NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research Explorer-in-Training Program

Chloe Baskin, an Explorer-in-Training who analyzed the ocean floor using data collected from NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer at the Center for Coastal Ocean Mapping Joint Hydrographic Center in the Exploration Command Center at the University of New Hampshire.
Meet Explorer-in-Training Caroline Cooper, who generated a focused GIS project using sonar data collected at an unnamed seamount during the Mapping in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument expedition.
Meet Explorer-in-Training Melissa Price, who served as a mapping intern onboard NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer.
Meet Julia Gorton, an Explorer-in-Training who worked at the the College of Charleston Geology Department’s Visualizations Lab in Charleston, South Carolina, analyzing the ocean floor using data collected from NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer.
Meet Shannon Hoy, a former Explorer in Training who has spent over 100 days at sea and has already developed a broad portfolio in the ocean sciences, from biology and ecology to geology and seafloor mapping.

Explorer-in-Training Program
Past Explorer Trainees
Opportunities

Explorer-in-Training Program

The 2000 President’s Panel on Ocean Exploration Report, Discovering Earth’s Final Frontier: A U.S. Strategy for Ocean Exploration, calls for a national ocean exploration program to “train the next generation of ocean explorers." One of the many ways the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research (OER) addresses this goal is through a partnership with the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) to provide early career explorers hands-on experience in ocean exploration on board NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, “America’s Ship for Ocean Exploration”.

Apart from working with UCAR, NOAA OER has worked with academic, industry, and government institutions to create opportunities for students, faculty, and professionals to gain first-hand, at-sea and shore-based experiences with Okeanos Explorer expeditions. Partners include the NOAA Office of Education, NOAA Ernest F. Hollings Scholarship Program, NOAA Educational Partnership Program, Naval Sea Systems Command, Naval Undersea Warfare Center, the Five College Consortium , and regional NOAA Sea Grant offices.

Since 2009, UCAR and OER have hosted over 100 mapping explorers in training. For many, this first at-sea experience was invaluable in subsequent academic and career pursuits. OER continues to seek opportunities to work with external groups to train the next generation of explorers.

Interested to get involved with NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer field activities? Check out this page: http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/okeanos/getinvolved.html.

Past Explorer Trainees

Past participants in the NOAA Explorer-in-Training program have come from a variety of places across teh country.

The more than 100 past participants in the NOAA Explorer-in-Training program have come from a variety of places across the country. Image courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research. Download high-resolution version (3.8 Mb).

Meet past "Explorers-in-Training" to learn more about their experiences:

Read mission logs from past trainees:

Training to be an Ocean Explorer, Abigail Casavant, 2015 Explorer-in-Training
Excerpts from an Intern, Kate von Krusenstiern, 2015 Explorer-in-Training
Surviving on a Ship from the Perspective of a Landlubber, Jonathan Contungo, 2015 Explorer-in-Training

Explorer-in-Training Opportunities

The application period for 2018 is now closed and applications are no longer being accepted.

The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) places mapping trainees to participate in the Okeanos Explorer-in-Training program. This program is open to enrolled undergraduate and graduate students as well as individuals who have recently graduated from a higher education program. The Explorer-in-Training program will provide the opportunity to gain experience using an advanced multibeam bathymetric sonar mapping system, while contributing in a significant way to the Okeanos Explorer ocean exploration mission.

A typical placement will consist of one 20- to 30-day expedition either offshore aboard NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer and/or onshore at the University of New Hampshire Exploration Command Center in Durham, New Hampshire. Trainees stand an eight-hour mapping watch each day. The duties of mapping watch standers typically include the acquisition and processing of multibeam data and associated sound velocity profile data, as well as precise record keeping. Each trainee also completes a project of their own interest, with approval and support from experienced mapping team personnel.

Requirements

U.S. Citizenship
Ability to stand an eight-hour at-sea watch
Familiarity with Windows and Microsoft Office tools
Willingness to learn and follow shipboard Standard Operating Procedures
Interest in learning about seafloor mapping operations

For additional information about the Okeanos Explorer and the Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, please visit: http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/okeanos/ and http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/about/welcome.html.

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