Now Hiring: 2 Environmental Scientists, 1 Research Environmental Scientist. Apply here Deadline: July 13.

The U.S. Government is closed. This site will not be updated; however NOAA websites and social media channels necessary to protect lives and property will be maintained. To learn more, visit www.commerce.gov. For the latest forecast and critical weather information, visit www.weather.gov. 

Projects Explorer

The NCCOS Project Explorer provides a snapshot of our official, discrete lines of research.
Filter by research category, region, and/or contact.

Improving Species Distribution and Seafloor Maps to Support Washington State Marine Planning

charles.menza@noaa.gov, Habitat Mapping, john.christensen@noaa.gov, Marine Spatial Ecology, Pacific Ocean, pinniped, seabird, tim.battista@noaa.gov, Waterbodies
Our work provided the state of Washington and the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary with new information to prioritize seafloor mapping, and to better understand ...
Read More

Improving the Gulf of Maine HAB Forecast with Environmental Sample Processors

Atlantic Ocean, Harmful Algal Bloom Detection and Forecasting, Maine, marc.suddleson@noaa.gov, Massachusetts, MERHAB, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
Toxic algal blooms pose a serious health risk and often disrupt valuable regional shellfisheries. Eating seafood tainted with algal toxins can sicken or even kill ...
Read More

Improving Tools for Monitoring Multiple HAB Toxins at the Land-Sea Interface in Coastal California

California, cyanobacteria, cyanotoxins, Harmful Algal Bloom Detection and Forecasting, marc.suddleson@noaa.gov, MERHAB, microcystins, Pacific Ocean, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
The impacts of cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) toxins are an emerging public health and environmental issue in brackish and marine ecosystems, yet coastal harmful algal bloom ...
Read More

InEvalTool: An Integrative Evaluation Toolkit for Hawaiian Nature-based Solutions

Assessing Vulnerability and Resilience, Coastal Change, Hawaii, Natural and Nature-based Features, Other Topics, Pacific Ocean, rebecca.atkins@noaa.gov, Sea Level Rise, Social Science, Sponsored Research
We are co-developing an accessible, replicable way to evaluate the performance of nature-based solutions that accounts for the data and modeling constraints islands face, as ...
Read More

Influence of Shoreline Changes on Chesapeake and Delmarva Bay Ecosystems

Atlantic Ocean, Chesapeake Bay, Climate Impacts on Ecosystems, Coastal Change, Delaware, elizabeth.turner@noaa.gov, Marine Spatial Ecology, Other Topics, Regional Ecosystem Science, Restoration, Sea Level Rise, Sponsored Research, U.S. States and Territories, Vulnerability and Risk Assessment, Waterbodies
We are supporting a large-scale research project to predict how shoreline development interacts with other stresses to change coastal ecosystems and the species that live ...
Read More

Informing Adaptation Decisions for Alaska’s Salmon Fisheries

Alaska, Climate Impacts on Ecosystems, Coastal Change, elizabeth.turner@noaa.gov, Ocean Acidification, U.S. States and Territories
We are integrating multiple areas of research on the impacts of ocean acidification (OA) and the influence of “tipping points” (i.e., regime shifts) on Alaska’s ...
Read More

Informing Coastal Adaptation and Management through the Coastal Dynamics of Sea Level Rise (iCAM-CDSLR)

Coastal Change, Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), Natural and Nature-based Features, Sea Level Rise, trevor.meckley@noaa.gov, Vulnerability and Risk Assessment, Waterbodies
We will partner with communities to enhance proposals to organizations that can fund innovative nature-based flood mitigation projects along the Gulf Coast. We will provide ...
Read More

Integrated Assessment of Ecosystem Condition and Stressor Impacts in Submerged Habitats of the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve

Ecological and Biogeographic Assessments, Florida, guana tolomato matanzas National estuarine research reserve, Marine Spatial Ecology, Protected Species, U.S. States and Territories
The Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve is rich with scenic beauty and economic value, supporting the vast majority of the commercially and recreationally ...
Read More

Integrated Ecosystem Modeling of the Causes of Hypoxia

Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, david.scheurer@noaa.gov, dead zone, fisheries, Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), Hypoxia, Louisiana, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, Texas, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
The largest low oxygen (hypoxic) zone affecting the United States is in the northern Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), adjacent to the Mississippi ...
Read More

Integrated Marine Protected Area Climate Tools (IMPACT) for Management Adaptation and Planning—Demonstration in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

Climate Impacts on Ecosystems, Coastal Change, doug.pirhalla@noaa.gov, Florida, Florida Keys, U.S. States and Territories, Vulnerability and Risk Assessment
We are studying the effects of weather and climate on South Florida’s coastal ecosystems and developing models to predict corresponding changes in environmental health. We ...
Read More

Integrated Modeling of the Effects of Sea Level Rise across Estuaries, Marshes and Barrier Islands in Mississippi Sound

