For each month in 2021, we will post a wallpaper calendar for you to download to give your desktop a fresh look. At the end of each month, the image will be retired to the wallpaper collection without the calendar.
Instructions on how to make a picture your computer's wallpaper.
This squat lobster was seen perched on a black coral at about 828 meters (2,717 feet) deep while exploring deep waters south of St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, during leg 1 of the Océano Profundo 2015: Exploring Puerto Rico’s Seamounts, Trenches, and Troughs expedition.
NOAA established the NOAA Ocean Exploration Program (now the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research). This year, NOAA is celebrating 20 years of ocean exploration.
OER and partners embarked on the Telepresence Mapping in American Samoa and the Cook Islands expedition on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer as part of the Campaign to Address Pacific Monument Science, Technology, and Ocean Needs.
OER and partners embarked on leg 3 of Océano Profundo 2015: Exploring Puerto Rico’s Seamounts, Trenches, and Troughs on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer.
NOAA and partners at the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the U.S. Geological Survey embarked on DEEP SEARCH 2019: DEEP Sea Exploration to Advance Research on Coral/Canyon/Cold Seep Habitats on NOAA Ship Ronald H. Brown off of the U.S. Mid-Atlantic and Southeast coasts.
OER and partners embarked on the third and final leg of the Exploration of the Gulf of Mexico 2014 on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer.
OER and partners embarked on the Gulf of Mexico 2018 expedition on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer.
OER published Guidelines for Research, Exploration, and Salvage of RMS Titanic in the Federal Register. These guidelines were developed in consultation with the United Kingdom, France, Canada and others and set forth a preferred policy of in situ preservation of RMS Titanic (which sank on April 15, 1912) and the parameters for the research, recovery, and conservation of its artifacts for the benefit of the public.
The first meeting to prepare the General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans was held. This was the origin of GEBCO , the organization that aims to provide the most authoritative publicly available bathymetry of the world's ocean floor and is a primary partner in the Seabed 2030 project.
Kicking off OER’s 2021 expedition season, OER and partners are scheduled to embark on the 2021 EM 304 SAT and Mapping Shakedown and U.S. Blake Plateau Mapping on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer.
OER and partners embarked on the first leg of the 2016 Deepwater Exploration of the Marianas on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer as part of the Campaign to Address Pacific Monument Science, Technology, and Ocean Needs.
Scientists exploring the seafloor on the East Pacific Rise in human-occupied vehicle Alvin encountered the first known “black smoker" high-temperature hydrothermal vent.
In partnership with the Octonauts, OER launched the Octonauts Corner for young ocean fans to learn more about the deep sea and ocean exploration.
While investigating what they suspected to be a shipwreck during the OER-led Exploration of the Gulf of Mexico 2014, the expedition team unexpectedly discovered the asphalt volcano scientists nicknamed “tar lily.”
During the OER-led Gulf of Mexico 2012 expedition, the expedition team discovered the wreck of what is likely a privateer from the early 19th century near Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary.
Canadian inventor Reginald Fessenden used his oscillator underwater to bounce soundwaves off an iceberg and the seafloor. This marked the first acoustic exploration of the sea and led to the development of sonar.
OER and partners embarked on the Mountains in the Deep: Exploring the Central Pacific Basin expedition on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer as part of the Campaign to Address Pacific Monument Science, Technology, and Ocean Needs.
During the OER-led Gulf of Mexico 2018 expedition, scientists discovered a new species of sea star. It was named Sibogaster bathyheuretor after OER’s remotely operated vehicle Deep Discoverer, which was used to image and collect a specimen for study. The Latin name “bathyheuretor,” derived from Greek, translates to “deep discoverer.”
During the OER-led Océano Profundo 2015: Exploring Puerto Rico’s Seamounts, Trenches, and Troughs expedition, scientists participating from shore discovered a new ctenophore. The discovery was the first time NOAA used video only to designate a new genus and species and highlighted the value of telepresence for onshore expedition participation.
NOAA designated Fagatale Bay National Marine Sanctuary off the coast of American Samoa. The first national marine sanctuary outside the mainland United States, it is now part of the National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa.
Interested in learning more? Browse our expeditions by year and read about NOAA's history of ocean exploration.