Exploring the ocean for national benefit

NOAA Ocean Exploration is the only federal program dedicated to exploring the unknown ocean, unlocking its potential through scientific discovery, technological advancements, partnerships, data delivery, and education.

Learn About Science & Exploration

Learn about Ocean Exploration

Dive into ocean exploration by exploring materials such as stories, ocean facts, and images and videos, organized by topic for learners of all ages and levels.

Ocean Science for Everyone
For Educators
Multimedia

Highlights

Dive Deeper
A collection of twelve framed ocean-themed and abstract artworks.

NOAA Ocean Exploration’s Deep-Sea Valentines

For this Valentine’s Day, we challenged our staff and their families to try something new to many of them: deep-sea art!
Map of Bathymetric data collected during the Beyond the Blue: Palau Mapping series of expeditions.
Expeditions & Projects
Palau Mapping Expedition Summary
Close-up of a sea anemone with pink tentacles underwater; February calendar in the corner.
Wallpaper Calendar
February Desktop Wallpaper Calendar

News Updates

Event • Opportunity
NOAA Ocean Exploration to Host Blue Technology Education Workshop
Event
NOAA-Supported Expedition on E/V Nautilus to Explore Deep Waters of the Cook Islands
Discovery
NOAA and Partners Map the Seafloor in Southernmost Hawaiian Exclusive Economic Zone
Discovery • Publication
Jellyfish Found by Team Aboard NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer Shatters Range Assumptions
Opportunity
Call for Input: NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer 2026 Proposed Pacific Island Operating Areas

Our Expeditions by the Numbers

NOAA Ocean Exploration coordinates, funds, and conducts expeditions around the globe that feed the essential research and scientific inquiry necessary to understand the features and phenomena of the ocean to support informed resource management decisions.

View Data and Products
Featured Statistics
443,304 Square Kilometers of Seafloor Mapped
180+ Days at Sea on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer
5.5 Million Website Views
400+ Educators Trained

Status: NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer

In October, NOAA Ocean Exploration wrapped up operations on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer for the 2025 calendar year. We expect to resume operations in the Pacific in April 2026. Keep an eye out for more information!

Learn about Beyond the Blue
A vividly colored orange marine fish with a long snout and whisker-like protrusions on a sandy seabed.

Featured Favorite

Dive 11 of the Papahānaumokuākea ROV and Mapping expedition was one of the “fishier” dives of the expedition, with numerous fish sightings, including this armored sea robin, seen at a depth of approximately 493 meters (1,6,17 feet). Armored sea robins use modified fins to move across the seafloor and branched “whiskers” in front of their mouths to help them sense food.

Learn More About This Image View All Images
Explore More with NOAA Ocean Exploration

Learn more about our mission, people, impact, and other resources.