Tag - oceans

 
 

OCEANS

An artist rendering of Japan's first Arctic research vessel, "Mirai II"
JAPAN
Feb 22, 2024
Japan's first arctic research vessel to be named "Mirai II"
The name was selected from over 7,000 suggestions from the public.
Yasuhiro Otomo and Miku Narisawa during one of Odyssey Nature Japan's educational fishing programs.
PODCAST / deep dive
Feb 22, 2024
A young 3/11 survivor and her vow to protect the ocean
At 12, Miku Narisawa experienced a magnitude 9 earthquake and tsunami that destroyed her home. Now she is working to protect it.
A boat approaches a dead whale floating in Osaka Bay in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on Monday.
JAPAN
Feb 21, 2024
More whales getting stranded in Osaka Bay amid global warming
A narrowing of temperature difference between the Pacific Ocean and Osaka Bay is resulting in more of the mammals wandering into the region.
A team of experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency with scientists from China, South Korea and Canada observe baskets of fish to be taken as samples at Hisanohama Port in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, in October.
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2024
IAEA reaffirms Japan's treated water release in line with standards
The report was based on a review carried out in October by a task force comprising the agency's officials and independent experts from 11 countries.
An aerial view of islands in Palau
WORLD / Politics
Jan 24, 2024
Palau becomes first nation to ratify U.N. high seas treaty
The so-called High Seas Treaty was adopted by U.N. member states in June, after more than 15 years of discussions.
Fishers sort scallops aboard a French fishing trawler in the English Channel in 2021.
ENVIRONMENT / Oceans
Jan 18, 2024
Trawling the bottom of the ocean is kicking up tons of carbon dioxide
Many have opposed the practice for the damage it inflicts on seabed ecosystems, but new research shows that the climate also suffers.
Kotaro Seki, CEO of Ellange, in front of the truck that he uses to collect nets from fisheries
JAPAN / Society / OUR PLANET
Jan 7, 2024
Trash into treasure: Can fishing net waste be the future of fashion?
A pair of Japanese startups are looking to solve a problem for the nation's fisheries: What to do with old fishing nets.
Cargo ships wait in the anchor zone to cross the Panama Canal from the Pacific entrance near Panama City, Panama, on Sept. 1, 2023. Ships have been waiting for days as the congestion to cross from both sides increase due to intense droughts in the country.
WORLD / Society
Jan 3, 2024
Saving the Panama Canal will take years and cost billions, if it’s even possible
Climate change-induced drought is limiting the number of ships on the waterway, which handles about 46% of containers moving from Northeast Asia to the U.S. East Coast.
Devotees of Afro-Brazilian religions carry offerings to the sea as part of an annual rite in Rio de Janeiro on Dec. 29, 2023.
WORLD / Society
Jan 2, 2024
How to start the new year? Keep the sea goddess happy.
Followers of Afro-Brazilian religions have been displaced by New Year’s revelers. But they still find ways to make their offerings to the ocean.
An exhibition on marine life at COP28 in Dubai. The conversation around oceans and climate change was not the main focus of the conference, despite the key role oceans play in absorbing carbon.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 15, 2023
COP28, didn't the oceans deserve more attention?
Oceans are key to mitigating climate change and severely impacted by it. Yet they didn't take center stage at COP28 — though some progress was made.
Bluefin tuna at a fish market in Tottori Prefecture
JAPAN
Dec 10, 2023
Japan's large Pacific bluefin tuna catch limit to be raised in 2024
An international commission responsible for managing Pacific bluefin tuna stocks has decided to allow Japan to effectively increase its catch limit for larger sizes in 2024, reflecting a recovery in their population, the Japanese Fisheries Agency said Sunday.
The waves at Teahupo'o make it one of surfing's most hallowed venues, where big swells slam onto the shallow tropical reef creating perfect but ferocious tubes.
OLYMPICS / Surfing
Dec 2, 2023
Tahiti villagers say barge to build Olympic surf tower damages reef
Residents of Teahupo'o in October protested plans by Games organizers to build the 14-metre high aluminum tower to enable up to 40 people to watch
South Korean Environment Minister Han Wha-jin, Japanese Environment Minister Shintaro Ito and Chinese Ecology and Environment Minister Huang Runqiu pose for a photo during a meeting in Nagoya on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 4, 2023
At trilateral talks, Japan asserts Fukushima treated water is safe
Tokyo again emphasized the safety of the water, during a meeting of environment ministers involving China and South Korea.
Treated water diluted with seawater flows to a downstream water tank at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant during a second release in Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 2, 2023
Japan begins third release of treated Fukushima wastewater
The amount of water to be released in the latest round will be similar to the first and second, in which 7,810 tons of water was discharged.
Minamata Disease sufferers Suemi Sato (left) and her husband Hideki deliver a speech at a meeting of the parties of the Minamata Convention on Mercury in Geneva on Monday.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 1, 2023
Japan couple calls for broader action at Minamata treaty meeting
Hideki and Suemi Sato said they hoped people in the world will learn more about the dangers of mercury, in a speech they delivered jointly in Geneva.
Japan Coast Guard Commandant Shohei Ishii (on screen) makes a speech at the opening ceremony of the Coast Guard Global Summit in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 31, 2023
Coast guard leaders from over 100 nations gather at Tokyo summit
The two-day talks from Tuesday are set to focus on building a framework for international cooperation in maritime security.
A member of a team of experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency observes fish during a morning auction at Hisanohama Port in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, on Oct. 19.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 28, 2023
Fukushima water released without technical concerns, IAEA says
The U.N. nuclear watchdog wrapped up its safety review Friday, two months after the discharge began.
Gustavo Caruso (left), head of an International Atomic Energy Agency task force, speaks at a meeting with Japanese government officials at the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo on Tuesday, as the IAEA starts its safety review on the discharge of treated radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant into the sea.
JAPAN
Oct 24, 2023
IAEA conducts first safety review of Fukushima water since release
The IAEA task force involves experts from 11 countries, including China and Russia, which have severely criticized the discharge.
There are a lot of reasons for why the Pacific saury is becoming scarcer, including overfishing in international waters and changing ocean conditions.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Longform
Oct 23, 2023
A saury state: How the price of 'autumn's fish' skyrocketed
A fish so cheap and abundant that even the cats would ignore it, the Pacific saury is becoming a sought-after dish as stocks dwindle.
An inspector from the International Atomic Energy Agency observes crates of fish to be taken as samples from Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, on Thursday.
JAPAN
Oct 19, 2023
IAEA inspectors test Fukushima fish
China and Russia have banned Japanese seafood imports since the discharge began but Japan says it is safe, a view backed by the IAEA.

Longform

Rows of irises resemble a rice field at the Peter Walker-designed Toyota Municipal Museum of Art.
The 'outsiders' creating some of Japan's greenest spaces