Pandemic made 2020 ‘the year of the quiet ocean’, say scientists

Human-generated sounds faded substantially at height of Covid lockdown, studies show

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The Covid-19 lockdown has produced the quietest year for the world's oceans in recent memory, according to a group of scientists working on a global map of underwater soundscapes.

Noise pollution from ship engines, trawling activities, oil platforms, subsea mining and other human sources declined significantly last spring, say the researchers, who are part of a collaborative network of 231 non-military hydrophones.