EXPRESS: Exploration of Central California Coast (AUV and Mapping) (EX2308)

Past Expedition

Primary Goal

Test autonomous underwater vehicle operations and learn more about the biology and geology of the proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary.

Dates

October 21 - November 10, 2023

Location

Pacific Ocean

Vessel

NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer

Primary Technology

Autonomous underwater vehicles Eagle Ray and Mola Mola

Expedition Summary

To speed up the pace of ocean exploration, NOAA Ocean Exploration is committed to technological innovation and expansion of our own capacity to explore. As such, one of the primary goals of this expedition was to test autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) operations to better understand how we might incorporate AUVs into and augment standard operations on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer.

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During the 2023 EXPRESS: Exploration of Central California Coast expedition, NOAA Ocean Exploration and partners tested autonomous underwater vehicle operations as part of an effort to learn more about the biology and geology of the region. Video courtesy of NOAA Ocean Exploration, 2023 EXPRESS: Exploration of Central California Coast. Download largest version (mp4, 214 MB)

AUVs offer a unique ability to collect seafloor data over large areas from just above the seafloor, allowing for the collection of higher resolution data than is possible from surface-based platforms. In partnership with the NOAA Ocean Exploration Cooperative Institute (OECI), we tested two AUVs owned and operated by the University of Southern Mississippi. This was the first time these AUVs were used on Okeanos Explorer.

Eagle Ray, a traditional mapping AUV, is equipped with a multibeam sonar and sub-bottom profiler to collect high-resolution seafloor and water column mapping data.
Mola Mola, a photo survey AUV, is equipped with powerful cameras and a laser to capture seafloor imagery and complementary mapping data.

University of Southern Mississippi's autonomous underwater vehicle Eagle Ray. — University of Southern Mississippi’s autonomous underwater vehicle *Eagle Ray*. *Image courtesy of Art Howard, Global Foundation for Ocean Exploration/NOAA Ocean Exploration, 2023 EXPRESS: Exploration of Central California Coast.*
Download largest version (jpg, 5.89 MB).

University of Southern Mississippi’s autonomous underwater vehicle Mola Mola being recovered after a dive by NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer deck crew. — University of Southern Mississippi’s autonomous underwater vehicle *Mola Mola* being recovered after a dive by NOAA Ship *Okeanos Explorer* deck crew. *Image courtesy of Art Howard, Global Foundation for Ocean Exploration/NOAA Ocean Exploration, 2023 EXPRESS: Exploration of Central California Coast.*
Download largest version (jpg, 3.74 MB).

Another goal of this expedition was to learn more about the biology and geology of the proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary — an area of national importance — for priority science and management purposes. To identify targets for this exploratory work, NOAA Ocean Exploration collaborated with NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary, and local tribal members.

A view of the proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary near Montaña de Oro State Park in San Luis Obispo County, California. *Image courtesy of Robert Schwemmer/NOAA.*
Download largest version (jpg, 6.22 MB).

During the expedition, the team mapped approximately 22,259 square kilometers (8,594 square miles)/3,697 linear kilometers (2,297 linear miles ) of seafloor using the shipboard mapping systems and executed five complete dives (two with Eagle Ray, three with Mola Mola) on a variety of seafloor features. The depths of these dives ranged from approximately 400 meters (¼ mile) to 2,000 meters (1.2 miles). Highlights include:

Mapping data collected with Eagle Ray’s sub-bottom profiler of a sponge reef within Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary, which supplemented ship-based data collected during the EXPRESS: West Coast Mapping 2022 expedition.
Mapping data collected with Eagle Ray’s sub-bottom profiler of Rodriguez Seamount: These data revealed numerous interesting geological features at the base of the seamount, including faults, and were collected during the vehicle’s deepest dive to date, almost 2,000 meters (1.2 miles).
Imagery captured by Mola Mola in a priority area of Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary: Nearly 9,000 highly detailed images (maximum resolution of approximately 3-5 millimeters) were collected in the survey area (60 x 60 meters, 197 x 197 feet). The team is putting these images together in a mosaic that will provide a landscape view of the survey area’s biology and geology and enable an accurate biological assessment of the life within it.
Insights into AUV operations, such as AUV deck operations during launch and recovery and data management, that will inform how we can efficiently use AUVs during future expeditions.

Map showing NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer’s track map for the 2023 EXPRESS: Exploration of Central California Coast expedition (EX2308) along with the mapping data collected, the locations of the five autonomous underwater vehicle dives (two Mola Mola dives were in the same location), and the boundaries of the existing national marine sanctuaries. — Map showing NOAA Ship *Okeanos Explorer’s* track map for the 2023 EXPRESS: Exploration of Central California Coast expedition (EX2308) along with the mapping data collected, the locations of the five autonomous underwater vehicle dives (two *Mola Mola* dives were in the same location), and the boundaries of the existing national marine sanctuaries. *Map courtesy of NOAA Ocean Exploration, 2023 EXPRESS: Exploration of Central California Coast.*
Download largest version (jpg, 1.03 MB).

One of nearly 9,000 images of the seafloor collected by autonomous underwater vehicle Mola Mola in a priority area of Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary. — One of nearly 9,000 images of the seafloor collected by autonomous underwater vehicle *Mola Mola* in a priority area of Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary. *Image courtesy of University of Southern Mississippi/NOAA Ocean Exploration, 2023 EXPRESS: Exploration of Central California Coast.*
Download largest version (jpg, 4.13 MB).

To further efforts to protect our ocean by uniting traditional ecological knowledge and Western science, NOAA Ocean Exploration invited two members of the Coastal Band of the Chumash Nation, Mia Lopez and her daughter Keli, to join the expedition team aboard Okeanos Explorer to share their knowledge, traditions, and connections to the ocean and learn about ocean exploration operations first hand. Through a series of livestreamed events, Mia conducted five land acknowledgements to honor California coastal tribes, the traditional stewards of the waters we explored. Mia and Sam Cuellar, the expedition coordinator, also participated in a live interaction as part of a community outreach event hosted by Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary and NOAA Ocean Exploration at the Cabrillo High School Aquarium in Lompoc, California.

Mia Lopez from the Coastal Band of the Chumash Nation in the control room of NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer. — Mia Lopez from the Coastal Band of the Chumash Nation in the control room of NOAA Ship *Okeanos Explorer*. *Image courtesy of Art Howard, Global Foundation for Ocean Exploration/NOAA Ocean Exploration, 2023 EXPRESS: Exploration of Central California Coast.*
Download largest version (jpg, 4.12 MB).

At Sea, Land Acknowledgements Still Apply

During NOAA Ocean Exploration’s 2023 EXPRESS: Exploration of Central California Coast expedition, NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer traveled through the waters adjacent to the ancestral lands of numerous California tribes.

March 7, 2024

My Days at Sea on Okeanos Explorer

Sometimes, we can go an entire expedition on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer without seeing a single octopus. Thankfully, this has not been the case for the 2023 Shakedown + EXPRESS West Coast Exploration expedition. In celebration, we bring to you a collection of eight videos of these charismatic animals seen throughout the expedition.

January 8, 2024

The Proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary

In 2015, the Northern Chumash Tribal Council nominated an area off the central coast of California to become a national marine sanctuary. NOAA’s proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary would stretch along 134 miles of coastline from Montaña de Oro State Park in San Luis Obispo County to Naples, California, along the Gaviota Coast in Santa Barbara County, and would encompass 5,617 square miles.

November 14, 2023

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