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A school of fish swims by coral reefs at the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland
Image: Matt Curnock/James Cook University/AFP

Oceans

Oceans cover more than two-thirds of the surface of the planet. They are at risk due to pollution, overfishing and other forms of damage such as deep-sea mining, oil and gas drilling. How can we protect our oceans?

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All Content on this topic

Hannover Messe 2016 robotic prosthetics

Nano pitch: engineering ideas and innovations

Young engineers and scientists are always working on new products. Here's four we bumped into at the 2016 Hanover Fair.
May 9, 2016
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Largest self-driving ship in the world

The Pentagon showed off the "Sea Hunter" on Monday.
May 3, 201601:00 min
Brazil's Amazon delta

Reefs discovered at mouth of the Amazon

Scientists have found unique reef ecosystems under the gloomy waters beneath outflow from the Amazon River.
April 25, 2016
Kalifornien San Francisco Solar Impulse 2

Solar Impulse 2 lands in California

The sun-powered airplane Solar Impulse 2 has landed in California after 62 hours of continuous flying from Hawaii.
April 24, 2016
Lionfisch / Rotfeuerfisch

Fighting lionfish

The Honduran island of Roatan is trying everything to control invasive lionfish - even hand-feeding them to sharks.
April 19, 2016
Myanmar Moken Kinder

Race against time in Myanmar

Sea nomads and scientists are banding together to save Myanmar's island paradise.
April 19, 2016
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (R) and King Salman of Saudi Arabia (L) at a reception ceremony in Egypt.

Saudi king plans to build bridge to Egypt

The plan appears to run counter to Egypt's 1979 peace treaty with Israel.
April 8, 2016
Sardine shoal from below (Picture: picture alliance/Mary Evans Picture Library)

Plankton on the decline

Plankton is the basis for the entire marine food chain - and it is undergoing changes.
April 4, 2016
A before and after image of the bleaching in American Samoa (Photo: XL Catlin Seaview Survey)

Threat to Great Barrier Reef corals

Many reefs worldwide face permanent destruction due to coral bleaching. Loss of reefs would impact millions of people.
March 31, 2016
Catch from an illegal drift net (© Sea Shepherd Global/Tim Watters)

Feast today, famine tomorrow

Bycatch is leaving little for future generations - but one group has taken matters into its own hands.
March 22, 2016
Dead shark in net (© Sea Shepherd Global/Tim Watters)

One boat against an ocean of illegal fishing

Sea Shepherd patrols the South Indian Ocean to stop illegal driftnet fishing, bearing witness to the carnage of bycatch.
March 22, 20168 images
Protest against racism in Cape Town, South Africa.

South Africa's anti-racism week 'a drop in the ocean'

Racism is deeply rooted in modern South African society. Is the anti-racism campaign this week a drop in the ocean?
March 17, 2016
Fukushima workers in protective clothing stand outside reactor 4 as they continue the radiation decontamination process (Photo: Getty Images/C. Furlong)

Fukushima: radioactivity under control?

Five years ago, one of the largest nuclear disasters began in Fukushima. How is it now and what has been learned?
March 11, 2016

Harnessing energy from the ocean

Engineers on Scotland's Orkney Islands are finding ways to turn the power of waves, currents and tides into electricity.
March 9, 2016
BdW Global Ideas Bild der Woche KW 09/2016 Marseille Ausstellung Plastikmüll

What a mess!

March 4, 2016
Global Ideas Mexiko Kellnerin mit Languste

Hand-fished lobster

Lobsters are a popular lunch for humans and sharks, so conservationists in Mexico pushing for sustainable fishing.
February 23, 2016
Tuvalu

Living Planet: Blue ocean, blue Danube

This week on Living Planet we'll find out why global warming increases the threat from rising sea levels around the globe and we pay a visit to Romania’s Danube Delta, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that’s under threat of losing its unique biodiversity.
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 18, 201630:00 min
Überschwemmungen in Bangladesch

Ocean warming increases threat from rising seas

Unless emissions from the burning of fossil fuels are cut drastically in the very near future, 20 percent of the global population could find themselves living in areas at risk from rising seas, according to a new study. In an interview, two experts from Bonn university explain how climate change affects sea levels and why we should care.
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 18, 201606:45 min
Malediven Hauptstadt Male

Leading dissident jailed in Maldives

The leader of the Maldives' opposition has been sentenced to 12 years jail for inciting unrest.
February 17, 2016
Sentinel-3A Satellite

Inside the cleanroom: Europe's Sentinel-3A satellite

The European Space Agency launches Sentinel-3A, its new earth observation satellite, this week.
February 15, 2016
Überschwemmungen in Bangladesch

Warming oceans + rising seas = abandon city?

Recent research sheds more light on sea level rise - scientists are warning of migration and displacement.
February 12, 2016
Deutschland Schwarzwald Morgendunst Bergpanorama

Living Planet: New discoveries

This week on Living Planet: Scotland explores novel ways of harnessing ocean power, community food-sharing in Berlin comes under threat, and why researchers are trying to grow food in outer space.
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 11, 201630:00 min
Großbritannien Schottland Orkneyinseln Schaf Insel Westray

Harnessing ocean power

Scotland’s Orkney islands boast optimal conditions for harnessing energy from waves, currents and tides. Which is why scientists and engineers from around the world have been visiting the islands to test various technologies. Sandy Hausman traveled to the archipelago to find out what challenges lie ahead for countries hoping to harvest power from the sea.
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 11, 201607:10 min
BdW Global Ideas Bild der Woche KW 06/2016 England toter Pottwal

