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CNN —A US military F/A-18 Hornet fighter jet crashed late Thursday near San Diego, according to a statement from Marine Corps Air Station Miramar. Search and rescue operations are ongoing, the Marines said Friday in a statement. The crash site is on US government property in the vicinity of Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, “and there are no indications of damage to property on the ground,” the Marines said. An investigation into the crash has begun, according to the Marines. The F/A-18 Hornet is the nation’s first all-weather fighter and attack aircraft, and is considered “the workhorse of Marine Corps tactical aviation,” according to Naval Air Systems Command.

Organizations: CNN, Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Marines, Marine Corps, Naval Air Systems Command Locations: San Diego, “

☆ French minister Darmanin warns of risk of Marine Le Pen victory in next election
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes/file photo Acquire Licensing RightsPARIS, Aug 25 (Reuters) - French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin - whom President Nicolas Sarkozy said would be a good future head of state - warned on Friday of the risk that far-right politician Marine Le Pen could win the next presidential election in 2027. Le Pen lost to President Emmanuel Macron in the second round of the 2022 election, echoing an identical outcome in the 2017 vote. "The fact of the matter is that in five years' time, a victory for Madame Le Pen is quite probable," Darmanin told La Voix du Nord, in an interview published in Friday's paper. "If we let a large part of the working class and middle class go over to Marine Le Pen, the professional classes will not support us in the second round. That is what could get Marine Le Pen elected in 2027, not questions on migration," he added.

Persons: Gerald Darmanin, Gonzalo Fuentes, Nicolas Sarkozy, Darmanin, Le Pen, Emmanuel Macron, Madame Le Pen, Bruno Le Maire, Sudip Kar, Gupta, Bertrand Boucey, Ingrid Melander Organizations: Overseas, REUTERS, Rights, RTL, du, Thomson Locations: Paris, France, French

Work on an insurance mechanism follows Russia’s withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative last month, which threatens the safe passage of ships carrying grain to and from Ukrainian ports. To keep grain shipments moving, Ukraine’s government will share potential losses with insurers, which should make cover for travel through risky Ukrainian waters more affordable for commercial shipping companies. Russia’s withdrawal from the grain deal has had a chilling effect on merchant shipping around Ukraine’s three Black Sea ports as the Kremlin warned that ships leaving these ports might come under attack. And earlier this month a Russian warship fired warning shots and boarded a cargo ship in the Black Sea it claims was headed to Ukraine. Last week, the Hong Kong-flagged Joseph Schulte container ship became the first vessel to depart from any of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports since the grain deal broke down on July 17.

Persons: —, ” Oleksandr Hryban, Marsh McLennan, Marsh, Oliver Wyman —, Hryban, Marcus Baker, ” Baker, Crispin Ellison, Oliver Wyman, ” Marsh McLennan, Joseph Schulte, Volodymyr Zelensky, ” Organizations: Kyiv CNN —, United Nations, “, CNN, Initiative, Kremlin, ” Locations: Kyiv, Kyiv CNN — Ukraine, Ukrainian, Turkey, London, Marsh, Russia, Ukraine, Russian, Hong Kong, Odesa, ” Ukraine

☆ Conditions are ripe for a global coral bleaching event: ‘Florida is just the tip of the iceberg’
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-18 | by ( Catherine Clifford | In Catclifford | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

NOAA, coral reefs, Florida Keys, coral reefs, coral bleaching, climate change, warm oceansCoral reefs off the coast of Florida are being hit by a mass bleaching event due to record high ocean temperatures, and early indications suggest a global mass bleaching event could be underway. The Sentinel climate research and monitoring site in the Florida Keys has recorded 100% coral bleaching since late July. There have been eight mass coral bleaching events that have impacted the entire Florida Keys since 1987, Manzello said. "We're talking about thousands upon thousands of miles of coral reefs undergoing severe bleaching heat stress," Manzello said. "Now, it's still way too early to predict whether or not there will be a global bleaching event, but if we compare what is happening right now to what happened in the beginning of the past global bleaching event, things are worse now than they were in 2014 to 2017."

