Windows to the Deep 2019: Exploration of the Deep-sea Habitats of the Southeast United States
Past Expedition
Overview
From May 30 through July 12, 2019, NOAA and partners conducted a two-part, telepresence-enabled ocean exploration expedition on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer to collect critical baseline information about unknown and poorly understood deepwater areas of the southeastern United States.
Features
Windows to the Deep 2019: Exploration of the Deep-sea Habitats of the Southeastern United States was a 38-day, two-leg, telepresence-enabled expedition on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer to collect data on priority exploration areas identified by the ocean management and scientific communities.
August 21, 2019
On the final remotely operated vehicle (ROV) dive of Windows to the Deep 2019, NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer’s 100th ocean exploration mission, the ROV Deep Discoverer (D2) explored the seafloor around recently discovered methane plumes near the well-studied Norfolk Seeps, the location where the U.S. Atlantic seeps story first began in 2012.
July 12, 2019
On Sunday, June 16th, 2019, in the midst of her 100th ocean exploration mission, NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer could curiously be found in port, rather than exploring the deep sea. The occasion? A formal maritime change of command ceremony, and the official welcoming of Commander (CDR) Nicole Manning as the sixth Commanding Officer (CO) of the Okeanos Explorer.
July 11, 2019
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Operations during this expedition have taken NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer both inside and outside the Stetson-Miami Terrace Deepwater Coral Habitat Area of Particular Concern (HAPC) and the team has discovered mounds of reef-building corals no one ever dreamed of.
July 9, 2019
During Dive 14 of the Windows to the Deep 2019 expedition, NOAA’s remotely operated vehicle (ROV) Deep Discoverer, also known as D2, explored cold seeps arrayed along a ridge located about 62 kilometers (39 miles) offshore Bodie Island, North Carolina.
July 7, 2019
When the old television show The Twilight Zone described its namesake as a “dimension of imagination” consisting “of both substance and shadow,” it could easily have been referring to an area of the ocean by the same name. The mesopelagic zone, also known as the twilight zone, lies at 200-1000 meters (about 660-3300 feet), where the last bits of sunlight from the surface give way to total darkness.
July 6, 2019
At 920 meters (3,018 feet) depth we came upon a Chaceon crab perched above a white patch on the seafloor. A closer look revealed the patch to be a cluster of hundreds of eggs, proposed by Dr. Peter Auster (University of Connecticut and Sea Research Foundation - Mystic Aquarium) to have been deposited on the rock by a pallid sculpin.
July 5, 2019
To celebrate our country’s star-spangled Independence day, here are FIVE species of star-shaped echinoderms (mostly sea stars) to commemorate discovery and the 4th of July!
July 4, 2019
The first leg of the Windows to the Deep 2019 expedition conducted 24-hour mapping operations in deepwater areas offshore of the southeastern United States. After 17 days at sea, we ended the mission with new multibeam bathymetry maps of areas of the Blake Plateau.
July 2, 2019
Bloody Marsh was a T2-SE-A1 oil tanker built in 1943 in Chester, PA by Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co.
June 29, 2019
In honor of #CephalopodWeek (and #OctopusFriday!), below is a collection of some of our favorite sightings of these highly intelligent, mobile, and charismatic invertebrates, made over the course of exploring from the Okeanos.
June 28, 2019
During Dive 5 of the Windows to the Deep 2019 expedition, we encountered a charismatic swimming jelly called a helmet jelly that was twisting and tumbling as it moved across ROV Deep Discoverer’s field of view.
June 28, 2019
We teamed up with the Octonauts to provide a behind-the-scenes look at NOAA's ocean exploration vessel in the “Octonauts and NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer” video, giving aspiring explorers the opportunity to learn more about our ocean.
June 26, 2019
During Dive 5 of the Windows to the Deep 2019 expedition, we encountered a charismatic swimming jelly called a helmet jelly that was twisting and tumbling as it moved across ROV Deep Discoverer’s field of view.
