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COMIC: Exploring the ocean’s wonderous, mysterious depths

COMIC: Exploring the ocean’s wonderous, mysterious depths
Angela Hsieh for NPR

Did you know that the ocean produces approximately half of the world’s oxygen? Or that key medicines have come from ocean discoveries, like a painkiller found in a sea snail?

It’s all true! And so is this fact: Humans haven’t seen 99.999% of the deep sea floor.

With this comic, we explore some of the cool things scientists do know about the ocean and what dwells inside of it.

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Angela Hsieh for NPR /

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This comic was written and illustrated by Angela Hsieh, based on reporting from Berly McCoy. It was art directed by Emily Bogle and edited by Rebecca Ramirez.

Copyright 2025 NPR

Kimberly (Berly) McCoy (she/her) is a producer for NPR's science podcast, Short Wave. The podcast tells stories about science and scientists, in all the forms they take.

McCoy started working with NPR as the program coordinator of the NPR Scicommers, a group founded by Joe Palca and Maddie Sofia to teach scientists and engineers how to better communicate and find community.

After lending a fact-checking hand to the Short Wave team on and off, they graciously taught McCoy the production ropes, where she now produces regularly, with stories ranging from axolotls to physics.

In another life, McCoy earned her PhD in biochemistry transforming viruses into nanoreactors. She dug through garbage to understand human recycling behavior, counted rattlesnake tongue flicks to gauge their diet preferences and caught endangered butterflies on mountain tops for population surveys.

She lives just outside of Glacier National Park and enjoys rock climbing, ice fishing, her rambunctious dogs and making food magically appear from dirt. [Copyright 2024 NPR]

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