From July through the end of September, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration"s ship Okeanos Explorer is researching the deep ocean off the western coast of Hawaii.
These areas are protected waters, part of national marine sanctuaries and monuments.
The team of scientists is sending rovers up to 3 miles under the sea to explore sea life, some of which has never seen before.
There"s still a lot we don"t know about the deep oceans, but hopefully the Okeanos Explorer will help us find out more.
"These areas represent some of the last relatively pristine marine ecosystems on the planet," said Holly Bamford, assistant NOAA administrator for the National Ocean Service, in a press release about the venture. "NOAA explores these regions because the data and information we gather helps scientists and resource managers better understand and protect these biological, geological and cultural resources that we are already aware of and those we will discover in the future."
You can even watch the expedition in real time (when they"re actually out to sea) here.
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The Okeanos Explorer set out from Pearl Harbor on July 31 on the second leg of this research journey.
This expedition explored the deep waters around the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Throughout this summer and fall, the scientists plan to map 21,622 square miles of the seafloor that"s never been looked at in such detail.
Deep Discoverer, a remotely operated vehicle (ROV), went on 18 dives during this trip for a total of 95 hours at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, discovering countless marine creatures along the way.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
Source: businessinsider.com
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