Alabama, Coastal Change, Coastal Change, Mississippi, modeling, Other Topics, Sea Level Rise, sea level rise, Sponsored Research, trevor.meckley@noaa.gov, U.S. States and Territories
We are advancing coastal dune and marsh modeling of the barrier islands, estuary and interior marshes in the Mississippi Sound to evaluate trade-offs between coastal management ...
Read More

Integrating Cell and Toxin Cycles of the Dinoflagellate Karlodinium veneficum with Key Environmental Regulators to Predict Bloom Toxicity

Chesapeake Bay, harmful algal bloom, Harmful Algal Bloom Detection and Forecasting, john.wickham@noaa.gov, karlodinium veneficum, karlotoxins, Maryland, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
Blooms of Karlodinium veneficum can produce fish-killing toxins called karlotoxins. Toxicity varies over time, with karlotoxins increasing prior to blooms and under growth-limiting conditions. We ...
Read More

Integration of Alternative Methods of Analysis with the Neurotoxic Shellfish Poisoning Monitoring and Management Framework

Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), Harmful Algal Bloom Detection and Forecasting, quay.dortch@noaa.gov, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, Waterbodies
We are seeking Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference approval for a quick test to replace the mouse bioassay in some regulatory instances as the method for ...
Read More

Integration of Social Science with Probabilistic Sea Level Rise Projections in Puget Sound

Assessing Vulnerability and Resilience, chloe.fleming@noaa.gov, Coastal Change, Puget Sound, seann.regan@noaa.gov, Social Science, U.S. States and Territories, Vulnerability and Risk Assessment, Washington, Waterbodies
Washington Sea Grant assessed sea level rise exposure for coastal areas of Puget Sound by developing a parcel-level sea level rise vulnerability assessment. NCCOS supported ...
Read More

Interactions between Ocean Acidification and Eutrophication in Chesapeake Bay and Implications for Oysters

Chesapeake Bay, Climate Impacts on Ecosystems, Coastal Change, elizabeth.turner@noaa.gov, Ocean Acidification, Waterbodies
We are supporting research that will determine the current state of acidification in Chesapeake Bay waters and identify areas in the bay that are most ...
Read More

Interactive Effects of Microplastics and Other Chemicals of Emerging Concern in Coastal Ecosystems

Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, paul.pennington@noaa.gov, South Carolina, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Water Quality
The purpose of this project is to examine how microplastic pollution interacts with chemical contamination in coastal ecosystems. We plan to perform a series of ...
Read More

Interannual Variability of PSP Toxicity in Eastern Maine: Testing the Leaky Gyre Hypothesis and Improving Regional Forecasts and Management

Alexandrium, Atlantic Ocean, Canada, ECOHAB, Forecasting, Foreign Countries, Gulf of Maine, harmful algal bloom, Harmful Algal Bloom Detection and Forecasting, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Other Topics, quay.dortch@noaa.gov, Rhode Island, Sponsored Research, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
The Gulf of Maine is impacted annually by Alexandrium fundyense blooms which can result in paralytic shellfish poisoning. Paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) leads to significant ...
Read More

Invasion of Asian Tiger Shrimp along the U.S. Southeastern Coast and Gulf of America

Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), Invasive Species, james.morris@noaa.gov, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, tiger shrimp, Waterbodies
We are investigating the cause and potential impacts of the recent tenfold increase in invasive Asian tiger shrimp sightings along the southeastern U.S. coast and ...
Read More

Investigating Domoic Acid Biosynthesis and Toxic Bloom Formation Through Pseudo-nitzschia–Marine Bacteria Interactions

Connecticut, Harmful Algal Bloom Detection and Forecasting, john.wickham@noaa.gov, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Washington
The marine diatom Pseudo-nitzschia (PN) produces domoic acid (DA), a neurotoxin that has caused widespread human poisoning along the northeast and northwest coasts of the ...
Read More

Investigating Mesophotic Coral Reefs in Hawaii

Coral, Ecological and Biogeographic Assessments, Habitat Mapping, Hawaii, kimberly.puglise@noaa.gov, Marine Spatial Ecology, Other Topics, Pacific Ocean, Regional Ecosystem Science, Sponsored Research, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
We investigated Hawaii’s mesophotic coral ecosystems to better understand them and their relationship to shallower reefs. We found reefs off Maui’s southwestern coast at depths ...
Read More

Is an Old Dune a More Resilient Dune? Assessing How Dune Formation Affects Coastal Protection from Storms and Sea Level Rise in North Carolina

Climate Impacts on Ecosystems, Coastal Change, Natural and Nature-based Features, North Carolina, Sea Level Rise, trevor.meckley@noaa.gov, U.S. States and Territories
We will evaluate whether naturally vegetated dunes are more resilient to storm surge and erosion than bare or planted human-made dunes. The gradual development of ...
Read More