Persons: Derek Manzello, Ian Enochs, They're, Enochs, Manzello, zooxanthellae, El Nino, Andy Bruckner, Bruckner, what's, Jennifer Koss, Koss Organizations: NOAA, National Oceanic, Reef Watch, Oceanographic, Meteorological Laboratory, Southeast, Florida Keys, Florida Keys National, Islands, Reef Conservation Locations: Florida, Southeast Florida, Columbia, Cuba, El, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Mexico, Panama, Belize, Panama , Puerto Rico, elkhorn

☆ Oceans absorb 90% of the heat from climate change — here's why record ocean temps are so harmful
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-16 | by ( Catherine Clifford | In Catclifford | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +22 min

"Over 90 percent of the excess energy on earth due to climate change is found in warmer oceans, some of it in surface oceans and some at depth." Put simply, the greenhouse gases serve to trap more heat, some of which is absorbed by the ocean," Kirtman told CNBC. In addition to the daily record on July 31, the monthly sea surface temperature for July was the hottest July on record, "by far," Copernicus said. CopernicusThese record sea surface temperatures arise from multiple factors, including the El Niño weather pattern, which is currently in effect. "These climate variations occur when sea surface temperature patterns of warming and cooling self-reinforce by changing patterns of winds and precipitation that deepen the sea surface temperature changes."

Persons: Baylor, Carlos E, Del Castillo, Castillo, Benjamin Kirtman, Kirtman, Copernicus, Gavin Schmidt, Kemper, Zeke Hausfather, Sarah Kapnick, Kapnick, Kempler, Hurricane Ian, Michael Lowry, Lowry, Rainer Froese, Daniel Pauly, Pauly, Vigfus, pollack, Sean Gallup, Lorenz Hauser, Hauser, Froese, Phanor Montoya, Javier, Carolyn Cole, Hans W, Paerl, Justin Sullivan, Christopher Gobler, Gobler, Gary Griggs, Kimberly McKenna, Angela Weiss, Griggs, it's, Judith Kildow, Kildow, It's Organizations: International, Baylor Fox, Kemper, Brown University, CNBC, Ecology Laboratory, NASA, University of Miami, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, Fox, El, Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, heatwave, NOAA, Northern Hemisphere, Miami Herald, Tribune, Service, Getty, Helmholtz, Ocean Research, University of British Columbia's Institute, Fisheries, School of, Fishery Sciences, Restoration Foundation, Coral Restoration Foundation, Looe Key, Los Angeles Times, University of North, Chapel Hill's Institute of Marine Sciences, Berkeley Marina, San, Quality, Centers for Disease Control, Stony Brooke University's School of Marine, Atmospheric Sciences, University of California, Stockton University Coastal Research, Afp, Ocean Economics Locations: Florida, El, Pacific, Berkeley, Fort Myers, Hurricane, Germany, New York, Nova Scotia, Hofn, Hornafjordur, Iceland, Seattle, Alaska, Looe, University of North Carolina, San Francisco Bay, Berkeley , California, San Francisco, Europe, Santa Cruz, Atlantic City , New Jersey, Atlantic City, Antarctica, Greenland

☆ Gabon Joins Blue Bond Wave With $500 Million Debt Refinancing
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-15 | by ( Will Horner | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

Gabon completed mainland Africa’s first-ever “debt-for-nature swap” Tuesday, refinancing $500 million of its debt and earmarking $163 million in savings for marine conservation, the latest in a burgeoning list of “blue bond” deals. In their place, Gabon issued a $500 million blue bond which matures in 2038. The coupon on the new blue bond was priced at 6.097%, lower than the coupons on the repaid bonds which were between 6.625%-7%. TNC says its blue bond deals have provided $400 million toward conservation efforts. Bank of America, which served as sole initial purchaser, structuring agent and bookrunner on the Gabon deal, declined to reveal its transaction fees.

Persons: Gabon’s, Bond, ”, Ali Bongo Ondimba, TNC wasn’t, Scott Nathan, TNC, Will Horner Organizations: —, Sustainable Business, Moody’s Investors Service, U.S . International Development Finance Corporation, Conservancy, Greenpeace, Bank of America Locations: Gabon, Africa, U.S, Belize, Seychelles, Barbados, Ecuador, Galápagos, william.horner

☆ China-Philippines tensions: Is a maritime militia Beijing says doesn't exist causing chaos in the South China Sea?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-12 | by ( Brad Lendon | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Most of the Chinese ships involved are marked “China Coast Guard,” but among the flotilla are also at least two blue-hulled vessels that resemble fishing boats. After the confrontation last weekend, China claimed the Philippines had violated its sovereignty by grounding the ship on the shoal. That symbiotic relationship became even clearer in 2021 when the China Coast Guard came under the jurisdiction of the Chinese Central Military Commission effectively making it part of Beijing’s military. The Chinese vessels “physically blockaded the supply ship. Ted Aljibe/AFP/Getty ImagesChina’s waiting gameAnalysts say they don’t see any appetite in Beijing for actual combat over Second Thomas Shoal, but they also say China can afford to play a waiting game.

