Image of the starboard aft deck of NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer leaving Oahu and beginning a more than two-day transit to the Johnston Atoll Unit of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. Image courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, 2017 Laulima O Ka Moana. Download larger version (jpg, 10.8 MB).
The seagoing expedition team completed the last day of shakedown operations today offshore of Oahu. The day started with a final round of dynamic positioning system testing and training was in the morning, followed by a shakedown remotely operated vehicle (ROV) dive during the afternoon. The "shakedown" or engineering dive provided the pilots a chance to test sensors, cameras, and other important components of the vehicles; train new personnel; and test new techniques without the normal pressures of a science-focused dive. After a successful shakedown dive, the small boat was deployed to conduct a personnel transfer. With all personnel safely onboard, NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer is now underway and making her way to the Johnston Atoll Unit of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. We will spend the next two days conducting transit mapping operations and expect to conduct our first ROV dive in the Monument on July 13.
