The Marine Biodiversity Hub is massive project aimed at understanding Australian marine biodiversity. They publish a blog daily called 'Blogging the Abbys' that is rich with science explained simply and stories from thousands of meters below the surface. In this post, the researchers talk about what they find in the mud from the bottom of the ocean.

Senator Bernie Fowler from Maryland, USA has been measuring the clarity of the water in the Patuxent River every June for the last 30 years. His chosen method of measurement? White sneakers. He wades into the river until he cannot see his white sneakers anymore and then records how deep the water is at that point. Some years he can wade in much further than others. What began as a simple test of the health of Maryland's waters has turned into a 30 year long citizen science and public outreach

It's amazing what you can learn from a picture. Take, for instance, this shot taken by NASA's Terra Satellite. It is of the Arabian Sea near Oman. The Sun can easily be seen reflecting off the still water of the sea back to the satellite, a phenomenon known as called 'sunglint.' But what about the dark, snake-like feature stretching through the middle of the reflection? Turns out... it's choppy water! The wind churns the water slightly, making it not as reflective as still water. Using an image