Oceanography

Marine heat waves can make summer heat even worse. New climate research shows that unusually warm ocean conditions don’t just damage marine ecosystems — they can also intensify extreme heat on land. In this episode, Mr. Hirotaka Sato, a Japan Meteorological Agency climate scientist explains how marine heat waves form, why the ocean stores most of Earth’s excess heat, and how a 2023 marine heat wave near northern Japan amplified record-breaking temperatures onshore. Learn the mechanisms behind ocean–atmosphere heat transfer, reduced cloud cover, humidity feedbacks, and weakened sea-breeze cooling. The discussion connects sea surface temperature, climate feedback loops, and extreme weather risk — and explains why warming oceans matter for future heat waves, forecasting, and public safety.

Support our science communication by joining us on Patreon or sending us a gift on PayPal

Special thanks to the Monterey Bay Aquarium for sponsoring this episode.

Episode Guests: Mr. Hirotaka Sato
Find the article we discussed, Impact of an unprecedented marine heatwave on extremely hot summer over Northern Japan in 2023.
Review Mr. Sato’s publications on Google Scholar
Visit the Japan Meterological Agency’s Website
JMA Annual Report on Extreme Cliamte Events
JMA Report on Climate Change in Japan 2025
Episode Transcript and more information on the Pine Forest Media website
Follow Pine Forest Media on Instagram @pineforestmedia
Hosted, produced, and edited by Clark Marchese
Cover art by Jomiro Eming
Theme music by Nela Ruiz
Find some more Pine Forest Media podcasts below:

Listen to South Pole on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Listen to Plastic Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Listen to Something in the Water on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How oil research protects ocean health. Understanding oil spills, offshore drilling, and marine pollution starts before any accident happens. In this episode, marine microbial oceanographer Dr. Alice Ortmann explains how scientists collect baseline ocean data to measure ecosystem health in oil and gas regions offshore Newfoundland. The conversation covers what counts as an oil spill, how oil and methane move through the water column, why microbes are essential for breaking down hydrocarbons, and how baseline measurements help scientists assess impact, recovery, and long-term change. This episode explores environmental response science, ocean resilience, and how oil research informs regulation, preparedness, and protection of fisheries and marine ecosystems—without alarmism, and grounded in real data.

Support our science communication by joining us on Patreon or sending us a gift on PayPal

Special thanks to the Monterey Bay Aquarium for sponsoring this episode.

Episode Guests: Dr. Alice Ortmann
Connect with Dr. Ortamnn on LinkedIn
Find Dr. Ortmann’s publications on Google Scholar
Visit the Marine Microbiome Forum

Episode Transcript and more information on the Pine Forest Media website
Follow Pine Forest Media on Instagram @pineforestmedia
Hosted, produced, and edited by Clark Marchese
Cover art by Jomiro Eming
Theme music by Nela Ruiz

Find some more Pine Forest Media podcasts below:
Listen to South Pole on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Listen to Plastic Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Listen to Something in the Water on Spotify or Apple Podcasts

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A legendary research ship’s final sail. For nearly 50 years, the R/V Endeavor served as a floating laboratory for ocean science—supporting 700+ expeditions, training generations of students, and enabling research from CTD/rosette water sampling to seafloor mapping, deep-sea coring, and long-term climate and ecosystem monitoring. In this episode, the ship’s operations manager Brendan Thornton and longtime captain Chris Arminetti take listeners behind the scenes of life aboard a UNOLS research vessel: the tight-knit 12-person crew, the evolution from “go dark at sea” to Zoom offshore, and what it felt like to retire a ship with a million+ miles in her wake. Plus: what comes next for the fleet and ocean stewardship.

Support our science communication by joining us on Patreon or sending us a gift on PayPal

Special thanks to the Monterey Bay Aquarium for sponsoring this episode.

Episode Guests: Brendan Thorton and Chris Armanetti
Learn more about the R/V Endeavor Here:
Meet the next chapter: the Narragansett Dawn
Discover the University of Rhode Island’s Oceanographic Research here

Episode Transcript and more information on the Pine Forest Media website
Follow Pine Forest Media on Instagram @pineforestmedia
Hosted, produced, and edited by Clark Marchese
Cover art by Jomiro Eming
Theme music by Nela Ruiz

Find some more Pine Forest Media podcasts below:

Listen to South Pole on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Listen to Plastic Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Listen to Something in the Water on Spotify or Apple Podcasts

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

COP30’s biggest fault lines, explained.
In this final installment of our COP30 arc, we zoom out from Belém to map the conference’s defining tensions: ambitious speeches versus stalled outcomes, science-led urgency versus market-led “solutions,” and the growing leadership of the Global South. We unpack why carbon markets remain so contested, what “net zero” really allows, and how China’s energy transition is reshaping the politics of global climate action. Then we go deep on the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF)—a headline proposal to pay nations to keep forests standing—through a clear-eyed climate justice critique from Carola Mejía of LATINDADD. We close with what COP30 did (and didn’t) deliver—and what to watch next.

Support our science communication by joining us on Patreon or sending us a gift on PayPal

10 New Insights in Climate Science
Nation article
No mention of fossil fuels
1600 + fossil fuel lobbyists at COP 30
Indigenous Flotilla
Climate Home News Indigenous access to COP30
Climate Tracker Report

Episode Guest: Carola Mejía
Latindadd
TFFF: A False Solution
Asamblea Against the TFFF
Devex: TFFF Origin Story

Hosted, produced, and edited by Clark Marchese
Cover art by Jomiro Eming
Theme music by Nela Ruiz
Follow Pine Forest Media on Instagram @pineforestmedia and find more resources on our website
Find some more Pine Forest Media podcasts below:

Listen to South Pole on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Listen to Plastic Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Listen to Something in the Water on Spotify or Apple Podcasts

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The ocean took center stage at COP30. This episode of Oceanography explores how ocean science, policy, and lived experience shaped the climate conversations at COP30 in Belém, Brazil. From marine carbon dioxide removal and blue carbon ecosystem restoration to funding gaps and governance challenges, the episode traces how the ocean is increasingly framed as both a climate solution and a site of urgent risk. It also examines what COP30 delivered for the ocean, where progress was made, where ambition fell short, and why adaptation, finance, and follow-through remain unresolved. Grounded in reporting from the Ocean Pavilion and informed by broader analysis, this episode reflects on what it really means for oceans to rise on the global climate agenda.

Support our science communication by joining us on Patreon or sending us a gift on PayPal

Follow Pine Forest Media on Instagram @pineforestmedia
Hosted, produced, and edited by Clark Marchese
10 New Insights in Climate Science for 2025 by Future Earth
Cover art by Jomiro Eming
Theme music by Nela Ruiz
Find some more Pine Forest Media podcasts below:

Listen to South Pole on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Listen to Plastic Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Listen to Something in the Water on Spotify or Apple Podcasts

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.