--- title: Ship Noises Could Hurt Endangered Killer Whales: Study description: Low-frequency noises produced by ships could be hurting endangered whale species, according to a new study. canonical: https://time.com/4207377/ship-noises-could-hurt-endangered-killer-whales-study-finds/ author: Daniel White article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-02-04T01:26:32.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T14:44:54.389Z article:section: Science og:title: Ship Noises Could Hurt Endangered Killer Whales: Study og:description: Low-frequency noises produced by ships could be hurting endangered whale species, according to a new study. og:url: https://time.com/4207377/ship-noises-could-hurt-endangered-killer-whales-study-finds/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9566f3a07970955a/69887c128e0601cbcd464706/gettyimages-488725504.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5000 og:image:height: 2813 og:image:alt: GettyImages-488725504 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Ship Noises Could Hurt Endangered Killer Whales: Study twitter:description: Low-frequency noises produced by ships could be hurting endangered whale species, according to a new study. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9566f3a07970955a/69887c128e0601cbcd464706/gettyimages-488725504.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Ship Noises Could Hurt Endangered Killer Whales, Study Finds > Sponsored content. 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Future Proof is TIME's weekly climate and energy newsletter, written by senior correspondent Justin Worland. It connects the energy transition to the decisions reshaping business, technology, policy and markets. #### Where can I follow the energy transition as a business story? Future Proof covers climate and energy as an economic and business story rather than only an environmental one. It publishes every Friday and is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who writes Future Proof? Justin Worland, a senior correspondent at TIME and an award-winning climate journalist, writes Future Proof. #### Is Future Proof free? Yes. Future Proof is free at time.com/newsletters. by [Daniel White](https://time.com/author/daniel-white/) ## Daniel White Feb 4, 2016 1:26 AM UTC  Orca (Killer whale) off Wrangell Island, in Southeast Alaska, USA. Orca (Killer whale) off Wrangell Island, in Southeast Alaska, USA. Wolfgang Kaehler—2015 Wolfgang Kaehler by [Daniel White](https://time.com/author/daniel-white/) ## Daniel White Feb 4, 2016 1:26 AM UTC Low-frequency noises produced by ships could be [hurting endangered whale species](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2016/02/03/ship-noises-could-hurt-endangered-killer-whales-study-finds/), according to a new study. The study, published Tuesday in PeerJ, concludes that [smaller toothed whales](http://time.com/4165551/hawaii-fewer-humpback-whales/), such as orcas and dolphins, could be hurt by the same low-frequency ship rumblings that hurt larger whales, the Washington _Post_ reports. Noises at the right frequency are already know to sometimes leave [whales](http://time.com/4176802/over-80-whales-wash-ashore-on-indian-coast/) lost or unable to hunt and the intensity of these noises has increased by nearly 10 times since the 1960s, according to the _Post_. Scott Veirs of the Beam Reach Marine Science and Sustainability School set up a test site in Washington state to see if higher frequencies had gotten louder as well and found that not only did the 1,600 ships sailing through the site emit the low rumbles, but also emitted noise at medium and high frequencies that would disturb whales like the Orca. The team has a simple suggestion until more advanced methods are deployed to ship technology—slow down. “Decreasing speed by six knots could decrease noise intensity by half,” [Veirs told the _Guardian_](http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/feb/02/ships-noise-is-serious-problem-for-killer-whales-and-dolphins-report-finds). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4207377/ship-noises-could-hurt-endangered-killer-whales-study-finds/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4207377/ship-noises-could-hurt-endangered-killer-whales-study-finds/"},"headline":"Ship Noises Could Hurt Endangered Killer Whales, Study Finds","datePublished":"2016-02-04T01:26:32.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T14:44:54.389Z","description":"Researchers suggest that ships slow down","url":"https://time.com/4207377/ship-noises-could-hurt-endangered-killer-whales-study-finds/","keywords":["animals","Environment","human behavior"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9566f3a07970955a/69887c128e0601cbcd464706/gettyimages-488725504.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Daniel White","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/daniel-white/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9566f3a07970955a/69887c128e0601cbcd464706/gettyimages-488725504.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"GettyImages-488725504","caption":"ALASKA, UNITED STATES - 2015/08/24: Orca (Killer whale) off Wrangell Island, in Southeast Alaska, USA. 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