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NOAA Recognises Crowley Vessels with VOS Award

Crowley win 2011 Company Award by NOAA for providing meteorological data Crowley win 2011 Company Award by NOAA for providing meteorological data from their vessels at sea in the Voluntary Observing Ship Program (VOS).Crowley Maritime Corporation has been selected as a 2011 Company Award winner for the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)'s Voluntary Observing Ship (VOS) program. The selection was based on Crowley's 48 vessels providing 204,430 highly accurate and timely weather observations for the U.S. VOS program in 2011. Particularly impressive was Crowley's St. Louis Express, a cargo vessel contributing 4,926 observations in 2011, ranking her the second-highest reporting vessel in the entire U.S. program.The VOS program, which was established in 1853, relies on volunteer crewmembers on nearly 1,000 ships around the world to monitor the weather at their locations and submit the observations to national meteorological services. This data is used to create marine weather forecasts and is archived for future use by climatologists and other scientists.Weather forecasters in the United States rely upon Crowley's reports heavily. These observations are used to produce the daily weather forecasts, charts, warnings, coastal-marine warnings and tropical-prediction forecasts which are distributed by NOAA's National Weather Service forecast offices, including ...

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U.S., Europe sign agreement to strengthen scientific cooperation on weather, oceans and coasts

Top leaders from NOAA and the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) signed a landmark agreement that will further strengthen cooperative science activities in the areas of climate, weather, oceans and coasts. The signing ceremony also marked the launch of the first four environmental monitoring projects under the agreement.Meeting in Brussels, Belgium, Jane Lubchenco, Ph.D., under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator, and Dominique Ristori, director general of the JRC, signed the agreement, which calls for exchanges of personnel, shared use of scientific infrastructure, support for joint research, access to laboratory facilities, scientific training and timely exchange of information."Today's global challenges must be met by increased international cooperation that addresses climate, weather, oceans and coasts - issues that impact everyone around the world," Lubchenco said. "I'm delighted NOAA and Europe's Joint Research Centre are taking this important step to increase our cooperation on science."The signing was part of a trip to Brussels by Lubchenco to speak before the European Parliament Fisheries Committee on the importance of international cooperation on sustainable fisheries management to support jobs, healthy industries, seafood and healthy marine ecosystems. Lubchenco was invited by EU Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Maria Damanaki to ...

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New Alaska navigational chart makes increased Arctic shipping safer

Kotzebue Harbor chart replaces measurements last taken in 19th century NOAA formally presented today to Alaska officials a new nautical chart for Kotzebue Sound in the Alaskan Arctic, a sparsely charted region that is seeing increased vessel traffic because of the significant loss of summer sea ice.The new chart depicts the full range of depth measurements and object detection acquired during a full ocean bottom survey last summer by the NOAA hydrographic survey ship Fairweather. It replaces a chart showing depth measurements last taken in the 19th century spaced three to five miles apart, leaving room for possible undetected dangers in between.The new navigational chart addresses a pressing need for this Northwest Alaska transportation hub, located in the Arctic Circle. Barge shipments and large transport ships must be anchored at least 14 miles out in the Kotzebue Sound due to shallow waters and inadequate charts and navigational aids. Freight must then be transferred by smaller barges to Kotzebue."This new chart is just one of the many critical navigational services that NOAA provides to support safe navigation and maritime commerce while protecting important marine resources," said Kathryn D. Sullivan, Ph.D., deputy NOAA administrator and assistant secretary of commerce for environmental observation ...

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Historic shipwreck discovered in northern Gulf of Mexico

NOAA, BOEM discovered a 19th century shipwreck during Gulf of Mexico expedition During a recent Gulf of Mexico expedition, NOAA, BOEM and partners discovered an historic wooden-hulled vessel which is believed to have sunk as long as 200 years ago. Scientists on board the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer used underwater robots with lights and high definition cameras to view remnants of the ship laden with anchors, navigational instruments, glass bottles, ceramic plates, cannons, and boxes of muskets.While most of the ship's wood has long since disintegrated, copper that sheathed the hull beneath the waterline as a protection against marine-boring organisms remains, leaving a copper shell retaining the form of the ship. The copper has turned green due to oxidation and chemical processes over more than a century on the seafloor. Oxidized copper sheathing and possible draft marks are visible on the bow of the ship.Equipped with telepresence technology, Okeanos Explorer reached audiences around the world who participated in theexpedition through live streaming Internet video.As members of the publicashorewatched live video from the ocean bottom, they became "citizen explorers," sharing in the discovery with maritime archaeologists, scientists and resource managers from a variety of federal, academic, and private organizations.The NOAA-funded 56-day ...

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NOAA releases new views of Earth’s ocean floor

NOAA's sea floor data NOAA has made sea floor maps and other data on the world's coasts, continental shelves and deep ocean available for easy viewing online. Anyone with Internet access can now explore undersea features and obtain detailed depictions of the sea floor and coasts, including deep canyons, ripples, landslides and likely fish habitat.The new online data viewer compiles sea floor data from the near shore to the deep blue, including the latest high-resolution bathymetric (sea bottom) data collected by NOAA's Office of Coast Survey primarily to support nautical charting."NOAA's ocean bottom data are critical to so many mission requirements, including coastal safety and resiliency, navigation, healthy oceans and more. They are also just plain beautiful," said Susan McLean, chief of NOAA's Marine Geology and Geophysics Division in Boulder, Colo.McLean's division is part of NOAA's National Geophysical Data Center, responsible for compiling, archiving and distributing Earth system data, including Earth observations from space, marine geology information and international natural hazard data and imagery. NGDC's sea floor data have long been free and open to the public in original science formatting, but that often required the use of specialized software to convert the data into maps and other products. The ...

