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NOAA Ocean Exploration: 2015

Océano Profundo 2015: Exploring Puerto Rico’s Seamounts, Trenches, and Troughs (EX1502)

February - March 2015: NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer conducted a mapping expedition, beginning in North Kingstown, Rhode Island, and ending in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

No known articles related to this expedition have been published at this time.

Mapping the Uncharted Diversity of Arctic Marine Microbes

January 2015 - August 2016: Scientists used next-generation DNA sequencing technologies and cutting-edge bioinformatics approaches to enable the discovery and characterization of the largely unknown molecular diversity of microbes associated with Arctic sea ice and seafloor habitats.

No known articles related to this expedition have been published at this time.

Tropical Exploration 2015 (EX1503)

May - June 2015: NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer journeyed from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, exploring along the way. Okeanos Explorer will leave Puerto Rico to traverse the Western Caribbean, Panama Canal, and Eastern Pacific.

No known articles related to this expedition have been published at this time.

Bioluminescence and Vision on the Deep Seafloor 2015

July 2015: Scientists used combined expertise in bioluminescence, taxonomy, visual ecology, imaging and molecular biology, and the unique collecting capabilities and camera systems of the Global Explorer to continue studies of the deep-sea benthic environment in the Gulf of Mexico.

No known articles related to this expedition have been published at this time.

Search for the Lost Whaling Fleets of the Western Arctic

August 2015: This expedition brought the NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries’ Maritime Heritage Program to the remote and challenging Alaska region for the first time in the more than four decades since the creation of the National Marine Sanctuary Program.

No known articles related to this expedition have been published at this time.

Exploration of the Muertos Trough and Puerto Rico Trench via Un-tethered Free Vehicles: 2015

2015: Over a two-year period, a team from the University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez systematically tested, improved, and enhanced relatively low-cost free vehicles and free vehicle-supported research methods in shallow to abyssal depths.

No known articles related to this expedition have been published at this time.

Uncovering a Pirate City: 3D Mapping for Marine Applications

Spring 2015: Leading the state-of-the-art development of marine robotic 3D mapping for underwater archaeology, our University of Michigan-based team returned from an archaeological field expedition to the underwater city of Port Royal, Jamaica.

No known articles related to this expedition have been published at this time.

Ambient Sound at Full Ocean Depth: Eavesdropping on the Challenger Deep

July 2015: NOAA and partner scientists deployed a hydrophone to a depth of 10,971 meters (6.71 miles) within the Challenger Deep trough in the Mariana Trench near Micronesia. Here are some of their results.

No known articles related to this expedition have been published at this time.

Coral Ecosystem Connectivity 2015: From Pulley Ridge to the Florida Keys

August -September 2015: Scientists conducted the final round of fieldwork as part of the Coral Ecosystem Connectivity 2015: From Pulley Ridge to the Florida Keys expedition.

No known articles related to this expedition have been published at this time.

Hohonu Moana: Exploring the Deep Waters Off Hawai’i (EX1504)

July -September 2015: A team of NOAA and external partners both at-sea and on shore conducted mapping and remotely operated vehicle operations in the deep waters of the Hawaiian Archipelago, including the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument and Johnston Atoll. This expedition was the first CAPSTONE mission.

Amon, D. J., Kennedy, B. R. C., Cantwel, K., Suhre, K., Glickson, D., Shank, T. M., & Rotjan, R. D. (2020). Deep-Sea Debris in the Central and Western Pacific Ocean. Frontiers in Marine Science, 7, 15. doi:10.3389/fmars.2020.00369

Ross, T., Du Preez, C., & Ianson, D. (2020). Rapid deep ocean deoxygenation and acidification threaten life on Northeast Pacific seamounts. Global Change Biology, 21. doi:10.1111/gcb.15307