seabed

Armed Forces Minister Catherine Vautrin visited Naval Group, touring its newest submarine and calling on defence manufacturers to step up innovation, production and cooperation as France rearms. She said the visit was meant to show the French public what the defence budget pays for, noting the battlefield now extends from the seabed to space. Naval Group also announced it is basing its marine drones division at La Londe-les-Maures.

The question of why ocean water does not simply seep into the ground is drawing wide attention online. The short answer: much of the seabed sits on dense rock and layers of sediment that limit how fast water can flow downward, and in many coastal areas seawater does in fact infiltrate underground aquifers. High engagement suggests curiosity-driven science explainers are resonating with a broad audience right now.

Australia has approved a seabed site where a Japanese company will store carbon pollution captured from industrial emissions, an approach known as carbon capture and storage. The move positions Australia as a partner in Japan's decarbonisation efforts and has drawn attention from environmental groups, who question whether burying greenhouse gases under the ocean floor is a reliable long-term climate solution.

NOAA and partner organizations are conducting a deep-sea mapping expedition in waters near the Northern Mariana Islands in the western Pacific. The effort aims to chart previously unexplored seafloor terrain and document marine habitats in one of the ocean's least studied regions. It forms part of ongoing federal and international initiatives to complete seabed mapping and support ocean science and conservation.

Physicists are testing Einstein's theory of general relativity using instruments deployed at the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea, according to a new report. Deep-sea detectors, such as neutrino telescopes, offer a stable, shielded environment to examine fundamental physics with high precision. The work highlights how the Mediterranean seabed has become a valuable platform for experiments probing gravity and other cornerstones of modern physics.

An analysis piece examines the growing use of deep-sea drones, unmanned underwater vehicles operating far below the ocean surface. Their expanding role in military surveillance, seabed mapping and infrastructure monitoring is raising questions about regulation, security and competition among states to control the depths.

A question is circulating about how ocean buoys remain anchored in extremely deep water. The answer, as marine engineers explain, involves mooring lines that can stretch for kilometres, anchored to the seabed with heavy weights, while the buoy floats at the surface. Curiosity about this everyday but little-understood technology is driving attention, with readers fascinated by the scale and ingenuity involved in keeping navigational and scientific buoys fixed over open ocean.

India is building deep-sea exploration capacity as it bets on seabed minerals to secure future supplies of critical resources like nickel, cobalt and copper used in batteries and clean energy technology. The push positions India among countries racing to develop deep-ocean mining capabilities, a move that also raises environmental questions about the impact on fragile marine ecosystems.

The United Nations is considering a proposal to phase out bottom trawling on seamounts, underwater mountains that host fragile and poorly understood marine ecosystems. The measure would restrict a fishing method that drags heavy nets across the seabed, damaging coral and sponge habitats. Industry and conservation groups are watching closely, as a phase-out would affect fishing fleets and could reshape deep-sea fisheries management worldwide.

Chinese scientists have discovered giant hydrothermal 'chimney' structures in deep water, a finding reported by the South China Morning Post. The formations are said to have potential implications for submarine warfare, as such seabed features can influence underwater acoustics and detection. The report has drawn attention because of its military dimension, coming amid ongoing naval competition in the Pacific and China's expanding deep-sea exploration and survey activity.

Greenpeace activists have placed a barrier of large boulders on the seabed of the North Sea, aiming to stop bottom trawlers from fishing in what is designated a marine protected area. The action is intended to physically prevent heavy fishing gear from scraping the ocean floor. The stunt has drawn attention as environmental groups increasingly take direct action against industrial fishing in protected waters.

Attention is turning to deep-sea mining, the emerging industry of extracting minerals like nickel, cobalt and copper from the ocean floor. Supporters see it as vital for supplying battery metals for the green energy transition, while scientists and environmental groups warn that seabed extraction could cause irreversible damage to little-understood marine ecosystems. Debate is intensifying over whether the International Seabed Authority should allow commercial mining to begin or keep a moratorium in place.

A Chinese research team has discovered hydrothermal 'chimneys' on the deep seabed, formations that could have implications for submarine warfare, according to a report by Interesting Engineering. The findings highlight how deep-sea exploration increasingly overlaps with military interests, as understanding seabed features and water conditions can matter for underwater detection and navigation.

South Korea has opened an auction for 2.2GW of offshore wind capacity, inviting developers to bid for seabed rights and power contracts. The tender is part of the country's push to expand renewable energy and reduce reliance on imported fossil fuels. Energy sector watchers are tracking the auction's terms and which companies will compete for the projects.

Scientists returned in 2025 to a patch of the Pacific seabed that was mined in a test experiment 44 years earlier and found the area has still not recovered. Tracks and disturbances from the original test remain visible on the ocean floor, showing that damage from deep-sea mining can persist for decades. The findings add to ongoing debate over whether commercial deep-sea mining should be allowed to proceed.