Oceanus

The ocean is brimming with sounds, from the crackle of snapping shrimp to the deep bellows of humpback whales.

Amelia Macapia, a WHOI guest investigator and a contributor for Oceanus Magazine, explains how studying acoustic ecology led her to fall into a deep love with the sea.

She tells her story in front of a live audience in Woods Hole for "Making Waves: A Science Story Slam," the culmination of a first-of-its-kind science storytelling workshop hosted by the Transom Story Lab and Atlantic Public Media in June 2025.

(Original photo by Liz Lerner, Artwork...

A WHOI marine chemist studies how mercury pollution in Colombia’s Amazon threatens the Indigenous way of life.

Story written and narrated by Rachel Mann.

Read the full story at https://go.whoi.edu/toxicgoldmining

We sit down with the WHOI Oceanographer Emeritus and one of the lead navigators on ocean explorer Robert Ballard's 1985 team to learn what the expedition was like and how it's impacted her life since.

Produced by Daniel Hentz with editing from Evan Lubofsky.

Audio from the discovery courtesy of WHOI Archives and the National Deep Submergence Facility (NDSF).

WHOI scientists are part of a team working to turn seaweed into biofuel.

Written by Alison Pearce Stevens and narrated by Scott Dickson.

Read along by going to https://go.whoi.edu/seaweedfuel

Photography by Jennifer Adler, © Jennifer Adler Photography.

WHOI marine chemist Collin Ward weighs in on concerns about the longevity of plastic waste.

Written by Alison Pearce Stevens. Narrated by Scott Dickson.

Image courtesy of Unsplash.

Meet the WHOI marine superintendent behind the iconic explosion in Spielberg's thriller, Jaws.

Written by Evan Lubofsky. Narrated by Hannah Piecuch.

Read along by going to: https://go.whoi.edu/behindtheblast

A manatee’s odyssey and the role of currents in marine mammal conservation.

Written and read by Daniel Hentz.

Artwork by Charin Park, © Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

Read along by going to https://go.whoi.edu/savingtico

WHOI whale biologist Mark Baumgartner weighs in on the impacts of offshore wind development.

Written by Alison Pearce Stevens. Narrated by Rowan Quince Buckton.

Whale call recordings were taken from the Watkins Marine Mammal Database. They include (in order) the humpback whale and the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale.

Read along at https://go.whoi.edu/offshorewindwhale

The name of a newly discovered species pays tribute to Cervantes’ Don Quixote, reinforcing themes of sweetness and beauty.

Written by Evan Lubofsky. Narrated by Scott Dickson. (Illustration by Felipe Gamonal at Instituto Milenio de Oceanografia)

Click the link to read along: https://go.whoi.edu/donquixote

A drift bottle released in 1968 to study ocean currents was found on a Maine beach. What have we learned about these marine highways since this early experiment began?

Written by Evan Lubofsky. Narrated by Scott Dickson.

Read along: https://go.whoi.edu/bottle71645

(Photo by Jan Hahn, © Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

Don't let their awkward waddle fool you. Emperor penguins have evolved ingenious ways to stay warm, feed their young, and forage in deep water, all while living in the world's most inhospitable continent. Find out how these iconic sea birds earned their royal reputation.

Written and narrated by Elise Hugus | Artwork by Natalie Renier, © Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

Penguin soundbites are from video footage Courtesy of Stephanie Jenouvrier, © Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

What does it take to be the world's southernmost living mammal? Guts, grit, and...super milk? Learn what makes the Weddell seal one of the toughest—and cutest—animals to ever flop around the Antarctic coast.

Written and narrated by Daniel Hentz | Artwork by Natalie Renier, © Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

Special thanks to our friends at Montana State University and the Erebus Bay Weddell Seal Population Study for providing the seal recordings heard in this episode—NMFS Permits No. 1032-1917 and No. 26375 according to their chronological appearance in the story.

You can check out the...

The flying style of the wandering albatross is legendary, as is its commitment to love. Learn about this iconic seabird and the human activity threatening its survival.

Written and narrated by Hannah Piecuch | Artwork by Natalie Renier, © Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

As seasonal landfast ice dwindles in the Arctic, towns in the high north are starting to feel the sting of increased wave activity and dangerous storms. To help track changes to coastal ice, WHOI assistant scientist Maddie Smith and a team led by Sandia National Laboratories are using a novel method to measure wave activity using lasers and internet cables on the Alaskan seafloor.

Written and narrated by Daniel Hentz. 
Read the full article: https://go.whoi.edu/cabledocean

WHOI experts dig into a popular misconception that the Arctic is always frigid.

Narrated by Scott Dickson
Original story written by Alison Pearce Stevens. Click here to read the full story: https://go.whoi.edu/4ya11c

The humble origins of human-occupied submersible Alvin began alongside Cheerios and Wheaties in the General Mills factory.

Narrated by Hannah Piecuch
Original piece written by Amy E. Nevala

Read the article here: https://go.whoi.edu/championsub

WHOI researcher Martin Arostegui tracks how spearfish take advantage of local currents to find food.

Read the full article: https://go.whoi.edu/trackingfish

What’s causing a contagious cancer to spread among clams along Cape Cod? WHOI scientists investigate.

Read the full story: https://go.whoi.edu/puzzlingmollusk

Not long ago, Victorian-age explorers celebrated the notion of an ice-free Arctic in hopes of finding faster shipping routes between Europe and Asia. Instead, they would find an impassable ice field and treacherous glaciers. Today, warming from climate change is on track to create these once-fabled ice-free days in the Arctic. 

Has the once-celebrated prospect of an ice-less Arctic come back to bite us?

Read the full story written by Evan Lubofsky: https://go.whoi.edu/openpolarsea

Oceanus writer Hannah Piecuch details an intimate encounter with creatures of the open sea while on a swim near Cornwall, England.

Read the full story here: https://go.whoi.edu/underwaterstarfield

Startling scientific reports show how a warming planet could ground the Gulf Stream—a major cog in the Atlantic Ocean's circulation—to a halt. But is the likelihood of such a shutdown being exaggerated?

WHOI physical oceanographer Robert Todd weighs in.

Read the full story written by Alison Pearce Stevens: https://go.whoi.edu/gulfshutdown

WHOI economist Yaqin Liu weighs in on the scourge of illegal fishing and what can be done to catch offenders.

Read the full story written by Daniel Hentz: https://go.whoi.edu/illegalfishing