Tag Archives: okeanos

New Year, New Field Season!

The NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer‘s 2017 field season will kick off January 18, 2017, with a mapping expedition from Honolulu, Hawaii, to Pago Pago, American Samoa. This field season marks the third year of CAPSTONE, the Campaign to Address Pacific Monument Science, Technology, and Ocean Needs. The goal of which project is to collect data necessary to support science-based decision making for marine protected areas (MPAs) in the central and western Pacific. Continue reading New Year, New Field Season!

Discoveries from Leg 3 of the Okeanos Explorer’s EX1605 Expedition

Completed on July 10th, leg three of the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer‘s EX1605 expedition was chock-full of discoveries. The Okeanos‘s remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) conducted 22 dives, exploring many recently-mapped sites in the Mariana Trench Marine National Monument (MTMNM). They ventured where no ROVs have dove before.

Continue reading Discoveries from Leg 3 of the Okeanos Explorer’s EX1605 Expedition

What is an ROV?

If the ocean is so unfathomably wide and deep, how can scientists possibly hope to do any more than dip our noses beneath the waves to explore? Luckily, engineers have adapted machines to reach areas of the ocean that would never be possible with a human alone. This is where remotely operated vehicles, or ROVs, become essential tools of discovery.

The ROV Hercules travels alongside a sixgill shark, with the support of its tow sled, Argos*

Continue reading What is an ROV?

Amazing aphyonid fish!

The NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer has been having an amazing cruise leg with lots of new discoveries. Last night the scientists made another amazing discovery. The scientists observed an aphyonid fish, roughly 10 cm long. This is the first time that this creature has ever been seen alive! 

Aphynoid fish. Never seen alive until today! Image curteousy of NOAA Okeanos Explorer.
Aphynoid fish. Never seen alive until today! Images courtesy NOAA Okeanos Explorer.

Scientists were thrilled to see such an amazing fish! This eel-like fish has been found around 2,000-6,000 meters. The aphynoid fish had transparent skin and reduced eyes. They are known for their unusual reproductive habits.

Be sure to follow the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer for more amazing discoveries!

Okeanos Update: Team Dives Mud Volcanoes

In the Marianas, the west-moving Pacific plate is forced beneath the Philippine plate as they collide, a process known as subduction. As a result, the region is characterized by many geological features including fault lines, earthquakes, volcanoes, cold seeps, hydrothermal vents, and mud volcanoes. Continue reading Okeanos Update: Team Dives Mud Volcanoes

To Boldly Go… Ahyi Seamount

About 12.5 miles off the coast of Farallon de Pajaros, within the Mariana Trench Marine National Monument, lies the Ahyi Seamount, an active underwater volcano. This site remained unexplored until June 22nd, 2016, when the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer launched its remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) to investigate the volcano. Continue reading To Boldly Go… Ahyi Seamount

Deep Discoveries Are Getting Seirios

How little is known about our ocean is a fact many agree on, however scientists are actively working to bridge the gap between the unknown and discovery. Right now, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Exploration and Research (NOAA OER) began the third cruise of their current research expedition. Aboard the NOAA ship Okeanos Explorer with remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) Deep Discoverer and Seirios, scientists are well on their way to meeting their goals for this trip. The area undergoing daily exploration is the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) and the Marianas Trench National Monument (MTMNM) in the western Pacific. The latter area is under NOAA’s protection, based on inferences that there may be unique features within its depths. Gathering baseline data and learning more about what these areas contain will enable effective conservation initiatives.

Continue reading Deep Discoveries Are Getting Seirios