Big mystery

February 11, 2016
CSCL Indian Ocean

Container ship stuck near Hamburg freed

A container ship which had run aground in the Elbe River has been freed after two previous attempts had failed.
February 9, 2016
Nautilus Photo: MARUM Universität Bremen/LMU München/dpa

Freaky sea creatures discovered

Scientists dove down to 800-meter-deep waters in Australia's Coral Sea - and found some astonishing new species.
January 22, 2016
Symbolbild Verschmutzung der Meere

Plastics to outweigh fish in oceans by 2050

A new report says plastic rubbish will outweigh fish in the oceans by 2050 unless drastic recycling action is taken
January 20, 2016
Wal Pottwal Kadaver

Fathoming a whale's death

12 sperm whales were stranded on the North Sea coast last week - an autopsy provides some insight into cause of death.
January 19, 201611 images
Unglück Flug MH370 Suche - Gefundenes Schiffswrack

Shipwreck found instead of MH370

A shipwreck deep under the ocean's surface has been spotted during a sonar scan for MH370.
January 14, 2016
Icebergs in the South Atlantic Ocean near South Georgia Island (Photo: Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC)

Giant icebergs slow global warming

Researchers have found that the melting of giant icebergs creates a negative feedback loop that slows climate change.
January 12, 2016
22.12.2015 projekt zukunft Claire

Brilliant Minds - paleoecologist Claire Reymond

This researcher studies effects of climate change and ocean acidification on tropical coral reefs.
ScienceDecember 27, 201503:08 min
Indian women leave pots of milk as offerings during a ceremony for the victims of the 2004 earthquake and tsunami at Marina Beach in Chennai on december 26, 2015.

Indian Ocean nations mark tsunami anniversary

People in India, Thailand, Malaysia and Sri Lanka held memorial services to mark 11 years since the tragedy.
December 26, 2015
Invasive algae in Hawaii Photo: Rainer Dückerhoff

It's hard to be a coral in Hawaii

In addition to global warming, coral reefs in Hawaii are facing yet another threat: invasive algae.
December 21, 2015
Karte Indonesien Siwa Kolaka Englisch

Indonesia rescuers battle high seas

Rescue crews in Indonesia are battling high seas to rescue 120 passengers from a stricken boat in Sulawesi
December 19, 2015
Japan Walfang

Australia protests Japanese whale hunt

Australian leader Malcolm Turnbull is "very disappointed" at Japan's resumption of whaling in the Antarctic.
December 18, 2015
An aging walrus sits on a thin, melting platform of ice.

Arctic air hits highest temperatures since 1900

A new climate change report has said that the Arctic is experiencing dramatic changes, reflected in air temperatures.
December 16, 2015
COP21 Hans-Otto Pörtner

Hans-Otto Pörtner

„Even with a target of 1.5 degrees we will still lose around half our warm water coral reefs."
Nature and EnvironmentDecember 14, 2015
Strand Seychellen Palme

Tuna and tourism boost Seychelles economy

The Indian Ocean archipelago has made a remarkable recovery from bankruptcy.
December 8, 201503:08 min
An artist on a ladder in front of a finished mural of the ocean

Banksy meets Jacques Cousteau

The art collective PangeaSeed bring sea creatures to the streets in the name of marine conservation.
November 24, 2015
Benoît Lecomte will swim from Japan to the USA.

Green campaigner to swim across Pacific

A Frenchman who said "never again" after swimming the Atlantic is taking to the waves once more to cross the Pacific.
November 24, 2015
Ocean view

Protecting biodiversity in an island paradise

A BIOFIN initiative is helping support the Seychelles in its environmental protection efforts.
Nature and EnvironmentNovember 10, 2015
Südchinesisches Meer US Navy USS Lassen Zerstörer

US warns over South China Sea

The US will send its military "wherever" international law allows, an admiral says.
November 3, 2015
Bildergalerie Washed Ashore

Stunningly beautiful trash

A group in Oregon is creating beautiful art, raising awareness and cleaning up the beaches at the same time
October 31, 2015
wspray vom Saturn Mond Enceladus

Extraterrestrial ice shower as Cassini zips past Enceladus

Extraterrestrial ice shower for Cassini probe
ScienceOctober 28, 20158 images
09.09.2014 DW Made in Germany Brave Tern

Brave Tern: Working on the edge

Professionals from the world over join forces to build wind farms in the North Sea.
BusinessOctober 20, 201505:44 min
Coral reef

'Crunch time for corals'

Scientists monitoring a global coral bleaching event say climate change and El Nino pose a major threat to reefs.
October 16, 2015
Sun rise in Cologne onboard the Climate Sail boat (photo: DW/Sarah Steffen)

Educating on climate change

On its way to Paris for the UN climate summit, the "Climate Sail" educates people on climate change impacts to oceans.
October 16, 2015
Coral reef (photo: XL Catlin Seaview Survey)

Oceans under pressure

From corals and invasive algae to plastic waste, discarded fishing nets and a "Climate Sail" tour en route to Paris.
October 15, 201529:59 min
A group of traditional fishermen pull fishing nets (photo: EPA/HOTLI SIMANJUNTAK)

Protecting our oceans

Chile and the US announced they would create new marine sanctuaries. How significant is this for protecting our oceans?
October 15, 201504:49 min
Turtle trapped in a fishing net (photo: picture alliance/Mary Evans Picture Library)

Getting rid of discarded fishing nets

An initiative in the Philippines aims at cleaning up old discarded fishing nets by turning this into a source of income.
October 15, 201505:25 min