In recent discussions at the 28th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28), the urgency of acting on Earth’s rising temperatures was highlighted.

Last week, a scientific paper was published about the use of fishing vessels for ocean observation. The paper featured the Moana Project’s mangōpare sensor programme, where commercial fishers crowd-source ocean temperature data around Aotearoa’s coastlines.

Research from the Moana Project has been featured on The Conversation, a network of news stories that are written by academic experts and researchers.

Last Sunday at Ngamotu Beach, MetOcean's Naomi Puketapu-Waite held a stall at Taranaki’s SeaWeek event for 2023. SeaWeek is an annual event run by the New Zealand Association for Environmental Education, a national non-profit that promotes and supports lifelong learning and sustainability for Aotearoa New Zealand.

The heavy rainfall affecting the upper North Island is not the only unusual weather New Zealand is expecting at present. In the ocean off southern South Island, marine heatwaves of unprecedented

While the North Island is recovering from the latest storm, ocean temperatures along the South Island’s south-western coast are reaching new records.

Although the early new year is set to bring rain to many areas, severe marine heatwaves are forecast for the bottom of the South Island where sea surface temperatures will reach a whopping 4 degrees or more above average

A new forecast developed by the MetService-led Moana Project is now available on SwellMap, showing the difference between actual and expected sea surface temperatures for New Zealand waters.

For the first time in two years, New Zealand coastal waters are free of marine heatwaves. This is according to Moana Project scientists, who say that the marine heatwaves dissipated just before summer started when cooler weather caused a drop in sea surface temperatures.

With just over one year left of the Moana Project, our team is working hard and producing exciting results. In areas as diverse as ocean warming causing sponge bleaching or changes to fish stocks that might affect quota holders, to the blue carbon economy, our research is spreading far and wide.

Despite being in the tail end of winter, marine heatwaves are still ongoing in many New Zealand coastal areas.

Wanting to catch up on all things Moana Project? Thanks to Sea Change podcast – the Moana Project has featured over five episodes. Sea Change is hosted by Heather Johnson, and it explores the different relationships people in Aotearoa New Zealand have with the moana.

Titled ‘Hinemoana Ki Tai: Restoring the Ocean Knowledge of Hawaiiki’, Mere’s PhD focuses on developing a Blue Carbon Plan for climate resilience based on mātauranga Māori and te ao Māori perspectives.   

Last month, Moana Project team members met in Tauranga for the 4th annual Moana Project Science Hui – and it was a great success. Research is speeding along, and we are seeing some really exciting results.

The Moana Project Mangōpare sensor is normally used in New Zealand coastal waters on commercial fishing gear, but last month a sensor made its way to Antarctica on an expedition by the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF).