Office of Coast Survey
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
U.S. Department of Commerce
Office of Coast Survey
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
U.S. Department of Commerce
June 14, 2023
On May 16-17, Julia Powell, Mike Annis, LTJG Collin McMillan from the Navigation Services Division and Grant Froelich from the Hydrographic Surveys Division traveled to Stennis Space Center, Mississippi to attend a two-day meeting with personnel from the Naval Oceanographic Office, OMAO UxS Office, CO-OPS, and NCEI UxS Data team. A number of other personnel from Coast Survey were able to attend virtually as well, including CDR Briana Hillstrom, Corey Allen, Jack Riley, and Christy Fandel. Discussions during the meeting focused on uncrewed systems, future survey plans, technical updates, and potential for future collaborations. In addition, the group reviewed and updated the memorandum of agreement to further coordinate and collaborate on hydrographic survey initiatives. There was also a tour of the local University of Southern Mississippi facilities which included viewing their uncrewed survey platforms. For more information, please contact Grant.Froelich@noaa.gov.
RDML Ben Evans and a contingent of Coast Survey staff spent the week of 22 May engaging with NOAA stakeholders and partners across Alaska. The agenda included meetings with established navigation and marine navigation stakeholders, but emphasized engagement with emerging users of NOAA ocean and coastal mapping data including local and tribal interests. The highlight of the week was a visit to Nome, where the team saw first-hand the impacts of Typhoon Merbok and discussed with local partners how Coast Survey data, products, and services could better serve this rapidly changing region. While in Nome, RDML Evans also delivered a presentation as part of the "Strait Science" lecture series. For more information, contact Caroline.Wilkinson@noaa.gov.
NOAA's Integrated Ocean and Coastal Mapping program recently developed a new ArcGIS hub site sharing the results of the 3D Nation Elevation Requirements and Benefits Study, published in September 2022. The site currently features an application which allows users to filter business use ranks by each state. The site will be updated with more immersive dashboards as they become available. This study was sponsored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Geological Survey, and conducted by Dewberry. The study documents nationwide requirements and benefits of 3D elevation data both on land and underwater. The study also estimates the costs associated with meeting these requirements and evaluates multiple scenarios for enhancing national elevation mapping programs. For more information, contact iwgocm.staff@noaa.gov.
The rescheming of the Mississippi River Band 5 ENCs, started in September of 2020, is complete. The final eight Mississippi River cells are scheduled for public release in mid-June 2023, which will complete the rescheming of the river. These reschemed cells mark a major milestone in providing our customers with products that are modern, up-to-date, and safer for navigation. All of the Mississippi River reschemed cells are metricated, updated with the latest hydrographic survey data, and have harmonized datums. Updated chart features like mooring buoys, anchorage areas, and revetments; and new infrastructure, such as LNG terminals and material offloading facilities have been added. The new cells provide higher resolution coverage (1:10,000 scale) than the charts they are replacing, which delivers better information for navigation. You can find the current status of new ENCs at NOAA's website. For more information, contact Michael.E.Doig@noaa.gov.
The Atlantic Hydrographic Branch Hydropickers did it again, this time picking up approximately 45 pounds of trash during the 2023 Chesapeake Bay Foundation's Clean the Bay Day on Tuesday June 6, 2023. The tide was low after a previous day of high winds pushing water (and trash) up into The Hague behind the Chrysler Museum of Art. Many pieces of plastic including wrappers and drink container lids, some small pieces of plywood, and of course the ubiquitous cigarette butts were found. Unfortunately, we didn't get to the tires and other larger objects at the bottom of The Hague; maybe next year we'll have a canoe to pick these items up. For more information, contact Rita.S.Bowker@noaa.gov.
On May 31 and June 1, the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) office in Boulder, Colorado hosted RDML Evans and HSD personnel for a meeting primarily focused on data management and collaboration between our organizations. The hybrid meeting was attended by representatives from all branches and teams within HSD and a wide range of representatives from NCEI. The first day of the meeting focused on many of the operational aspects of hydrographic data management, including external source data and the National Bathymetric Source. These sessions were used as an opportunity to better understand workflows, address current topics like data licensing and sensitive data handling, and look forward to forthcoming modernization due to specification changes and process streamlining. Day two offered the opportunity for discussions on the handling and metadata of correlated data types such as water column sonar data and crowd sourced bathymetry as well as derived products, with breakouts centered around staffing and external partner engagement. The meeting concluded with optimism (and a long list of action items) that will benefit continued collaboration between NCEI and Coast Survey. For more information, contact Brooke.Maser@noaa.gov and Evan.J.Robertson@noaa.gov.
Alexis Maxwell and Shelley Devereaux.
Alexis Maxwell is on a detail as the new NOS Program Coordination Officer. She will be in this position for about one year. We all wish her well and good luck in this new roll. LT Shelley Devereaux is returning to Coast Survey, leaving her position as the former NOS Program Coordination Officer. Welcome back Shelley!
Sean Legeer and Noel Dyer.
Sean Legeer is currently in his new role as acting deputy chief for Marine Chart Division. Taking over Sean's normal duties is Noel Dyer, who is acting branch chief of the Format and Distribution Systems Branch.
did you know?
Did you know RDML Benjamin Evans was recently interviewed by Hydro International about the challenges in surveying remote parts of the US and deploying new technology, and dealing with issues that arise like staff shortages. This will be published in print later this year but the online version is linked above.
The Nation's Chartmaker
Meeting attendees at Stennis Space Center. From left to right: Matt Borbash (Navy), Julia Powell, Grant Froelich, Mike Annis, and LTJG Collin McMillan from Coast Survey.
Coast Survey personnel tour the Port of Alaska during their stop in Anchorage, Alaska. Shown from left to right: Andy Kampia, LT Caroline Wilkinson, RDML Ben Evans, LTJG Gabriella McGann, Jim Jager (Director of Business Continuity and External Affairs), and Nathan Wardwell (HSRP Member).
A screen capture of the Status of New NOAA ENCs website.
Participants during Clean the Bay Day 2023. From left to right: Matthew Wilson, Evan Robertson, Rita Bowker, Jonathan Haines, Amanda Finn, LCDR Bart Buesseler, and Clint Marcus.
HSD attendees in Boulder for the NCEI/OCS meeting. From left to right: Evan Robertson, Miya Pavlock, LCDR Bart Buesseler, Matt Wilson, James Miller and Brooke Maser. Not pictured/photographer, CDR Briana Hillstrom.