MBARI

08/27/2026

Just casually reaching for a snack🍴⭐️⁠
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Perched atop a rocky outcropping, this basket star (Gorgonocephalus eucnemis) stretches out its arm to trap zooplankton and other particles of food drifting in the waters overhead.⁠
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A basket star’s repeatedly branching arms bear microscopic hooks and secrete sticky mucus to help grab planktonic prey. After snagging a morsel of food, the arm curls into a tight knot and passes it to the mouth beneath the star’s central disc.⁠
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Basket stars are especially common at seamounts. These underwater mountains deflect the currents running along the deep seafloor, concentrating food and supporting a rich community of life. Corals and sponges thrive on seamount slopes and provide refuge for countless fishes and invertebrates. ⁠
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These deep-sea oases are threatened by fishing gear and climate change, and may soon become targets for seabed mining too. But marine protected areas can safeguard seamounts and the abundant animals that depend on them.

08/25/2026

Hidden deep within Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, Sur Ridge is a vibrant underwater mountain covered in corals, sponges, and other marine life.🪸 ⁠
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For more than a decade, MBARI and sanctuary collaborators have built an unmatched inventory of life at Sur Ridge, tracking changes in coral growth, species interactions, and environmental conditions year after year. This continuity allows researchers to piece together the bigger story of how deep-sea coral communities grow, adapt, and respond to changes. Together, MBARI, US National Marine Sanctuaries, and Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary have established a persistent presence at this underwater oasis, revealing the vulnerability and remarkable resilience of life on the deep seafloor.⁠
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📸: MBARI (MBARI)

08/25/2026

What happens when you put ocean researchers, scientific data, curious educators, and a little imagination together? 🌊

MBARI Senior Education and Research Specialist George Matsumoto recently hosted the 2026 EARTH workshop, welcoming 25 educators from the US, Canada, Hong Kong, and Singapore to our research facilities in Moss Landing, California, to learn about innovative marine research and datasets that can provide a foundation for novel lesson plans.

Educators explored everything from sequencing ctenophore genetics and programming machine learning models to crafting engaging storytelling and facilitating play for learning, then turned what they learned into classroom activities of their own. Their ideas ranged from a hands-on modeling activity to match environmental DNA sequences to choreographing a dance activity inspired by deep-sea animal movements.

By turning ocean data into lessons students can understand and use, the EARTH program helps to make ocean science and engineering more accessible and sparks the curiosity that grows the next generation of ocean explorers.

Learn more:

Last month, MBARI hosted the 2026 EARTH workshop, welcoming 25 educators to our research facilities to learn how ocean science, engineering, and data can provide a foundation for classroom lesson plans.

08/20/2026

Understanding the ocean’s hidden mountains ⛰️🌊🔬

Seamounts are underwater mountains that rise from the deep seafloor. They deflect ocean currents, concentrating nutrients and food to support thriving communities of life. Corals and sponges prosper on the rocky slopes of many seamounts, providing shelter for countless fishes and invertebrates, while large sharks, fishes, and marine mammals may find a feast in the waters above a seamount’s crest.

MBARI researchers and NOAA collaborators—'s Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary and NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries—recently explored two remarkable seamounts offshore of Central California during a 10-day expedition aboard R/V David Packard. The team deployed advanced technology to monitor coral communities at Sur Ridge, checked in on thousands of brooding octopus at Davidson Seamount’s famous Octopus Garden, and investigated mysterious pits in the seafloor that may be created by foraging beaked whales.

The combined skill and expertise of scientists, engineers, submersible pilots, and marine operations crew was integral to the success of this expedition, and now our team will begin analyzing a trove of data to piece together how seamounts support rich and complex communities of life. Check out our expedition logs for an inside look at the discoveries and day-to-day science at sea: https://www.mbari.org/expedition/seamount-hotspots-sur-ridge-and-davidson-seamount-ecology/

08/17/2026

Where curiosity finds connection 🌊🎓✨

For 30 years, MBARI has welcomed students and educators from around the globe to experience what it is like working at an ocean research center. Designed to foster the next generation of ocean scientists, engineers, and educators, the 10-week paid summer internship pairs interns with mentors across disciplines, giving them the opportunity to develop a research project while exploring whether an ocean career is right for them.

Summer interns gain hands-on experience in ocean science and engineering, taking on projects that range from analyzing deep-sea video and designing instruments to developing machine learning models and studying deep-sea biodiversity. In return, MBARI offers what few other places can: dedicated mentorship, encouragement to think big, and access to the tools and technology needed to bring bold ideas to life.

Summer interns leave MBARI with the skills and confidence to transform ocean exploration. Our former interns are leading research programs, developing exciting new technologies, teaching future generations, launching companies, and tackling some of the world’s most pressing environmental challenges.

“An MBARI internship creates opportunities for students to develop new skills, build meaningful connections, and discover where their curiosity can take them in ocean science and engineering,” said Senior Education and Research Specialist George Matsumoto, who leads MBARI’s Summer Internship Program.

Learn more: https://www.mbari.org/news/where-curiosity-finds-connection-celebrating-30-years-of-mbaris-summer-internship-program/