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An innovative biogas system, developed at NIWA Hamilton, has been embraced by the Australian pork industry. It provides an alternative electricity and heating source.

Southwest Pacific Tropical Cyclone Outlook: Average or below average activity for most islands during the late season, but near normal number of total named storms for the region.

Fifty intrepid travellers set off from Bluff tomorrow, onboard the Spirit of Enderby, a Russian ice-strengthened ship, destined for Antarctica and the sub-Antarctica. Organised by Dr Gareth Morgan, the Our Far South voyage aims to raise New Zealanders' awareness of this unique area.

Next week, NIWA's research vessel Tangaroa will set sail for the Chatham Rise, for an international study of how microscopic organisms in the surface waters may affect the creation of clouds.

Boaties, beware this summer of a weird hitch-hiker waving at you in the water, as a peculiar marine amphipod crustacean, Caprella mutica, may be freeloading on your boat hull.

A recent expedition to one of the deepest places on Earth has discovered one of the most enigmatic creatures in the deep sea: the 'supergiant' amphipod.

A new Internet-based information portal allows anyone, at any location, to view details on a growing range of environmental data.

Scientists at NIWA and Auckland University have discovered that the fouling of vessels by marine creatures is greatly increased by the underwater sounds generated by the vessels themselves.

They don't have a voice – but they do make sounds.

When you are at the beach this summer, don't be surprised if you're swimming next to a sea snake with a paddle for a tail, a big-headed-turtle, or a magnificently coloured flat-faced fish. New Zealand's got its share of weird and wonderful marine visitors. Several species of sea snake and turtle regularly reach our waters.

Wild kai such as eel (tuna), lamprey (kanakana) and whitebait are a significant cultural, recreational and economic resource for Māori in South Canterbury.

A team of scientists from NIWA and the University of Otago has won the top 2011 Prime Minister's Science Prize for their research into guiding the world's response to climate change.

What can we expect weather-wise this holiday period? NIWA's principal scientist climate Dr James Renwick says, "It's too early to say for sure how Christmas itself will be, but if the La Niña influence continues, New Zealand should be in for a mild and relatively settled few months over the summer".

NIWA's Dr Michelle Kelly and a visiting scientist, Professor Jean Vacelet from Centre d'Oceanologie de Marseille, have recently discovered and described three "previously unknown species" of carnivorous sponges from the family Cladorhizidae.

The 'yeti crab' generated media attention worldwide when the first species was found around deep-sea hydrothermal vents off the Easter Islands at around 2200 m depth (Macpherson, Jones & Segonzac, 2005).

Scientists have been reviewing evidence of changes to New Zealand's climate. They've also been projecting future changes to New Zealand's climate, and the impact on biodiversity and marine habitats.
A historic agreement, aimed at improving country-to-country collaboration on marine research, observations and data management between New Zealand and Australia, has been signed in Canberra this morning.

A NIWA scientist has been looking at the effects of shifts in climate on water resources, in water-limited parts of New Zealand. 

The Summary for Policymakers of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) report on extreme weather events, released overnight, concludes that a changing climate leads to changes in the frequency, intensity, spatial extent, duration and timing of extreme weather and climate events, and can result in unprecedented extreme weather and climate events.

Major environment-focused Crown Research Institutes GNS Science, Landcare Research, and NIWA are joining forces with the New Zealand Geospatial Office to harmonise systems for storing, categorising and accessing vital information on New Zealand's environment.

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