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For more than half a century, Bigelow Laboratory has conducted world-class ocean science here in the Boothbay region. Even though our work spans the global ocean, this community remains close to our heart. 💙 In our new Community…
From microscopic spores to sprawling forests — sugar kelp plays a big role in the Gulf of Maine, providing rich habitat, food, and clean water. It’s also the bedrock of Maine’s kelp aquaculture industry. A new study led by Bigelow…
Anyone who has spent time on the beach knows that if you pile up sand, it’ll quickly fall apart. That’s why you add water to build a sand castle: the surface tension in the water helps bind the sand together like glue. It turns out,…
This Labor Day, Bigelow Laboratory is taking a moment to reflect fondly on an inspiring summer. We are grateful to everyone who supported us this season! 🌊 To the friends and community members who visited for our open house in July:…
Lobster is deeply woven into the culture and economy of Maine and Atlantic Canada, making its future an important focus for ecological forecasters. But a good forecast isn’t just about science: it’s social. It’s about how the…
Bigelow Laboratory is excited to announce new leadership and a bold vision for the future of the Single Cell Genomics Center (SCGC). Senior Research Scientists Nicole Poulton and Julia Brown are now jointly leading the state-of-the-art…
As Maine’s kelp forests decline, the impacts ripple through the ecosystem all the way down to the microbial level, according to a new study led by researchers from Bigelow Laboratory. The study, published in PNAS, reveals fundamental…
On August 5, Bigelow Laboratory President and CEO Deborah Bronk (pictured second from right) participated as a panelist for the 2026 Mainebiz Small Business Forum. The event, Leading Through Chaos, was hosted in Freeport, Maine. It…
As an ocean science leader, Bigelow Laboratory is helping Maine bring to bear its competitive advantages to position the state at the forefront of this emerging industry in New England. Follow along with our work in this transformative…
Earlier this summer Bigelow Laboratory Research Associate Laura Lubelczyk joined NOAA on a research cruise supporting efforts to restore mesophotic coral communities impacted by the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Laura applied…
Given Maine’s scalable aquaculture industry and heritage fisheries, long history of marine research excellence, unique algae innovation assets, and proximity to Boston’s life sciences hub, the state is well positioned to be a national…
A team of researchers including Bigelow Laboratory SRS Steve Archer is exploring the ecosystem impacts of a proposed marine carbon dioxide removal strategy. Ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) is sometimes described as an antacid…
Over the last several years, scientists and resource managers have observed a decline in the number of young lobsters surviving into adulthood in the Gulf of Maine, despite an increasing number of lobsters being born. A team of…
This summer, Bigelow Laboratory welcomed eight students for an internship exploring algae innovation as a potential career path. The MARIA internship gives marine biology students from University of New England, Southern Maine…
Thank you to everyone who joined us for the last Bigelow Laboratory Café Sci of the season! SRS Doug Rasher and Postdoctoral Scientist Sara Swaminathan took the audience on a journey to the Caribbean’s coral reefs, exploring how…
Launched by Bigelow Laboratory in 1998, the Gulf of Maine North Atlantic Time Series (GNATS) has become a foundational record of changing ocean conditions through repeated sampling of the same area over decades. Funded…
In the latest episode of GBH’s Morning Edition podcast, Bigelow Laboratory Senior Research Scientist Nick Record and meteorologist Dave Epstein discuss the reasons behind the noticeably cooler water temperatures this season in…
We are pleased to share that Bigelow Laboratory Vice President for Research and Senior Research Scientist Beth Orcutt has been named to the Maine International Trade Center Board of Directors. She was voted in unanimously for a…
One of Bigelow Laboratory’s awesome research technicians, Lydia Pinard, shared her wealth of kelp-ful knowledge with young campers at the Growing Agents of Change summer camp last week at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens. The…
On Thursday, August 12 at 4 p.m., join Deborah Bronk, president and CEO of Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, for a presentation at the Wilson Museum‘s Hutchins Education Center. The Gulf of Maine is changing in many ways:…
We had a packed house last week for SRS John Burns’ Café Sci talk on the extraordinary life hidden in the ocean’s midwater — one of Earth’s largest but least explored habitats. John is leading a team of engineers and scientists…
This week, Bigelow Laboratory welcomed an incredible cohort of middle and high school science teachers to the lab to provide hands-on training to enhance ocean science in the classroom! The BLOOM Educators Program provides teachers…
We’re so thrilled to showcase this gorgeous ceramic sea urchin at Bigelow Laboratory! Inspired by the sea urchins found along the coastline, this sculpture celebrates the intricate beauty of these ancient and spiny marine…
For decades, scientists have used ocean color observed from space to estimate the abundance of phytoplankton. Now, scientists at Bigelow Laboratory are hoping to do the same for zooplankton. Many copepods contain a distinctive red…
