The Ocean Brief

Ocean stories and insights covering science, policy, innovation, and the ocean community

Climate Crisis, Technology Samantha Andrews Climate Crisis, Technology Samantha Andrews

BLUE-X: harvesting Earth Observation data for offshore renewables

Seven European partners, including offshore renewable energy and Earth Observation specialists, have teamed up for the BLUE-X project. Together, they will develop a satellite-based decision support tool to accelerate offshore renewable energy deployments. This is the first ​​blue energy Horizon Europe project funded by the EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA).

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Climate Crisis, Animals & Plants Samantha Andrews Climate Crisis, Animals & Plants Samantha Andrews

Bacteria linked to mass death of sea sponges weakened by warming Mediterranean

In 2021, divers off the Turkish Aegean coast first observed dark stinging sponges dying in great numbers. Researchers have now sampled three species of pathogenic Vibrio bacteria, previously known to infect unrelated marine animals, from diseased and dying sponges. Evidence suggests that vibriosis may be a secondary illness that affects already weakened sponges, but is not necessarily the primary agent of the novel disease.

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