The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will begin a major expedition this week, exploring the deep waters off the US East Coast and testing new technologies.
From May 14th to May 27th, scientists aboard the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer will conduct the 2021 Technology Demonstration, traveling from Cape Canaveral, Florida to Norfolk, Virginia.
According to NOAA:
“The expedition provides an opportunity to test several technologies that will allow the ocean exploration community to explore deeper, farther, and more comprehensively than previously possible. Expeditions like this are vital for the advancement of ocean exploration technologies that will benefit partners and the broader field of ocean exploration alike in our collective mission to explore, map, and understand the vast ocean realm. . . .
“During the 2021 Technology Demonstration, 24-hour-a-day operations will focus on field engineering trials of WHOI’s new Orpheus class of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), piloting NOAA Ocean Exploration’s environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling protocols, regular CTD rosette casts, and acoustic mapping of the seafloor and water column with the new EM 304 multibeam and deepwater sonar suite.”
For more info on all the cool new tech NOAA will be testing, check out the NOAA website.
(Image credit: NOAA Ocean Exploration, 2019 Southeastern U.S. Deep-sea Exploration)
