Below you will find a collection of fact sheets, content essays, and stories from our explorers on board seafloor mapping expeditions featured on the OceanExplorer.NOAA.gov website.
From the 2021 North Atlantic Stepping Stones: New England and Corner Rise Seamounts expedition. NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer has remote mapping capabilities which allows explorers to participate in expeditions from shore. Learn more from Explorer-in-Training intern Marcel Peliks about what it is like to participate in mapping operations from home!
Read moreFrom the Exploring the Deep Ocean collection. This essay describes Sonar Systems, such as Multibeam sonar, use sound waves to map and identify seafloor features. En español: Introducción al sonar multihaz.
Read moreOcean Exploration Fact. Topographic maps show elevation of landforms above sea level; bathymetric maps show depths of landforms below sea level.
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Ocean Exploration Fact. While the entire seafloor has been mapped using data collected from satellites, these data provide only a general picture of what’s there. Seafloor mapping provides a detailed picture of features that lie deep below the ocean’s surface. A significant amount of the seafloor remains unmapped at high resolution.
Read moreNews Story. Using multibeam sonar, NOAA scientists and partners look for the geographic limits of the “Million Mounds” coral zone off the Southeast Coast of the United States in order to better protect it from things such as crab pots and bottom-trawling nets which could damage the coral.
Read moreFrom the Windows to the Deep 2019 Expedition. NOAA Ocean Exploration is committed to mapping deep water areas of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The Windows to the Deep 2019 expedition mapped several key areas off the southeastern coast of the United States in support of this mission.
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Exploration Tool. SONAR, short for SOund NAvigation and Ranging, is a tool that uses sound waves to explore the ocean. Sonar is used for oceanography because sound waves travel farther in the water than radar and light waves can.
Read moreExploration Tool. A multibeam sonar survey is often one of the first steps in exploring a new area. Multibeam sonar sends out multiple, simultaneous sonar beams (or sound waves) at once in a fan-shaped pattern to collect seafloor depth and backscatter measurements.
Read moreExploration Tool. Side scan sonar is a category of active sonar system for detecting and imaging objects on the seafloor. This system is often used to map cultural heritage sites like shipwrecks, to characterize the makeup of the seafloor, and can even help biologists identify habitats of marine animals.
Read moreThe above items are only a selection of the educational materials highlighting seafloor mapping on our website.
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