbor — and you've never noticed. Built during both World Wars when steel was scarce, concrete vessels served as tankers, barges, and cargo carriers before finding a remarkably durable second life as breakwaters in… SEE MORE

Is Offshore Construction Noise Stressing New England’s Lobsters? WHOI Scientists Want to Know

9/8/2026 - By Kiran Johnson, whoi.edu. As offshore wind farms multiply along the New England coast, a question with real consequences for one of the region's most valuable fisheries is getting its first rigorous scientific investigation: does the noise from wind farm construction affect the American lobster? WHOI scientists are working alongside… SEE MORE

Coastally-trapped Kelvin waves, a signature of El Niño, traveled north along the West Coast during the 1997/1998 El Niño, as shown in a map of sea surface height anomalies. Darker reds show sea levels higher than normal, while darker blues show heights below normal. Scientists are now watching for similar waves to move up the West Coast this fall. Credit: Dillon Amaya/North Carolina State University

Ocean Indicators Help Track El Niño’s Arrival on the West Coast

9/5/2026 - By fisheries.noaa.gov, fisheries.noaa.gov. Has El Niño reached the West Coast? You might think it has. After all, the ocean off Southern and Central California is unusually warm. But that is from a recent marine heatwave predates the current El Niño. Much of the Pacific Coast is experiencing relatively normal conditions while still… SEE MORE

Docked fishing boats at Yaquina Bay, Newport, Oregon. Credit: iStock

Agency Reforms Aim to Restore American Seafood Competitiveness

9/3/2026 - By fisheries.noaa.gov, fisheries.noaa.gov. On July 2, 2026, NOAA Fisheries sent Regional Priorities guidance, providing the regional fishery management councils a clear roadmap of actions designed to reduce regulatory burdens and better support the health of the seafood industry, while maintaining the public trust duty to maintain stock and ocean ecosystem health.… SEE MORE

The Sacramento River near the main spawning area of winter-run Chinook salmon blocked by dams from their original mountain spawning habitat. The Sundial Bridge in Redding rises in the background. Credit: Larisa Thacher/UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences

A Secret to Survival for California’s Most Endangered Salmon

8/28/2026 - By fisheries.noaa.gov, fisheries.noaa.gov. Traditional field research combined with new technology has revealed a secret to the survival of juvenile salmon as they form in their eggs, especially in low-water years when many do not survive, new research from NOAA Fisheries and the University of California, Davis shows. Sacramento River winter-run… SEE MORE

Measuring a 'dead zone': Scientists retrieve the CTD (conductivity, temperature, depth) package of ocean sensors after profiling dissolved oxygen at a station during the Shelfwide Hypoxia Cruise in the Gulf of America. (Image credit: Courtesy of Cassandra Glaspie/LSU)

NOAA and Partners Find Smaller-than-Anticipated Hypoxic Zone in Gulf of America

Coastal News

8/25/2026 - By fisheries.noaa.gov, fisheries.noaa.gov. NOAA-supported scientists announced today that this year’s Gulf of America hypoxic zone is approximately 1,332 square miles, making it the 2nd smallest zone on record in 40 years of measurement. Hypoxic areas, also called “dead zones,” are areas with little to no oxygen in the water, which… SEE MORE