Why Drones Are Catching Whale Breaths

Short Wave

NPR

Science, Life Sciences, Daily News, Astronomy, News, Nature

4.7 • 6K Ratings

🗓️ 26 December 2025

⏱️ 10 minutes

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Summary

Scientists in the Arctic are catching the exhaled breaths of whales to better understand their health. How? Drones. Whales breathe through their blowholes, which are the equivalent of nostrils on their heads. By studying the microbes in exhaled whale breaths, scientists are piecing together how deadly diseases spread in whale populations. Host Emily Kwong and producer Berly McCoy talk to All Things Considered host Juana Summers about what scientists can do with this information, from reducing stress on whales and monitoring ocean health to warning people who could be in close proximity to whales carrying zoonotic diseases.

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Transcript

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1:00.5	Visit plus.npr.org today. Thank you. You're listening to Shortwave from NPR.
1:09.5	Hey, Shortwaver's Emily Kwong here.
1:11.5	And producer Burley McCoy.
1:13.0	With our biweekly Science News Roundup featuring the host of all things considered.
1:17.3	And today we have Juana Summers.
1:19.8	Hi, I'm excited to be here.
1:21.8	And I hear that we're talking about drones collecting whale breaths.
1:24.9	Yes.
1:25.6	And how swearing may make you physically stronger.
1:29.1	Plus, how birdbeaks may have rapidly evolved during the COVID pandemic.
	...

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