June 25, 2019
Windows to the Deep 2019 is the first live-streamed expedition that the remotely operated vehicle (ROV) Deep Discoverer (D2) will use its new suction sampler.
June 24, 2019
When someone mentions deep-sea corals, most people think of something like what they might see on a tropical shallow coral reef. But many deep-sea corals, like the colonies in this video, are more closely related to tropical sea fans than to the corals that create the structure of the reef.
June 23, 2019
This week, NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, with a dedicated team both aboard and on shore, sets sail on its 100th ocean exploration expedition.
June 22, 2019
In the deep sea, we encounter many other corals: lace corals, soft corals, gold corals, and black corals.
June 22, 2019
Today marks the first day of the Windows to the Deep 2019 expedition and NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer’s 100th ocean exploration mission!
June 20, 2019
There is perhaps no greater potential for archaeological discoveries in U.S. waters than along the Eastern Seaboard.
May 30, 2019
In 2016, NOAA launched a new four-year initiative to study deep-sea coral and sponge ecosystems across the Southeast United States, a region that includes the U.S. federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico, South Atlantic Bight, and Caribbean Sea.
May 30, 2019
Windows to the Deep 2019: Exploration of the Deep-sea Habitats of the Southeastern United States expedition, the mission team plans to visit at leasts one potential cold seep sites in or near canyons off the North Carolina coast.
May 30, 2019
From May 30 through July 12, 2019, NOAA and partners will conduct a two-part, telepresence-enabled ocean exploration expedition on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer to collect critical baseline information about unknown and poorly understood deepwater areas of the Southeastern United States.
May 30, 2019
Submarine canyons are found throughout the world, representing complex seafloor features that link the upper continental shelf to the abyssal plain
May 30, 2019
From June 20 through July 12, 2019, NOAA and partners will conduct the second leg of the Windows to the Deep 2019 expedition , a telepresence-enabled ocean exploration expedition on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer to collect critical baseline information about unknown and poorly understood deepwater areas of the Southeastern United States.
May 30, 2019
The first leg of the Windows to the Deep 2019 expedition, taking place from May 30 to June 14, will include 24-hour per day mapping operations focused on high-priority areas identified by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, NOAA, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, and the science community.
May 30, 2019
Multimedia
Featured multimedia assets associated with this project.
Dive Summary Map
The map below shows the location of dives during the expedition. Click on a dive number to access the update from that day.
Education
Our Learn & Discover page provides the best of what the NOAA Ocean Exploration website has to offer to support educators in the classroom during this expedition. Each theme page includes expedition features, lessons, multimedia, career information, and associated past expeditions. Below are related top education themes for this expedition.
Meet the Exploration Team
Learn more about the team members and their contributions to this project.
Assistant Professor, California State University, Sacramento
Leg 2
Leg 2
Temple University
Leg 2
Leg 2
Mechanical Engineer
Global Foundation for Ocean Exploration
Leg 2
Global Foundation for Ocean Exploration
Leg 2
Hydrographer and Marine Geologist
Leg 1
Leg 1
NOAA Teacher at Sea
Leg 1
Leg 1
Electronic Systems Engineer
Global Foundation for Ocean Exploration
Legs 1 and 2
Global Foundation for Ocean Exploration
Legs 1 and 2
Resources & Contacts
Media Contacts
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NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research
Emily Crum
Email Address: emily.crum@noaa.gov -
NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries
Vernon Smith
National Media Coordinator
Office: (301) 713 – 3125 x248
Email Address: vernon.smith@noaa.gov -
NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service
John Ewald
Director of Public Affairs
Office: (301) 427 – 8029
Email Address: john.ewald@noaa.gov -
NOAA Office of Marine and Aviation Operations
David Hall
Public Affairs Officer
Office: (301) 713 – 7671
Email Address: david.l.hall@noaa.gov