Okeanos Explorer (EX1504L4): Campaign to Address Pacific monument Science, Technology, and Ocean NEeds (CAPSTONE) Leg IV (ROV/Mapping)

Vessel: NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer; Expedition Dates: September 7 - 30, 2015

Project Principals: Brian Kennedy, NOAA/OAR/OER (Expedition Coordinator); Lindsay McKenna, NOAA/OAR/OER (Mapping Lead)

The ship will conduct 24 hour operations consisting of daytime ROV dives and evening/nighttime mapping operations including during transit. During this cruise we will conduct 8 hour ROV dives on most days with occasional 10 or 12 hour dives on particularly interesting or deep dive sites. ROV operations will focus in depths between 250 and 6,000 meters and will include high-resolution visual surveys and limited sample collection. Mapping operations will be conducted in 250 m of water and deeper, and include transit and overnight multibeam, water column backscatter, and sub-bottom data collection. Opportunistic CTD rosette operations may be requested to collect more information about the environmental parameters at ROV dives sites, or opportunistically at selected sites where collecting the data is considered important to understanding the physical or chemical properties of the overlying water column. ROV and mapping operations will not be conducted in state waters. CTD rosette operations may be requested in state waters.

Barbers Point Pinnacles

Area

Barbers Point Pinnacles; North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Atoll Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Overview

Date:	September 12, 2015
Max Depth:	368.7 Meters
Bottom Time:	3 Hours 16 Minutes 35 Seconds

Purpose

1) Recover two current meters, 2) Sample specific black coral observed on a previous HURL dive.

Ni'ihau

Area

Ni'ihau; North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Atoll Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Overview

Date:	September 13, 2015
Max Depth:	574.3 Meters
Bottom Time:	6 Hours 55 Minutes 4 Seconds

Purpose

To survey the deep fish and coral/sponge communities in state waters around Ni'ihau, where the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary is considering expansion.

Karin Ridge East

Area

Karin Ridge East; North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Atoll Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Overview

Date:	September 16, 2015
Max Depth:	3186.7 Meters
Bottom Time:	4 Hours 17 Minutes 23 Seconds

Purpose

To explore the bathyal community of a hard bottom on one of the Karin Seamounts in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument - Johnston Atoll.

Johnston Atoll South East

Area

Johnston Atoll South East; North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Atoll Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Overview

Date:	September 17, 2015
Max Depth:	1413.7 Meters
Bottom Time:	3 Hours 30 Minutes 12 Seconds

Purpose

To explore the bathyal community of a hard bottom on the SE slope of Johnston Atoll in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.

Deep Twin Ridge

Area

Deep Twin Ridge; North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Atoll Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Overview

Date:	September 18, 2015
Max Depth:	2433.7 Meters
Bottom Time:	5 Hours 13 Minutes 18 Seconds

Purpose

To explore the bathyal community of a hard bottom on a deep ridge on the south side of the Johnston Seamounts in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.

Twin Cones

Area

Twin Cones; North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Atoll Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Overview

Date:	September 19, 2015
Max Depth:	1697.5 Meters
Bottom Time:	6 Hours 6 Minutes 15 Seconds

Purpose

To explore the bathyal community of a hard bottom on two of several cones that dot the plateau of Hutchinson Seamount (feature name uncertain) in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.

Southernmost Cone

Area

Southernmost Cone; North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Atoll Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Overview

Date:	September 20, 2015
Max Depth:	1950.7 Meters
Bottom Time:	6 Hours 1 Minutes 49 Seconds

Purpose

To explore the bathyal community of a hard bottom on a pair of joined cone features, with the summit of the second ~200 m above the plateau the plateau of an unnamed seamount in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.

Lone Cone

Area

Lone Cone; North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Atoll Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Overview

Date:	September 21, 2015
Max Depth:	2116.4 Meters
Bottom Time:	6 Hours 5 Minutes 53 Seconds

Purpose

To explore the bathyal community of a hard bottom on a cone feature that rises ~400 m above the surrounding seamount plateau in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Southern Karin Ridge

Area

Southern Karin Ridge; North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Atoll Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Overview

Date:	September 22, 2015
Max Depth:	1980 Meters
Bottom Time:	5 Hours 55 Minutes 13 Seconds

Purpose

To explore the bathyal community of a hard bottom on the crest of a ridge extending to the south (this ridge may be one identified as Sculpin Ridge) in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.

Mid Karin Guyot

Area

Mid Karin Guyot; North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Atoll Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Overview

Date:	September 23, 2015
Max Depth:	2326.5 Meters
Bottom Time:	5 Hours 21 Minutes 10 Seconds

Purpose

To explore the bathyal community of a hard bottom on crest of a ridge extending from the southern rim of a plateau on the Karin Ridge in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.

Karin Ridge Top

Area

Karin Ridge Top; North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Atoll Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Overview

Date:	September 24, 2015
Max Depth:	2173 Meters
Bottom Time:	5 Hours 52 Minutes 5 Seconds

Purpose

To explore the bathyal community of a hard bottom on crest of a ridge extending south from the same seamount feature as did the ridge explored on dive 3 in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.

Abyssal Ridge

Area

Abyssal Ridge; North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Atoll Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Overview

Date:	September 25, 2015
Max Depth:	4243.4 Meters
Bottom Time:	5 Hours 14 Minutes 1 Seconds

Purpose

To explore the abyssal community of a hard bottom in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument - Johnston Atoll.

Guyot Ridge

Area

Guyot Ridge; North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Atoll Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Overview

Date:	September 26, 2015
Max Depth:	2133.9 Meters
Bottom Time:	3 Hours 48 Minutes 20 Seconds

Purpose

To explore the bathyal community of a hard bottom on the slope just below the steepest part of the wall at the edge of the plateau on the NW end of the Karin Seamounts in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument and to conduct 5 midwater transects at 100 m intervals between 1200-800 m depth.