Navigating tricky trade-offs in busy seas

£3.7m project aims to provide unprecedented analysis of mesophotic coral reefs

The five-year initiative will assess the response and resilience of mesophotic coral reef communities to future climate change

One-stop ocean data hub could help protect seas and communities 

A new Defra-commissioned report gathered stakeholder views on how to improve access to marine social and economic data and outlined steps to better...

Eroding peatlands influence the Falkland Islands coastal ecosystem

PML scientists have recently returned from the Falklands after a 2 week mission to collect data on the impact of eroded peat on the local marine envir...

Joining forces on harmful algae: PML leads satellite project with NZ partner

As South Australia confronts one of its most damaging harmful algal blooms on record, a new UK–New Zealand research project led by Plymouth Marine ...

MEDIA: Will 2026 be the year when coral reefs pass their tipping point?

PML’s Dr Samantha Garrard writes for The Conversation UK on what the year ahead could mean for coral reefs.

New Chair of Trustees announced at PML

Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML) is pleased to announce the appointment of Nigel Godefroy as its new Chair of the Board of Trustees from July 2026.

WATCH NOW: Real-time imaging of microplastic gut passage in zooplankton

A new study has, for the first time, recorded and measured just how fast microplastics move through the gut passage of a key zooplankton species in re...

PML Science that made the headlines in 2025

As 2025 draws to a close, we reflect on some of the science from the lab that made the headlines this year.

Merry Xmas from PML (with a celebration of ocean storytelling)  

This year’s PML Christmas card is inspired by a storybook created to inspire curiosity and care for the Ocean among young readers. 

How bubbles may speed up CO2 uptake by the ocean

New study provides evidence that the ocean may have absorbed as much as 15% (0.3-0.4 Pg C yr-1) more CO2 than previously thought, requiring a re-think...

Following ocean currents to predict and prevent seabird deaths 

A new study seeks to support conservation and management strategies by identifying zones of overlap between fishing and bird activity.

What's the real economic value of blue ecosystems? New research reveals holistic benefits boost value by 10-100x

The paper’s findings are crucial for decision-makers looking to nature-based solutions, to mainstream a holistic value of blue ecosystems beyond ca...

UK’s top science organisations unite to support national priorities and policy-making

PML is one of the 35 members of the newly-formed National Research Organisations (NRO) Group

Responsible research: reducing the environmental footprint of our science

As an environmental organisation, we are committed to reducing any negative impact our research and innovation activities may have on the natural envi...

The shift that sparks nitrification: PML research resolves long-standing mystery within the nitrogen cycle

New PML research has shed light on a long-standing puzzle in marine science: why does nitrification – a key process in the ocean’s nitrogen cycl...

Where Science Meets Space Agencies: PML at IOCS 2025

The International Ocean Colour Science (IOCS) meeting is underway in Germany – one of the most important global gatherings for the ocean-colour an...

Ocean Action at COP30: Progress Made Despite Fossil Fuel Shortcomings

PML delegates reflect on the outcomes of the Climate Change Conference in Brazil    

PML scientist appointed as Co-Chair of leading ocean forecasting partnership

The National Partnership for Ocean Prediction (NPOP) brings together world-class expertise from the UK’s leading marine and oceanographic research c...

Microplastics pose a human health risk in more ways than one

New study shows that microplastics in the natural environment are colonized by pathogenic and antimicrobial resistant bacteria. The study team calls f...

From Dunes to Data: How Citizen Science Is Transforming Coastal Biodiversity Monitoring 

This guest article, written by Paula Brines i Blasco from Institut Metròpoli, highlights work within the GUARDEN project – a collaboration between ...

Local Plymouth schoolchildren star in new ocean literacy videos

Pupils from St Andrew’s CofE Academy in Plymouth have played a starring role in a new video series to bring ocean knowledge into classrooms across E...

PML Scientists Share Evidence on Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal in Westminster

Discovering hidden ocean life in one of the UK’s most remote Overseas Territories 

Professor Kerry Howell is currently in Ascension Island – an isolated volcanic island in the South Atlantic, and one of the UK’s most remote Overs...