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App can save whales from ship collisions

iPad and iPhone application by NOAA A new iPad and iPhone application is aimed at protecting critically endangered North Atlantic right whales from collisions with ships, its U.S. developers say.The free app, developed by researchers led by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, sends data about right whale detections directly to an iPhone or iPad on a ship's bridge, said researchers at the University of New Hampshire, who participated in the app's creation.The app links whale calls detected by a series of listening buoys to captains transiting the busy shipping lanes in and around Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary at the mouth of Massachusetts Bay, a university release said.Collisions with ships are a leading cause of death of right whales, one of the world's most endangered large animals with just an estimated 350 to 500 animals surviving, scientists said.The WhaleALERT app can use Automatic Identification System, a communication system on board all ships, as well as wireless or satellite Internet or 3G networks to deliver information about right whales in the vicinity of ships."This is a huge leap forward in terms of giving this information to mariners in a way that's part of their daily routine," UNH researchers said, noting ...

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Down to the Deep: NOAA’s Mapping Mission of the Oceans

A fascinating exploration Hollywood director James Cameron saw the deepest known spot on the ocean floor on March 25, 2012, when he made history by becoming the first solo diver to reach the bottom of the Mariana Trench, which is 6.8 miles (10,900 meters) below the surface.Cameron and his colleagues have been on the tiny Pacific island of Guam for weeks, practicing dives in a submersible built to withstand crushing pressures. Cameron's goal is to be the third person in history to reach the deepest known point in the Mariana Trench, called the "Challenger Deep."The deepest known spot in the Atlantic Ocean is in the Puerto Rico Trench, north of the island. CREDIT: NOAA NGDC or NOAA National Geophysical Data Center. "Ninety percent of our oceans remain unmapped, so we don't really know where the deepest point is,"said Susan McLean with NOAA's National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC). "We know more about the surface of Mars than we do about our own seafloor."McLean and her colleagues are trying to change that. McLean leads NOAA's Marine Geology and Geophysics Division , which part of NGDC and located incongruously in Boulder, CO., nearly 1,000 miles from the nearest ocean. Her team manages the ...

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NOAA honors lost crew of USS Monitor

Recreates faces of two sailors found in ill-fated ships gun turret Nearly 150 years after 16 USS Monitor sailors died when their vessel sank in a New Year's Eve storm, NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries has released forensic reconstructions of the faces of two crew members.Officials unveiled the reconstructions and dedicated a plaque in memory of the Monitor crew during a ceremony sponsored by the United States Navy Memorial Foundation at the Navy Memorial in Washington today.The skeletal remains of both sailors were discovered inside the Monitor's gun turret after it was raised from the ocean floor in 2002. While much has been learned about the physical characteristics of the men, their identities remain a mystery. By releasing images of the reconstructed faces, NOAA hopes the public will be able to assist in the ongoing effort to identify the sailors."These are the faces of men who gave their lives for their country at a pivotal moment in American history," said David Alberg, superintendent of Monitor National Marine Sanctuary, which was established by Congress in 1975 to protect the Monitor wreck site. "The best case scenario is that someone will emerge, perhaps a descendent, who can give these faces a ...

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Final Restoration Plan Completed for Cosco Busan Oil Spill

Projects will Address Impacts from Ship that Struck the Bay Bridge State and federal trustee agencies have released the Cosco Busan Oil Spill Final Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan. The document summarizes the injuries to wildlife, habitat, and recreational uses from the oil spill that occurred on Nov. 7, 2007. It also describes a number of restoration projects that will be implemented to compensate for injuries from the spill.In accordance with the Oil Pollution Act, the public commented on a draft version of the Restoration Plan in fall 2011. Since that time, the federal and state government trustee agencies have considered the comments, revised the plan, and finalized it, paving the way to begin implementation of the projects.While a legal settlement was announced in September, 2011, the case formally closed on Jan. 27, 2012, when Federal District Court Judge Samuel Conti entered the consent decree regarding the settlement.Changes between the draft and final Restoration Plans were minor, primarily serving to include more restoration project options and to allow greater flexibility in the use of the funds.The trustees, including the California Department of Fish and Game, California State Lands Commission, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National ...

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Voluntary Speed Restrictions in Effect

DMA is in effect immediately through 5 March 2012 The Republic of the Marshall Islands issues Marine Safety Advisory regarding Voluntary Speed Restrictions in Effect as follows:Please be advised that the NOAA's (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) National Marine Fisheries Service has announced that a voluntary vessel speed restriction zone (Dynamic Management Area - DMA) has been established in the vicinity of Narragansett Bay to protect an aggregation of 3 right whales sighted in this area on 19 February 2012. This DMA is in effect immediately through 5 March 2012.Mariners are requested to route around these areas or transit through them at 10 knots or less. The coordinates for the DMA is as shown below. Please note that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has issued a news release stating that civil penalties assessed against three large commercial vessels for violating seasonal speed limits intended to protect the endangered North Atlantic right whales this last fall have been paid in full. Cases against six other vessels for the same offense are still open.Vessels of 65 feet or greater in length are restricted to speeds of ten knots or less in seasonal management areas along the East Coast. One vessel ...

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