Persons: Thomas Shoal, Jay Tarriela, Thomas, “, ”, China’s, People’s Liberation Army –, Lyle Morris, CNN ‘, doesn’t, Ray Powell, SeaLight, Powell, Morris, ” Powell, Shoal, Ted Aljibe, Lionel Fatton, ” Washington Organizations: CNN, China Coast Guard, United, “, Philippine Coast Guard, Hague, People’s Liberation Army, PLA Navy, Chinese Central Military Commission, Asia Society, Center for China, National Security, Stanford University, Central Military Commission, US Navy, US Coast Guard, Getty, Webster University Locations: Philippine, South, Philippines, Spratly, United States, Beijing, China, Palawan, Sierra Madre, ”, South China, Malaysia, Vietnam, Brunei, Taiwan, Washington, Manila, Sierra, AFP, Switzerland

☆ High-powered satellites have made blue-carbon credits a reality. But they still face accuracy and scalability issues.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Breakthroughs in satellite technology have helped commercialize blue-carbon credits. Over $50 billion worth of carbon credits have been predicted to be traded annually in the voluntary market, according to McKinsey. Blue carbon, which is stored in coastal and marine ecosystems, has become an increasingly important asset in the fight against the climate crisis. Carbon credits can then be verified and issued faster. Satellite data has to be paired with sonar, divers collecting information, or other field data, she added.

Persons: Philip Davis, Guy Wolf, Oxford University spinout OxCarbon, it's, Wolf, David Gross, you've, Thomas Merriman, Donna Lyndsay, Traganos, It's, Kita's Merriman, Merriman, Zoë Balmforth, Cameron Frayling Organizations: McKinsey ., World Resources Institute, Tech, Oxford University, Bank OxCarbon, Kita, Ordnance Survey Locations: Bahamas, Caribbean, Islamorada , Florida

☆ The safest place for some species of Florida coral is now on land as water temperatures off the coast exceed 100 degrees, researchers say
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-05 | by ( Katie Hawkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Water temperatures in the Florida Keys hit 101 degrees late last month, causing rapid coral death. Now, researchers are scrambling to bring surviving species to land to preserve them in the event of even higher temperatures. While coral make up less than 1% of all ocean life, a quarter of marine species rely on them to live. The rise was so extreme, researchers say, that it killed some coral reefs in the Florida Keys almost immediately. On an average day in July, water temperatures off the Florida coast in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico sit in the high 80s.

Persons: Bailey, Thomasson, Jennifer Moore Organizations: Florida Keys, Service, Florida, Coral Restoration Foundation, New York Times, NPR, Times Locations: Florida, Eastern Gulf, Mexico

The DOJ announced Thursday that 2 US Navy sailors were arrested this week. The DOJ accused Navy service member Wenhen Zhao, 26, of giving military info to China for $14,866. The two sailors were charged with similar crimes, but they were charged in separate cases, and it wasn't clear Thursday if the two were connected or if they were courted or paid by the same Chinese intelligence officer. The Justice Department charged Wei under a rarely used Espionage Act statute that makes it a crime to gather or deliver information to aid a foreign government. Zhao, the second officer charged, is accused of sharing information, including operational plans for a U.S. military exercise in the Indo-Pacific Region.

Persons: Jinchao Wei, Wenhen Zhao, Wei, Zhao, ____ Baldor, Eric Tucker Organizations: DOJ, US, Service, DIEGO, US Navy, Naval, The Justice Department, Justice Department, Helicopter, Ospreys, Prosecutors, Associated Press Locations: USS Essex, China, Wall, Silicon, San Diego, Essex, Pacific, Washington

☆ Great Barrier Reef stays off UNESCO ‘in danger’ list but hot El Niño summer looms
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( Hilary Whiteman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

“A lot of climate scientists are shocked by the fact that it wasn’t put on the list,” Kimberley Reid from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes and Monash University told CNN. Covering nearly 133,000 square miles (345,000 square kilometers), the Great Barrier Reef is home to more than 1,500 species of fish and 411 species of hard corals. Environment minister Tanya Plibersek told reporters Tuesday she made no apology for lobbying UNESCO to keep the Great Barrier Reef off the “in danger” list. Bleaching events and global warming have done significant damage to the Great Barrier Reef. Tourists, divers and marine biologists enter and exit the waters of the Great Barrier Reef on August 10, 2022 on Hastings Reef, Australia.

