Breaking Waves: Ocean News

03/22/2026 - 21:51
A convoy of seven trucks and one semi-trailer carrying cattle feed has brought much-needed relief to flood-affected graziers in north-west Queensland. Many in the area have not been able to leave their farms for weeks as flood waters forced road closures. Tens of thousands of cattle have also been lost in the floods that have affected the region since January. The charity group Rapid Relief Team organised the free cattle feed as well as a community catchup event. It was the first time since January that many farmers were able to talk with their neighbours face-to-face Just two flavours of chips and pub theme nights: how these isolated Queensland towns have survived being cut off for weeks Continue reading...
03/22/2026 - 19:01
The whole ecosystem inside a cave feeds off guano, dead bats, or any dead animals on the ground. It’s not for the faint-hearted It can be daunting entering a cave. It is an underground world that possibly hasn’t been explored before. The first smell that hits you is guano (or bat poo). Some of these caves host millions of bats – you can hear them chirping above, hanging in the darkness, and occasionally flying around. It always seems like night-time inside a cave because it’s pitch black. The walls are covered in interesting creatures such as tailless whip scorpions, which look like a cross between a spider and crab (they look dangerous, but are not), as well as millipedes and centipedes. The whole ecosystem feeds off guano, dead bats, or any dead animals on the ground. It’s not for the faint-hearted. Continue reading...
03/22/2026 - 07:00
Survivors describe how rangers and staff were targeted by an armed group during a raid on DRC’s national park earlier this month Nearby Congolese soldiers had received warnings of the attack in the morning. But the soldiers did not arrive until late in the evening, long after the killings were over. It happened before dawn on Tuesday 3 March, as a dozen rangers at Upemba national park headquarters were being briefed by their commander before the day’s routine anti-poaching patrol. At 5.40am machine-gun fire began to rattle out of the surrounding darkness. Continue reading...
03/22/2026 - 07:00
There are flooding rains in Hawaii, rare snow in Alabama and a severe heatwave in the west coast Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox The US is experiencing a striking mix of weather extremes this March. Flooding rains in Hawaii, rare snow in Alabama, flip-flopping temperatures in the north-east and, perhaps most concerning, a severe heatwave affecting the west coast are raising questions about how strange these patterns really are, and what role the climate crisis is playing. Experts suggested that people around the US need to pay closer attention to the climatecrisis and do what they can to “minimize the impacts”. Continue reading...
03/21/2026 - 19:48
Antibiotics are accumulating in a major Brazilian river, especially during the dry season when pollution becomes more concentrated. Scientists even detected a banned drug inside fish sold for food, raising concerns about human exposure. A common aquatic plant showed promise in removing these chemicals from water—but it also altered how fish absorb them, creating unexpected risks.
03/21/2026 - 07:00
Exclusive: War in the Middle East is draining the global carbon budget faster than 84 countries combined The US-Israel war on Iran is a disaster for the climate, according to an analysis that finds it is draining the global carbon budget faster than 84 countries combined. As warplanes, drones and missiles kill thousands of people, level infrastructure and turn the Middle East into a gigantic environmental sacrifice zone, the first analysis of the climate cost has found the conflict led to 5m tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions in its first 14 days. Continue reading...
03/20/2026 - 15:22
Heavy rains have pummeled the Hawaiian island of Oahu and triggered the worst flooding the island has in 20 years Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox Towering flash floods and an imminent dam failure in the northern part of Oahu triggered mass rescues and evacuation warnings in Hawaii on Friday, as the state continued contending with a powerful storm this week. The waters came on quickly in the middle of the night, and videos on social media captured inundated streets and cars being swallowed by the muddy flood waters. Continue reading...
03/20/2026 - 13:22
Martinez Lake, about 145 miles west of Phoenix, reached 110F (43.3C) on Thursday amid scorching south-west heat Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox A small community in the Arizona desert has broken a record for the highest March temperature ever recorded in the US, as the south-west bakes in a blistering late-winter heatwave. The astonishing temperature was recorded just outside Martinez Lake, Arizona, which reached 110F (43.3C) on Thursday, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). Continue reading...
03/20/2026 - 13:22
Martinez Lake, about 145 miles west of Phoenix, reached 110F (43.3C) on Thursday amid scorching south-west heat Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox A small community in the Arizona desert has broken a record for the highest March temperature ever recorded in the US, as the south-west bakes in a blistering late-winter heatwave. The astonishing temperature was recorded just outside Martinez Lake, Arizona, which reached 110F (43.3C) on Thursday, according to the National Weather Service. Continue reading...
03/20/2026 - 12:41
The insects covered its largest area since 2018, despite threats from habitat loss, climate crisis and pesticides The population of monarch butterflies in Mexico increased 64% this winter, compared with the same period in 2025, offering a glimmer of hope for an insect considered at risk of extinction. The figures, released this week by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Mexico, showed that the area occupied by monarchs expanded to 2.93 hectares (7.24 acres) of forest from 1.79 hectares (4.42 acres) the previous winter, the largest coverage since 2018. Continue reading...