Tag

Pacific Ocean

All articles tagged with #pacific ocean

weather1 day ago•3 min saved

Tropics Roar to Life: Nine Storms Under Watch Across Atlantic and Pacific

Forecasters are tracking nine storms/potential systems—seven in the Pacific and two in the Atlantic—as hurricane season intensifies. In Hawaii, Moke weakened to a tropical depression offshore, bringing heavy rain and gusts; Lala remains a tropical storm after 12 days; Iselle formed and could briefly reach hurricane strength before dissipating. Four additional Pacific disturbances are being watched, including one with a 70% seven‑day development chance and another with a 30% chance. In the Atlantic, a system southeast of Bermuda has about a 50% chance of forming within 48 hours to seven days, and a tropical wave off Africa may also develop as it moves westward. El Niño is complicating formation in the Atlantic, but tropical development remains possible.

via USA Today|

#atlantic-ocean #hawaii #hurricane-season

weather7 days ago•19 min saved

Lala’s blow to Hawaii hints at a busier Pacific storm season ahead

Hawaii endured Lala, a rare hurricane that dumped two to three feet of rain on parts of the Big Island and damaged homes, bridges, and schools, with no reported loss of life. Now weakened to a tropical storm, Lala could be a warning of several more impactful Pacific storms through August, as ocean waters remain exceptionally warm due to El Niño, marine heat waves, and climate change, with potential activity near Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands and moisture reaching California, signaling a marathon of the eastern and central Pacific hurricane season.

via The Washington Post|

#climate-change #hawaii #hurricanes

world-news9 days ago•24 min saved

US Shifts Final Pacific Carrier to Back Iran Operation Epic Fury

The United States is moving its last aircraft carrier out of the Pacific to replace the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Middle East, redeploying the USS George Washington to support Operation Epic Fury in Iran after Lincoln’s extended deployment amid concerns over crew morale and supplies. The shift signals a pivot away from the Western Pacific, prompting warnings from analysts that China could be emboldened, while highlighting Navy bottlenecks at carrier yards as forces are reoriented to respond where needed.

via New York Post|

#aircraft-carrier #iran #navy

science18 days ago•3 min saved

Pacific Ocean: Earth's vast, seismically active engine of climate and life

Spanning roughly 60 million square miles, the Pacific Ocean holds more than half of Earth's freshwater, is bordered by the Ring of Fire with deep trenches like the Mariana, and its tectonic activity and current systems drive climate patterns such as El Niño and La Niña while supporting a vast range of marine life.

via discoverwildlife.com|

#el-nino #la-nina #mariana-trench

science22 days ago•14 min saved

Pacific Ocean on Track to Close, Potentially Forming the Amasia Supercontinent

Scientists say the Pacific Ocean is slowly shrinking as surrounding subduction zones consume ocean floor, with the water mass remaining constant. Computer models project the basin could close in about 200–300 million years, potentially forging a new supercontinent called Amasia as the Americas collide with Asia; other simulations suggest different futures. The process is geological and extremely gradual, not driven by climate change.

via The Times of India|

#amasia #geology #pacific-ocean

science25 days ago•3 min saved

Super El Niño Could Push 2026 Toward Record Cat 5 Hurricanes

A strengthening Super El Niño is driving an unusually active Pacific for 2026, producing multiple Category 5 storms including Dolphin (the year’s fifth), and putting the year on track to surpass the 1997 global Cat 5 record. NOAA expects above-normal Pacific activity while Atlantic activity remains relatively quiet, signaling a potential record-breaking year for Cat 5 hurricanes.

via Gizmodo|

#cat-5 #climate-change #el-nino

science1 month ago•7 min saved

Sunlight Dimming Could Dampen the Next El Niño

A modeling study proposes regional solar dimming through marine cloud brightening to cool the Pacific and lessen El Niño’s strength and global impacts, drawing on the 2019–2020 Australian bushfire smoke as a natural analogue; while potentially feasible as a targeted tool, experts warn about uncertain effects, political challenges, and the need for much more research before any real-world deployment.

via WIRED|

#climate-change #el-nino #geoengineering

national-security1 month ago•22 min saved

China tests sea-based nuclear capability with submarine-launched missile

China fired a long-range submarine-launched ballistic missile into the Pacific, marking its first known demonstration of a sea-based strategic nuclear strike capability and prompting alarm among U.S. allies.