Persons: El, wasn’t, Kimberley Reid, I’m, ”, Reid, Tanya Plibersek, Michael Robinson Chavez, ” Plibersek, that’s, Terry Hughes, El Niño, ” Hughes, David Booth, government’s, “ Will, Booth, Jodie Rummer, “ That’s Organizations: Australia CNN —, UNESCO World Heritage, ARC Centre, Excellence, Extremes, Monash University, CNN, “, Heritage, UNESCO, Labor, Washington Post, Coral Reef, James Cook University, Australian, of Meteorology, Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, World Meteorological Organization, UTS, Reef Society, Federal Government Locations: Brisbane, Australia, Paris, Hastings Reef

☆ Big-headed Jurassic sea turtle’s fossil is the most complete ever found
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( Mindy Weisberger | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Few complete fossils of this Jurassic sea turtle, named Solnhofia parsonsi, have been discovered. Today’s marine turtle species all have elongated, rigid flippers to propel them through the ocean depths. But the newly described fossil’s limbs were stumpier than those of modern sea turtles relative to its body size. An artistic reconstruction shows the extinct sea turtle in its coastal marine environment. The newly described fossil presents a far more complete view of those limbs, showing that they differed dramatically from the extremities of sea turtles alive today.

Persons: Solnhofia, parsonsi, ”, Felix Augustin, Augustin, Márton Rabi, Peter Nickolaus S, ” Augustin, Rabi, ” Rabi, Mindy Weisberger Organizations: CNN, geosciences, University of Tübingen, University of Tübingen’s, Scientific Locations: Europe, Germany, Bavaria, Switzerland

“We’re horrified that something like this could happen, not only to us, but to anyone,” Saffrine Duggan told her supporters. Former US fighter pilot Daniel Duggan is in custody in Australia pending extradition to the US on charges including that he trained Chinese military pilots. Courtesy Saffrine DugganTraining Chinese pilotsDuggan doesn’t deny training Chinese pilots, but he maintains they were civilians – plane enthusiasts seeking to improve their skills or prospective members of China’s then rapidly expanding aviation industry. And a spokesperson for New Zealand’s Defence Force confirmed to Reuters that four of its former military pilots had been recruited by the company. It’s the wrong type of approach and landing.”In its statement to CNN, TFASA denied teaching aircraft carrier approach and landing techniques to Chinese military pilots.

Persons: Daniel Duggan, Duggan, Duggan’s, “, ”, Saffrine, “ We’re, ” Saffrine Duggan, Paul Devitt, Duggan –, –, ” Duggan, Saffrine Duggan, TFASA, they’re, Duggan doesn’t, China’s, Glenn Kolomeitz, ” “ Dan, Richard Marles, It’s, Constant, Daniel Duggan's, Mike Burgess, Ben Hancock, ” Hancock, Hancock, hasn’t, Dan didn’t, “ TFASA, he’s, Xi Jinping, reunify, Joe Biden, Ng Han Guan, Xi, Donald Trump, “ Don’t Organizations: Australia CNN —, Marine Attack Squadron, Intelligence, Security, Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, Lithgow Correctional Centre, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, ABC, US Marines, US State Department, of Defense Trade, Test Flying Academy of South, CNN, TFASA, Embassy, Former, Saffrine Duggan Training, Australian Defence Force, RAF, UK Defence Ministry, UK Armed Forces, Australia’s, New Zealand’s Defence Force, Reuters, Marles, ASIO, Buckeye, Marine Corps, US Navy, Aircraft, Training Squadron, US Department of Defense, Harrier, Getty, Pacific Locations: Brisbane, Australia, United States, Yuma , Arizona, China, Beijing, Lithgow, Sydney, Australian, Test Flying Academy of South Africa, Tasmania, South Africa, Former US, New South Wales, Persian, Asia, Townsville, Pensacola, Fla, Western, Taiwan, AFP

☆ Why are far-right parties on the march across Europe?
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-22 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

Far-right parties are propping up coalitions in Finland and Sweden. Afraid of losing voters to UKIP (and other far-right parties), the governing Conservatives ended up adopting many of its positions. Chesnot/Getty Images Europe/Getty ImagesConversely, far-right parties have attempted to sanitize some of their rhetoric, hoping to appear a more credible electoral prospect. Leon Neal/Getty ImagesA different type of populismAnd so the recent successes of far-right parties cannot be explained by dramatic shifts in public opinion. A lot depends on the ability of mainstream parties – particularly on the left – to build tents big enough to accommodate their differences, rather than compromising with far-right parties to prop up their coalitions.

