Pacific Ocean
Latest Stories
![Sardines collected during 2023 NOAA Fisheries California Current Ecosystem Survey and later confirmed to include both Pacific sardines and Japanese sardines. The two species look alike and can be distinguished only through genetic analysis.](https://cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/opb/AX3TEJ2VXJBGFLAJNTMTOFHXJM.jpg)
Researchers find evidence of different sardine species off West Coast
Unusually warm waters in the North Pacific Ocean may have created a sort of bridge, allowing Japanese sardines to spend winter there, moving from their usual habitat in the West Pacific over to the East Pacific.
![A cloud of black smoke rises above a large fire at a building located on the shore of the Pacific Ocean in Southwest Washington.](https://opb-opb-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/N53YJJNHQBGTDHIMTF3SAL5OJQ.jpg?auth=4f99f7f542c1853cbec8ddc56c81fe1bc9bde112112e32db5b467f771fa90fce&width=150&height=84&smart=true)
Fire devastates Southwest Washington seafood facility
A massive fire broke out at a crab-landing facility in Pacific County on Monday, inflicting significant damage on the facility and destroying fishing gear ahead of Washington’s commercial Dungeness crab season.
![](https://opb-opb-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/Y5Z4T3T4TFHWDNQHU6K7U6V7CM.jpg?auth=c073860431498eee8a588818bef3326bf146b97e0764027f0928282a4c8f5133&width=150&height=84&focal=2174%2C437)
Life aboard the boat that keeps the ‘Graveyard of the Pacific’ clear and Oregon’s economy moving
This time of year, the Essayons dredge helps keep the navigation channel clear at the Columbia River Bar, one of the most dangerous passageways on the Pacific.
![](https://opb-opb-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/WWVDQYMUT6VHK4DQP67AVDPQ24.jpg?auth=f36af00941fae085d7c0f590a5eb656d9df42e95e9d44cd58668e34f3ff4ae0a&width=150&height=84&smart=true)
Science & Environment
Scientists off the West Coast watch for whales — and their food
Scientists aboard the Bell M. Shimada keep an eye out for whales. One scientist hopes to help predict where whales will show up by studying the food they eat.
![](https://opb-opb-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/USJQK7VFGFGXNINRW6IWENYSTY.jpg?auth=806921f11e380c00a17219ec05c60da66917a0afd20437ff245bc5e419e5a84d&width=150&height=84&smart=true)
Tsunami advisory lifted for Oregon, Washington coasts, after high waves follow volcanic eruption in Pacific Ocean
An undersea volcano has erupted in spectacular fashion near the Pacific nation of Tonga. A tsunami advisory was in effect for the U.S. West Coast through most of the day Saturday, and remained in effect from the Oregon-California border to the San Diego area within the United States in the early evening hours.
![](https://opb-opb-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/OOSUNJ5GBNEADAMIH7J56K5IVE.jpg?auth=98d4526af1315ecdd15f67390e59cd218e0e8c3ee343602f25de1a8ff936ef43&width=150&height=84&smart=true)
Science & Environment
To help black oystercatchers, groups push for education — and a few new rules
Seen throughout the Oregon Coast, black oystercatchers are shorebirds that nest high up on large rocks. But as more visitors flock to the Coast, these birds face threats from human disturbance. Advocates think education — and in some places, new restrictions — will help.
![](https://opb-opb-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/FBJJPGCR5JFANCWPOHM6SOPZ74.jpg?auth=a8902b52404eb4f10fffe8cfdc3ba08c772142a9345836b630904e142a53c6e2&width=150&height=84&focal=667%2C722)
How Reagan’s oil push led to the Oregon way of coastal habitat protection
In the 1980s when President Ronald Reagan pushed for offshore oil, Oregon pushed back. Reagan’s oil agenda inspired the state to create new policy to protect its shores.
![](https://opb-opb-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/ZMGPZB5MUVHL3J7BCIOQB3SMJI.jpg?auth=54b51f362d0c3eeb8f44dacf0d1f3a0ba928ee903faac409773d67bef0abdd27&width=150&height=84&smart=true)
Science & Environment
Saving Oregon’s rocky coast: Checking in on the sea stars
Scientists don’t know why some types of sea stars are returning to Oregon while others were hit so hard by disease they’re critically endangered. Continued research at places like Cape Blanco on Oregon’s South Coast could provide insights.
Oregon Field Guide
Meet the Oregon Coast Aquarium’s ‘jelly mom’
Behind the scenes of the strange and surreal world of the sea jelly, formerly known as jellyfish.
Science & Environment
Fake US leg band gets pigeon a reprieve in Australia
A pigeon that Australia declared a biosecurity risk has received a reprieve after a U.S. bird organization declared its identifying leg band is fake.