via The Washington Post|

#china #foreign-policy #national-security

world1 month ago•4 min saved

China tests submarine-launched ballistic missile in Pacific, drawing regional concern

China’s navy fired a ballistic missile from a nuclear-powered submarine with a dummy warhead into the Pacific as part of its annual training, pre-notified to relevant governments. New Zealand said the missile landed in the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone, prompting condemnation from Australia and Japan and underscoring worries about Beijing’s expanding naval reach in the Asia-Pacific.

via Financial Times|

#asia-pacific-tensions #chinese-military #geopolitics

environment1 month ago•6 min saved

Pacific Ocean's heat wave could rewrite this winter’s weather

A vast Pacific marine heat wave spanning more than eight times the size of the contiguous U.S. and about 13.5% of Earth’s surface formed from a North Pacific anomaly and a growing El Niño. It could reshuffle weather this winter and spring, fueling Typhoon Bavi in the western Pacific and a potential heat dome over the western U.S. this summer, while pushing California coastal seas higher by roughly 6 inches to 2 feet and boosting rainfall and wildfire risk. Linked to the Pacific Meridional Mode and ongoing warming, global ocean heat has surged in recent decades, making extreme weather more likely.

via The Washington Post|

#climate-change #el-nino #environment

science2 months ago•7 min saved

Live Goblin Shark Filmed in Deep Pacific, Expanding Range and Depth

Scientists from UH Mānoa captured the first live footage of goblin sharks in their natural deep-sea habitat, with encounters near Jarvis Island and the Tonga Trench in the Central Pacific. The sightings widen the species’ known geographic and depth range, setting a new depth record for Lamniformes and confirming the goblin shark can live healthily in the wild beyond previously captured observations.

via SciTechDaily|

#biodiversity #deep-sea #goblin-shark

environment2 months ago•4 min saved

El Niño arrives with potential for record heat and coastal surprises

El Niño is officially underway and could be among the strongest on record, with a 63% chance of a very strong event from November through January. It’s expected to raise global temperatures, bring drought and heat to the Pacific Northwest, wetter winters to the South, and fuel marine heat waves that disrupt sea life and can shift species ranges along the West Coast; past events have included unusual marine visitors and even declines in plankton, while climate change continues to heighten overall warmth.

via NBC News|

#climate-change #el-nino #environment

world2 months ago•11 min saved

Eastern Pacific Storm Cristina Forms Off Nicaragua

NOAA satellite imagery shows Tropical Storm Cristina forming off the coast of Nicaragua in the eastern Pacific, with updates ongoing as of June 9, 2026.

via AP News|

#ap-news #nicaragua #noaa

world2 months ago•3 min saved

US hits another suspected drug-boat in the Pacific, two killed

The U.S. military released video of another strike on a boat suspected of smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific, killing two men and marking the fifth such attack in about a week, with total fatalities in these operations at least 207 since the campaign began. The military says the strikes target known smuggling routes under orders from Gen. Francis L. Donovan, while critics question legality and the evidence linking the vessels to drug trafficking, noting that fentanyl largely enters the U.S. by land. The White House says the actions are self-defense, and a Pentagon inspector general review will examine the targeting process (the six-phase Joint Targeting Cycle), not the overall legality of the strikes.

via CBS News|

#legality-critique #military-strike #narco-trafficking

science2 months ago•10 min saved

Pacific Ocean Dwarfs Land—and Is Quietly Shrinking

The Pacific Ocean is so vast it can swallow all Earth’s land (land area ~149 million sq km) with water to spare, with ocean-area estimates around 155–165 million sq km. A leftover water-free area of roughly 16 million sq km remains—larger than Russia. The ocean covers about two-thirds of the planet’s surface and, despite its enormity, is relatively shallow; through subduction the Pacific is slowly shrinking while the Atlantic widens, reminding us that Earth’s blue appearance is a dynamic, not fixed, fact. A common analogy even suggests Earth’s water would form a tiny sphere inside a ping-pong ball, underscoring how little of the planet is actually water relative to its size.

via Space Daily|

#blue-planet #earth-geometry #land-area