Persons: Donald Trump, –, Emmanuel Macron, Angela Merkel’s, Mario Draghi, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Viktor Orban, Andrej Babis, Czech Michael Bloomberg, Czech Donald Trump, Meloni, Mussolini, Nigel Farage, Jack Taylor, Farage, Jean, Marie Le Pen, Marine, Lionel Jospin, Jacques Chirac, Petteri Orpo, Sanna Marin, Vilhelm Junnila, Ulif Kristersson, Mark Rutte’s, Pen, Chesnot, Philippe Marlier, ” Le, Matteo Salvini, Vladimir Putin, Tino Chrupalla, Alice Weidel, Thomas Lohnes, Omer Messinger, Larry Bartels, Boris Johnson, Leon Neal, Giorgia Meloni, Odd Andersen, Orban, Kaczynski, Rutte’s, Pedro Sanchez Organizations: CNN, White, Channel, European Central Bank, Italy’s, Vox, UK Independence Party, UKIP, European Union, EU, Conservatives, National, Socialist, Socialists, Finns Party, Swedish, Sweden Democrats, Rassemblement National, University College London, Lega, Ukraine, Russia, Former British, Italy's, NATO, Getty, Spain’s Locations: United Kingdom, United States, Europe, Brussels, Spain, Poland, Hungary, Germany, Czech, France, Finland, Sweden, Austria, European, Netherlands, Russian, Oxfordshire, Vilnius

☆ Australia's 'seahorse hotels' aim to save endangered species
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( Cordelia Hsu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] A White's Seahorse feeds at the Sydney Institute of Marine Science aquarium in Sydney, Australia, June 22, 2023. REUTERS/Cordelia HsuSYDNEY, July 20 (Reuters) - Nestled beneath the surface of Sydney’s harbour, over 350 newly released White’s Seahorses make themselves at home in their seahorse hotels. Made from biodegradable metal, the eight new hotels installed will provide much needed homes for the endangered seahorses. “It was really fantastic,” said marine biologist Mitchell Brennan, the project manager of the Sydney Seahorse Project. White’s Seahorses are endemic to the waters surrounding Australia’s east coast and were classified as endangered on the IUCN Red List in 2017 due to loss of habitat.

Persons: Cordelia Hsu SYDNEY, ”, Mitchell Brennan, ” Brennan, “ We’ve, Cordelia Hsu, Alasdair Pal, Stephen Coates Organizations: Sydney Institute of Marine Science, REUTERS, Sydney Seahorse, University of Technology, New, Department of Primary Industries, IUCN, seahorses, Thomson Locations: Sydney, Australia, University of Technology Sydney, New South Wales, NSW, Sydney Harbour, NSW’s, Chowder Bay

☆ Missing genes in ‘mind-controlling’ worms pose an evolutionary puzzle
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Mindy Weisberger | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

However, when the scientists compared their horsehair worm genomes with genomic information from other animals, something was missing, Cunha told CNN. Two live tangled freshwater horsehair worms, scientifically called Gordionus violaceus, were found in Germany. Mysteries remain about the worms’ movementsAs useful as cilia are, horsehair worms seem to be doing just fine without them, the scientists reported. To date, scientists have identified several hundred species of freshwater horsehair worms and five species of marine horsehair worms. Marine horsehair worms spend their entire lives in water, but freshwater species are only aquatic as adults.

Persons: —, australiensis, munidae, Tauana Cunha, Cunha, “, ”, “ It’s, Gonzalo Giribet, nematomorphs, Keiichi Kakui, Kakui, ” Kakui, Martin Sørensen, Ophiocordyceps, Bruno de Medeiros, California’s Organizations: CNN, Chicago’s Field, Harvard University, Hokkaido University, HBO, Field, Monument Locations: Germany, Japan, nematomorphs, California’s Muir

When you think of cat food, coral reef restoration may not be the first thing that comes to mind. More coral today, more fish tomorrowIn 2019, the SHEBA brand began its work on Hope Reef, part of a global movement to help restore coral reefs around the world. Unveiled in 2021, Hope Reef — located off the coast of Sulawesi in Indonesia — is one of the world's largest repaired coral reefs. For Kuleana Coral Reefs, responsibility is even in the name. Thanks in part to the SHEBA brand's support, Kuleana Coral Reefs is restoring damaged coral reefs throughout the Hawaiian archipelago so they can persist naturally and without further human intervention.

