Tag: research

During the 2025 Deep-sea Habitats of the Cook Islands expedition on Exploration Vessel Nautilus the team surveyed various seascapes to better understand seabed environments, and natural and mineral resources in the region. In this image, polymetallic nodules rest on sediment accumulated in a depression between rounded pillows and extended lobate lava flows, which are evidence of ancient volcanoes. (Image credit: Courtesy of Ocean Exploration Trust)

NOAA Scientists and Partners to Map Deep Waters, Seabed in the Cook Islands

6/6/2026 - By noaa.gov, noaa.gov. This summer, NOAA Ocean Exploration will conduct an expedition on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer to map, explore and characterize deep waters off the coast of the Cook Islands. The effort is in partnership with the Cook Islands Seabed Minerals Authority. Using remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), mapping technologies and onsite… SEE MORE

The Container Ship That’s Also an Ocean Science Lab

5/29/2026 - By Amy E. Nevala, whoi.edu. Some of the most valuable ocean data in the Atlantic isn't being collected by a research vessel — it's riding aboard a container ship. The M/V Oleander, which makes twice-weekly cargo runs between Port Elizabeth, New Jersey, and Hamilton, Bermuda, has carried scientific instruments since… SEE MORE

Three Ocean Robots Exploring Active Underwater Volcanoes

5/18/2026 - By Amelia Macapia, whoi.edu. The ocean floor is home to thousands of volcanoes — many of them active — and understanding what's happening down there requires machines that can go where humans can't. A new feature from WHOI's Oceanus magazine profiles three robotic vehicles that are transforming what scientists know… SEE MORE

Luxury Antarctic Cruises Double as Climate Research Platforms Through WHOI-Ponant Partnership

5/4/2026 - By Laura Castanon, whoi.edu. A new partnership between Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and French expedition cruise line Ponant is turning luxury Antarctic voyages into working science missions — giving researchers rare access to some of the most remote glaciers on the planet while passengers watch the work unfold in real… SEE MORE

The solar-powered and self-propelled SeaTrac can stay at sea for months, collecting data with a wide variety of off-the-shelf and NOAA-designed instruments. Credit: PMEL

Another Ocean Drone Joins NOAA’s Growing Fleet

4/28/2026 - By noaa.gov, noaa.gov. The SeaTrac has the potential to become a do-it-all research platform It’s bright yellow, solar-powered and self-propelled. It can stay at sea for months, collecting data with a wide variety of off-the-shelf and NOAA-designed instruments. It’s emerging as the next important member of NOAA’s growing Uncrewed Surface… SEE MORE

Image of geological samples from the seafloor that were collected via box core on April 14, 2026, in U.S. waters off American Samoa. (Image credit: USGS)

NOAA Releases First Images of Nodules from Waters Near American Samoa

4/24/2026 - By noaa.gov, noaa.gov. New images and samples were collected during 2026 efforts to map and characterize the seafloor in federal waters off American Samoa NOAA released today the first images of geologic seafloor samples from a hydrographic survey project to map and characterize more than 30,000 square nautical miles of federal waters in the… SEE MORE

WHOI Scientists Use Drifters to Track Hidden Currents in Cape Cod Bay

4/15/2026 - By MARGARET GREGORY, whoi.edu. For anyone who fishes, boats, or harvests shellfish in Cape Cod Bay, the water beneath the surface is doing more than it appears. A team from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is deploying GPS-tracked drifters and running ocean models to map how currents move water, nutrients, and… SEE MORE

Shipboard Medicine: From Wooden Chest to Telemedicine on the High Seas

4/8/2026 - By EVAN LUBOFSKY, whoi.edu. Medical emergencies far from shore are a reality every mariner must contend with — whether aboard a research vessel, a commercial fishing boat, or a cruising yacht. A fascinating new piece from WHOI's Oceanus magazine traces the evolution of shipboard medicine through the lens of the… SEE MORE

Hollings scholar Lei Curtis selects a ghost shark specimen from an oversized specimen tank in the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History Credit: Dr. Katherine Bemis/NOAA Fisheries

Diving Into Ghost Shark Systematics: My Summer as a NOAA Hollings Scholar

11/22/2025 - By fisheries.noaa.gov, fisheries.noaa.gov. Northeastern University student Lei Curtis reflects on their Hollings internship experience with the National Systematics Laboratory. My name is Lei Curtis, and I’m excited to share my experience as a 2025 NOAA Hollings scholar interning with the National Systematics Laboratory. I’m a senior at Northeastern University studying… SEE MORE

George Brown Goode, American ichthyologist and second United States Commissioner of Fisheries. (Image credit: Public Domain)

Meet the Scientist who Helped Kick-Start U.S. Fish and Fisheries Research

5/27/2025 - By noaa.gov. George Brown Goode (Good-ee) was an eminent ichthyologist who worked for the U.S. Commission of Fish and Fisheries, the first predecessor organization of NOAA Fisheries, from 1872 until 1888, and served as the U.S. Fish Commissioner from 1887 until 1888. Goode set the methods and standards still used… SEE MORE