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Mission Blue Announces Gulf of California Expedition

Jacques Cousteau dubbed the Gulf of California, “the world’s aquarium.” The Gulf of California Hope Spot boasts about one-third of the world’s total number of marine mammal species, nearly 900 fish species about 90 of which are endemic to the area and more than 170 seabird species. While it is celebrated as one of the most diverse seas on the planet, much of the Gulf of California as we know it today is under threat from a variety of factors ranging from overfishing to coastal development.  In 2009, Dr. Earle named the Gulf of California one of her top “Hope Spot” locations and vowed to help bring attention and support to the region. By joining Mission Blue’s Gulf of California expedition this September, you will not only have the opportunity to see the area’s spectacular beauty and biodiversity first-hand, but you will help Mission Blue and Dr.…

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Throwback Thursday: Subs for Science

As Alvin embarks on it’s first post refit explorations in the Gulf of Mexico, we look back to our own Sustainable Seas Expedition. Mission Blue Director of Expeditions and Photography, Kip Evans takes us on a magic carpet ride into the deep.   ~ Ed.
In 1977, Alvin, the first untethered manned submersible, was used to confirm theories of seafloor spreading along the Mid-Atlantic ridge. Much to the amazement of scientists, the area was home to a thriving community of organisms living in extremely hot, sulfuric rich water. This discovery, along with hundreds of others, has made Alvin and other manned submersibles, one of the most valid oceanographic tools in the world.
During the past 30 years there has been a lot of debate about the need for using manned submersibles.…

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New Hope Spots to be Announced at IMPAC 3!

Next week, the Third International Marine Protected Area Congress (IMPAC 3) will convene in Marseille and Corsica. The Congress brings together major maritime stakeholders from around the globe to work together for the conservation and sustainable development of the oceans, and is the largest gathering of its kind ever held.
On Tuesday, October 22, Dr. Earle will host a celebration, “Hope for the Oceans with Dr. Sylvia Earle.” Mission Blue’s new global Hope Spot map will be unveiled, and Her Deepness has exciting Hope Spot news to share. Also appearing will be Dan Laffoley of IUCN and Mission Blue Board Director, Dr. Lance Morgan of Marine Conservation Institute, Jenifer Austin Foulkes, Manager, Explore the Ocean layer in Google Earth and Mission Blue Board Director,  Charlotte Vick of Mission Blue and Google Earth’s Explore the Ocean Layer and Kristina Gjerde of The Sargasso Sea Alliance and the High Seas Alliance.…

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Carl Safina Reports from the Gyre

No Refuge: Tons of Trash Covers The Remote Shores of Alaska
A marine biologist traveled to southwestern Alaska in search of ocean trash that had washed up along a magnificent coast rich in fish, birds, and other wildlife. He and his colleagues found plenty of trash – as much as a ton of garbage per mile on some beaches.
by Carl Safina
I am back ashore after an unusual expedition that brought scientists and artists to witness and respond to beach trash on the shores of southern Alaska. I have good and bad news.
The expedition was called GYRE, partly because much of the trash spins out of the North Pacific Ocean gyre, and partly because of the trip’s message: what goes around comes around.…

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Video of the Day ~ Mission Blue Cocos Expedition

Surrounded by deep waters and strong currents, Cocos Island has long been admired by scuba divers for its wealth of marine life. Large pelagic species are very abundant in the cool productive waters surrounding Cocos and divers often see large schools of hammerhead sharks, dolphin, tuna, and schools of snapper. Jacques Cousteau visited Cocos several times and raved about its incredible beauty. Cocos Island was declared a National Park by the Costa Rican government in 1978 and in 1997, UNESCO designated Cocos a world heritage site. In 2002, the surrounding waters were included under that protection. Despite its status as one of the most important marine conservation sites in the world, Cocos is still under pressure from illegal poaching of sharks, tuna, and other marine species.…

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Bay Area Teens Moonlight as Marine Photographers

This past weekend in San Francisco a group of 20 students from San Francisco’s Downtown High School and Stockton Collegiate International Secondary School in Stockton learned to use photography to document their journey from the Delta to the San Francisco Bay, learning about environmental issues related to the students’ water supply and the ocean, during a National Geographic Photo Camp. The project is a collaboration between National Geographic Mission Programs, Full Circle Fund, Restore the Delta and America’s Cup Healthy Ocean Project.
NGS Lead Instructor Kip Evans commented, “We spent four incredible days with these teens and I hope that we inspired them to use their cameras as a way to experience and see the world around them in a new way.”…

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Mesoamerican Reef – Swan Islands Expedition

July 16 – 24, 2011
“The goal of the July 2011 Mission Blue expedition to the Swan Islands was to explore and document the nature of marinelife in the surrounding waters and to support designation of the islands, known as the ‘Galapagos of the Caribbean,’ as a marine protected area.”   – Dr. Sylvia Earle
The Mesoamerican Reef was formed over the last 225 million years and extends from Isla Contoy on the north of the Yucatan Peninsula to the Bay Islands of Honduras. It is the second longest barrier reef in the world and unique in the Western hemisphere due to its length, composition of reef types, and diverse assemblage of corals and related species. It hosts more than 65 species of stony coral, 350 species of mollusk and more than 500 species of fish, including the mammoth whale shark—the largest fish in the world.…

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Gulf of California – Pangas Cruise

The Gulf of California is a large body of water that separates the peninsula of Baja California from the Mexican mainland. It is bordered by the states of Baja California, Sur, Sonora, Baja California and Sinaloa with a coastline of approximately 2,500 miles (4,000 km). The Gulf of California is also called the Sea of Cortés, which is preferred by most local residents. Jacques Cousteau dubbed the Gulf of California, “the world’s aquarium,” because it boasts approximately one-third of the world’s total number of marine mammal species, nearly 900 fish species (about 90 of which are endemic to the area) and more than 170 seabird species.
In 2010, Expeditions Director Kip Evans joined the Panagas program for a week long cruise through the Gulf of California.…

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Holbox

During July of 2009, the SEA team was on and around the island of Holbox as part of a research expedition to better understand the largest fish on earth.
Whale sharks are widely distributed in all tropical and warm temperate seas throughout the world. Their distribution in these warm tropical waters is linked to the high productivity of these areas, i.e. dense concentrations of plankton. One particular island off the coast of Mexico boasts a large population of migratory whale sharks. Isla Holbox (pronounced “hole-bosh”) was a well-kept secret until 6 years ago when whale sharks were discovered right off its coast. Although whale sharks are generally considered solitary animals, they congregate in the waters surrounding Holbox to feed and mate from May through September, earning the island’s designation as the top place in the world to see and swim with these ‘gentle giants’.…

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