Category: Coastal News

Quietly Sophisticated: The Hood 42 LM

8/3/2026 - By US Harbors At first glance, the Hood 42 LM might be confused for a boat that worked the Maine coast fifty years ago, but upon further inspection, the fifteen coats of Epifanes varnish over mahogany and custom-cast bronze hardware reveal that this boat was built for cruising. Beyond the… SEE MORE

Adelia Myrick harvesting kelp on her farm in Kodiak, Alaska.

Meet Alaska Sea Greens: Farmers, Fishers, and Homesteaders on Kodiak Island

7/24/2026 - By Fisheries.Noaa.Gov, fisheries.noaa.gov. If you want to visit Kodiak Island in Alaska, you have two options. You can take a flight from Anchorage, about 250 miles away, or take the Alaska Marine Highway Ferry from Homer, which takes about 10 hours. Kodiak is stunningly beautiful and very remote. For the… SEE MORE

Celebrating Habitat Month

7/21/2026 - By Fisheries.Noaa.Gov, fisheries.noaa.gov. July is Habitat Month at NOAA Fisheries! All month long, we’ll be sharing how we conserve and restore habitat to sustain our nation’s fisheries and support coastal communities. NOAA conserves habitats like wetlands, rivers, and coral reefs to support fisheries—but habitat isn’t valuable just for the home it provides for fish and wildlife.… SEE MORE

Sudden Danger: The Science And Stakes of Flash Flood Forecasting

7/2/2026 - By research.noaa.gov, research.noaa.gov. Though not as feared as tornadoes, hail, or lightning, flash floods are one of the deadliest weather hazards in the United States. While the number of fatalities can vary dramatically from year to year, the national average for flood deaths is 88. Lightning accounts for an average of… SEE MORE

Michael Peñuelas, a Seattle scuba diver, examines a large sunflower sea star in the Edmonds Marine Park in Puget Sound, Washington, in 2021. (Image credit: Courtesy of Zachary Gold)

New eDNA Tool To Help Track Recovery Of Sunflower Sea Star, a Pacific Coast ‘Apex Predator’

6/30/2026 - By noaa.gov, noaa.gov. A wasting disease that surged during the intense 2013-2016 Pacific marine heatwave known as the Blob decimated numerous species of sea stars and triggered the collapse of vast coastal kelp forests from the Aleutians to the Baja Peninsula. One of the species most affected was the sunflower sea star, an… SEE MORE

A fish-eye view of the wake of a ship out at sea. Here's an ocean fact: The surface layer of the ocean is teeming with photosynthetic plankton. Though they're invisible to the naked eye, they produce more oxygen than the largest redwood trees. (Image credit: NOAA)

What World Ocean Day Can Look Like in 100 Years

6/29/2026 - By noaa.gov, noaa.gov. More often than not, when we talk about ocean conservation, the conversation naturally gravitates toward what we stand to lose if we don’t act. This is only natural, as the urgency of the climate and biodiversity crises forces us to consider a future where our most cherished… SEE MORE

A person tends to oyster beds at an oyster farm in Wellfleet, Massachusetts. (Image credit: NOAA Fisheries)

NOAA Strengthens Commitment to Aquaculture Through New Cooperative Institute

6/28/2026 - By noaa.gov, noaa.gov. Today, NOAA announced the University of New Hampshire as host institution for the new NOAA Cooperative Institute Fostering Aquaculture Research and Markets (CIFARM) to expand NOAA’s impact and strengthen efforts to boost American seafood competitiveness. After a highly competitive application process, this new five-year cooperative institute will harness partnerships… SEE MORE

An aerial photo of the green waters of harmful algal bloom in western Lake Erie, July 20, 2020. (Image credit: Courtesy of Zachary Haslick, Aerial Associates)

Moderate Harmful Algal Bloom Predicted for Western Lake Erie

6/27/2026 - By noaa.gov, noaa.gov. NOAA and its research partners are forecasting a moderate harmful algal bloom (HAB) in western Lake Erie this summer. This year’s bloom is expected to measure 3.5 on the HAB severity index, with a potential range of 3 to 4.5. “Toxic algae affect not only the health… SEE MORE

Sailboat moored in Padanaram Harbor, South Dartmouth, MA at sunset

2026 Best Harbor Contest Winners Announced!

6/23/2026 - Padanaram, South Dartmouth, MA Wins Best Harbor Padanaram, Massachusetts is the Grand Winner, Best Harbor in the U.S. for 2026 Boaters and coastal enthusiasts in Padanaram, South Dartmouth, Massachusetts, got out the vote this year to take the prize as our Grand Winner, returning to the top spot in US… SEE MORE

Vessels from the West Coast squid fleet followed market squid north into Oregon as ocean waters warmed, leading Oregon to adopt its first regulations for squid fishing in the state. Photo courtesy of California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

7 Ways El Niño and Large Marine Heatwave Could Affect West Coast Marine Species

6/23/2026 - By fisheries.noaa.gov, fisheries.noaa.gov. A large marine heatwave has bathed parts of the West Coast in very warm ocean waters over the past year, breaking temperature records in the Pacific. NOAA has also announced that El Niño has developed in the tropical Pacific and is predicted to intensify to a moderate or strong level this… SEE MORE