Persons: Hope, SHEBA, one's Organizations: Google, National Ocean Service, Smithsonian, Global Seafood Alliance, SHEBA, Insider Studios Locations: Hope, Sulawesi, Indonesia, United States

☆ Insurers reviewing Black Sea ship cover after Russia suspension
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Jonathan Saul | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, July 17 (Reuters) - Insurers are reviewing whether to freeze cover for any ships willing to sail to Ukraine after Russia said on Monday it will suspend participation in a UN-backed deal that allows the export of grain through a Black Sea safe corridor, sources said. "Due to the collapse of the Black Sea corridor deal, most shipowners will now refrain from calling Ukrainian ports," Christian Vinther Christensen, chief operating officer with Danish shipping group NORDEN told Reuters. The (key) question is whether Russia mines the area which would effectively cease any form of cover being offered," one insurance industry source said. The Lloyd's of London insurance market has already placed the Black Sea region on its high-risk list. Additional war risk insurance premiums, which are charged when entering the Black Sea area, need to be renewed every seven days.

Persons: Christian Vinther Christensen, Neil Roberts, shipowners, Jonathan Saul, Sharon Singleton Organizations: NORDEN, Reuters, . Insurance, Lloyd's Market Association, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russia, UN, Turkey, London, Lloyd's

☆ Florida's rising water temperatures raise concerns for health of coral reefs, scientists say
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-15 | by ( Maria Cardona | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MIAMI/KEY WEST, Florida, July 15 (Reuters) - Rising temperatures in Florida's waters due to climate change have sparked an extreme stressor for coral reefs causing bleaching, which has scientists concerned. Just within the last week, as the U.S. South struggles under a heat wave, NOAA has reported Florida water temperatures in the mid-90s Fahrenheit (35 C). Coral reefs create homes for millions of species of marine life, support healthy ocean food webs and protect coastlines, experts say. Florida's coral reefs are also a tourist attraction and help support the local economy. Reporting by Maria Alejandra Cardona in Miami and Key West, Florida Writing by Matthew Lewis; editing by Diane CraftOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: it's, Michael Studivan, Michael Crosby, Studivan, Maria Alejandra Cardona, Matthew Lewis, Diane Craft Organizations: MIAMI, National Oceanic, Health, Monitoring, U.S, NOAA, Mote Marine Laboratory, Aquarium, Key, Thomson Locations: Florida, Miami, Port of Miami, Key West

☆ Exclusive: Mexico's Pemex to lose some 100,000 bpd of crude this month after fire -source
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Ana Isabel Martinez | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] Boats spray water onto an offshore oil platform that caught fire at the Pemex's Cantarell Field, in the Bay of Campeche, Gulf of Mexico, Mexico July 7, 2023. The reduced production implies that in total Pemex will lose at least 2 million barrels of crude through the end of July, according to Reuters estimates. That means output from Pemex's offshore fields, from which the company extracts most of its oil, will be impacted in the meantime. MOUNTING CLAIMSCantarell, which produced more than 2 million bpd of oil two decades ago, currently produces about 170,000 bpd. Along with Ku-Maloob-Zaap, which contributes some 620,000 bpd from Pemex's northeastern marine region, they provide around 41% of the company's total production of 1.9 million bpd of crude and condensate.

Persons: Pemex, Ana Isabel Martinez, Conor Humphries Organizations: REUTERS, Ciudad del Carmen, Thomson Locations: Bay, Campeche, Gulf of Mexico, Mexico, Handout, MEXICO, Ciudad

☆ Several shark species are facing extinction. Here’s how you can help
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Cnn Impact Your World | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

But many species of these aquatic apex predators are now in danger of dying out forever. Of the thousand known species of sharks and rays (sharks’ closest living relatives), over a third of them are at risk of extinction. And since sharks are “indicators of ocean health,” as sharks go, so does the delicate balance of marine ecosystems. A 2021 report showed over the last 50 years, global shark and ray populations have fallen more than 70%. Listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, oceanic whitetip shark numbers in the Pacific Ocean have fallen an estimated 80 to 95% within the last 30 years, according to NOAA.

