The foggy wave-torn coast of northern California may not seem like a haven for coral at first glance, but NOAA researchers say they’ve recently discovered a treasure trove of new deep sea habitats in the Gulf of Farallones Sanctuary, not far from San Francisco. The area is a melting pot for deep sea corals, sponges, [...]
Looking for a little deep sea adventure? Today’s Diving Deeper Shorts podcast explores how scientists map the sea floor and what a day is like on a research mission. Join us as we revisit our episode with Tim Battista from the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science. via NOAA’s National Ocean Service: September 2012 Podcast [...]
A new mapping tool has given scientists a first glimpse of an area of the seafloor just west of the San Francisco Bay and, thanks to a new animation, ordinary people can take a ride over the newfound and dramatic topography. The newly mapped ocean floor lies within the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine [...]
On May 7-18, scientists from NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science and Southeast Fisheries Science Center led a multiagency field mission to conduct the most comprehensive visual fishery-independent characterization of fish and benthic communities around the island of St. Croix USVI to date. The mission was funded by NOAA’s Coral Reef Conservation Program and [...]
The University of Puerto Rico research cruise, April 25-May 10, sponsored by the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, used high-resolution bathymetric mapping to further detail the distribution of MCEs within the U.S. Caribbean, which will aid in quantifying, understanding and eventually predicting their occurrence. Because MCEs serve as essential habitat and refugia for threatened [...]
During the week of February 27, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) researchers met with U.S. Coral Reef Task Force stakeholders to provide the status of NCCOS’ collaborative research efforts in the Caribbean. NCCOS scientists provided attendees a status of ongoing coral research projects in the Caribbean with special attention to the status of [...]
Last week, scientists from NCCOS released new habitat maps for Buck Island Reef National Monument (BIRNM) describing the geology and biology of the seafloor from 0 to 1,830 meters (m) in depth. These maps were developed using a combination of manual and computer-based mapping methods, which integrated remotely-sensed images acquired by six different sensors. This effort marks the [...]
To provide new high resolution data for the nearshore waters of St. Thomas, St. John, and St Croix, USVI, NCCOS scientists partnered with NOAA’s Office of Coastal Survey, Fugro LADS Corporation, and the US Virgin Islands Territorial Government. The new data filled what were previously significant data gaps in coastal waters (0-30 m water depth). NOAA’s Office of Coast [...]