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Monthly Archives: March 2016

NOAA mission highlights

NOAA Mission Highlights

Though our Nauticos team was disappointed that bad weather forced cancellation of our dives on the site of the Battle of Midway, we took heart in what was accomplished.  The expedition yielded a great wealth of baseline information about the largely unexplored Northwest Hawaiian Islands National Monument. Eight ROV dives identified 249 different types of organisms, and 34 geological and biological specimens were collected including 13 species unknown to the region (or in some cases the planet). Dozens of scientists and students from around the world participated via telepresence, and many followers watched live feed through our Expedition Portal. A video of mission highlights can be seen here, courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration.

After a short port visit in Kwajalein for resupply, NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer is conducting mapping operations to explore the largely unknown region surrounding the Wake Island Unit of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. Our Expedition Portal continues to connect to live feeds from the ship, so check in for updates and continue to follow and explore the deep sea with us!

Image from Deep Discoverer at 14,075 feet courtesy NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration

Blue Octopus

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Image from Deep Discoverer at 14,075 feet courtesy NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration.

It was my first time watching live video from the deep seafloor via telepresence–from the comfort of my home computer. I was astonished to witness amazing imagery of a beautiful translucent pale blue octopus, and the mission scientists seemed just as excited and flummoxed. Turns out this strange finless cephalopod was the first of its kind seen by humans, and at 14,075 feet was the deepest ever seen of this type.

In this video, courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration, on-board scientist Daniel Wagner narrates the scene as shore-based scientists express their feelings of thrill and awe.

The discovery was made by the ROV D2 deployed from the Oceans Explorer on February 27th while exploring Necker Ridge, southwest of Kauai in the Northwest Hawaiian Islands Marine Sanctuary. All of us following this groundbreaking expedition are privileged to witness this and other undersea discoveries as they happen. Live feed and replays of earlier dives can be seen though our Expedition Portal.

Weather

The Okeanos Explorer is currently operating near an undersea feature called Pioneer Tablemount, southeast of Midway Atoll, 1,000 miles from Honolulu. This largely unexplored pinnacle rises from the seafloor over 5,000 meters deep to nearly the surface. Screen Shot 2016-03-04 at 4.44.53 PM (2)A spectacular ROV dive is currently taking place this afternoon of March 4th, revealing incredible sea life such as the transparent sea cucumber at left. These creatures are usually seen on the bottom, but this one was found free swimming, its undulating body moving it steadily by, at a depth of over 1,000 meters. Viscera can be seen inside its clear outer body.

Unfortunately, gusting winds and high seas have forced cancellation of several ROV dives over the last few days, and postponed our planned weekend operations on the Battle of Midway site. We are holding out hope that the weather will abate and dives can take place early next week, though the forecast is not promising.

Screen Shot 2016-03-01 at 10.42.44 AMThe image at right, from Natural Earth, gives an idea what we’re up against. With the view centered roughly over our operations area, this snapshot from March 1 shows a couple of major storm systems passing through the region. History shows a 20% chance of seas exceeding twelve feet during the winter months in this part of the world, and we are definitely falling within that unlucky circumstance.

Regardless of the weather, the mapping team has been extremely productive during the last couple of days and filled in some important gaps around Pioneer Bank. These efforts included the mapping of a completely new seamount to the west of Pioneer Bank Ridge.

Please check out our Expedition Portal to see live imagery, replays of earlier dives, and other information about this important and exciting NOAA expedition.