News

Read about the important science being undertaken at NIWA, and how it affects New Zealanders

  • NIWA research vessel returns home after epic voyage

    Media release
    After 75 nights at sea all the temporary master of NIWA research vessel Kaharoa could think about today was getting off the ship and having a beer.
  • How to be hands-off in a hands-on job

    Feature story
    NIWA environmental monitoring technician Mike O’Driscoll has just installed two water level stations in Samoa and is starting on a third—all from the comfort of his Greymouth office.
  • New tsunami monitoring system for Pacific

    Feature story
    A network of state-of-the-art tsunami buoys is being deployed from New Zealand up into the Pacific to keep communities safer.
  • Freshwater species show vulnerability to climate change

    Media release
    A new study has identified seven freshwater species native to Aotearoa-New Zealand that will likely be highly or very highly vulnerable to climate change.
  • NIWA scientists make salmon farming breakthrough

    Media release
    NIWA scientists have made a breakthrough that may underpin expansion of the high-value New Zealand salmon farming industry.
  • Snow has been low but there’s more to come, say scientists

    Media release
    NIWA’s South Island snow and ice monitoring stations have confirmed what many skiers have been talking about: winter has been dry and snow coverage has been poor. In fact, several sites have recorded half their typical snow depth for this time of year.
  • Tsunami evacuation zones home to 1 in 10 New Zealanders

    Media release
    NIWA scientists have completed the first national assessment of people and buildings at risk in New Zealand’s tsunami evacuation zones.
  • Student quad bike invention a winner

    Media release
    An invention that could save lives has taken the top spot at the NIWA Waikato Science and Technology Fair.
  • Researchers on hunt for fish nurseries

    Media release
    NIWA researchers are heading out from Tasman early next week to survey an area thought to be home to important juvenile fish nurseries.
  • Squat lobster memoir hot off the press

    Media release
    After a decade-long effort, NIWA’s latest Biodiversity Memoir has just rolled off the presses. Written by marine biologist Kareen Schnabel, the 350-page treatise presents everything we currently know about the different kinds of squat lobster living in New Zealand’s waters.
  • Students do the science on COVID protection

    Media release
    As the world battles a deadly pandemic, New Zealand school students have been beavering away at science fair projects researching the effectiveness of our own COVID-19 protection measures.
  • Nameless nodes get new look from NIWA

    Media release
    At the bottom of the Southern Ocean, near Cape Adare in East Antarctica, lies an undersea ridge which until this month was only known by its co-ordinates: -71.2132 latitude, 172.1649 longitude.