Persons: They’ve, ”, Reinhard Dirscherl, Nick Dulvy, “, Ocean Foundation It’s Organizations: CNN, “ Sharks, Rays, NOAA, Ocean Foundation Locations: Texas

☆ A professor found $550,000 of 'floating gold' in the entrails of a dead sperm whale. Here's why ambergris is so expensive.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-08 | by ( Nathan Rennolds | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A professor found a lump of ambergris, or "floating gold," worth 500,000 euros in a dead whale. The stone, which was worth 500,000 euros, or around $545,000, was made of ambergris — a strange, naturally-occurring substance that's known as "floating gold." It can be judged by the color of the ambergris, with black having the least ambrein and white the most. Top perfumes are usually made with white ambergris, while substitute chemicals are used in cheaper ones. In 2021, a group of fishermen in the Gulf of Aden sold a chunk of ambergris worth around $1.5 million to a buyer in the United Arab Emirates.

Persons: Antonio Fernández, Alexis Rosenfeld, Richard Sabin Organizations: Service, of Animal Health, Food Security, Universidad, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, National Geographic, United, United Arab Emirates, BBC Locations: Wall, Silicon, La, Gulf, Aden, United Arab

☆ Moscow attacked by drones, Russia says, forcing authorities to temporarily close international airport
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

An apparent drone attack on Moscow led to flights being delayed at one of the city's international airports. The defense ministry said all the drones were disabled, and no injuries were reported. But in May, after a previous drone attack on Moscow, one expert told Insider it looked to be a case of the Ukrainian government giving Russia "a taste of its own medicine." Ukraine has acknowledged carrying out drone strikes against military targets in its own internationally recognized territory. Earlier this year, a Ukrainian military intelligence official said one of his government's drone strikes had targeted a Russia oil facility in occupied Crimea.

Persons: —, Sergei Sobyanin, Maria Zakharova, Russia's, Volodymyr Zelenskyy Organizations: Service, Moscow, Vnukovo Airport, TASS, Kyiv Locations: Moscow, Ukraine, Kubinka, Russia, Ukrainian, Crimea

☆ OceanGate threatened to sue its former chief pilot in 2018 unless he withdrew allegations that he'd been fired in retaliation for raising safety concerns, says report
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

David Lochridge claimed he was fired in retaliation for raising safety concerns about the sub. Lochridge was fired in 2018 after a meeting with OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, where they discussed safety. David Lochridge, OceanGate's former chief pilot, was fired in January 2018 after a meeting with OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush. The meeting was about safety concerns Lochridge raised in a report about the submersible, which was previously called the Cyclops II, the report said. In his safety report in January 2018, Lochridge pointed to alleged issues that were either defects or unproven, The New Yorker reported.

Persons: OceanGate, David Lochridge, Lochridge, —, Rush, Rob McCallum, Thomas Gilman, Gilman, McCallum, Insider's Tom Porter Organizations: Stockton Rush, Service, Yorker, Titan, US Department of Labor, Occupational Safety, Health Administration, OSHA, Rush Locations: Lochridge

☆ Meet the family of orcas thought to be behind the recent boat encounters and attacks — White Gladis' pod
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( Rebecca Cohen | Jenny Mcgrath | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

White Gladis, the orca believed to be behind recent boat encounters, has a family acting with her. Meet White Gladis' familyWhite Gladis is part of a 6-orca pod including herself, two siblings, two calves, and a mother. She gave birth to White Gladis in 2005, who is her oldest offspring, followed by Gladis Clara and Gladis Dalila. White Gladis went on to give birth to Gladis Filabres in 2015 and Gladis Tarik in 2021. Gladis Clara, White Gladis' sibling, is a male orca, but the sex is unknown for Gladis Dalila and White Gladis' two offspring.

Persons: White Gladis, White, —, Gladis Blanca, Gladis Clara, Gladis, Gladis Filabres, Gladis Tarik, Gladis Lamari, hasn't, Gladis Dalila, Black, Gladis Peque, Gladis Isa, Gladis Matteo, Gray Gladis, Mónica, Kenneth C, Gladis Olvera Organizations: Service, Orca, Guardian, for Whale Research, Orca Working Locations: Gibraltar, Strait, Gibraltar White, orcas, Southern, Iberian

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