oceans

Rip currents have turned deadly this summer. Here’s how to spot them and what to do if you’re caught in one.

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The greatest danger lurking in the waves at the beach this summer isn’t a shark — it’s a rip current.  About 100 people drown from rip currents along U.S. beaches each year, according to the United States Lifesaving Association. And more than 80% of beach rescues annually involve rip currents. Rip currents have already turned … Read more

Scientists Have Been Freezing Corals for Decades. Now They’re Learning How to Wake Them Up

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This story originally appeared in Hakai and is part of the Climate Desk collaboration. Arah Narida leans over a microscope to gaze into a plastic petri dish containing a hood coral. The animal—a pebbled blue-white disk roughly half the size of a pencil eraser—is a marvel. Just three weeks ago, the coral was smaller than … Read more