Deepwater Wonders of Wake: Exploring the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument: Image and Video Gallery: NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research

Motivation to Explore

The CAPSTONE is a major multi-year effort focused on exploring deepwater marine protected areas in the Pacific.

Expedition Summary Infographic

Infographic summarizing accomplishments from the 2016 Deepwater Wonders of Wake expedition.

Expedition Summary Map

Overview map showing seafloor bathymetry collected and ROV dives conducted during the expedition.

Mission Team

The mission team of the Deepwater Wonders of Wake expedition.

Sunrise on the Bridge

Sunrise seen from the bridge wing of the Okeanos Explorer.

Blue Shrimp

An unusual blue shrimp was imaged for the second time this expedition.

Dive 14: Slime Star

During the last dive, scientists saw this slime star, which uses mucus as a defense mechanism.

Dive 14: Squid Encounter

During its return to the surface following the last dive of 2016, Deep Discoverer had a brief encounter with this red squid.

Approaching Storm

The second squall line approaches the Okeanos Explorer just before the ROVs reach the bottom.

Dive 13: Deepwater Corals and Sponges

A quick look at some of the corals and sponges seen while exploring a seamount south of Wake Island.

Climbing Urchin

An urchin climbs up the dead skeleton of a bamboo coral.

Suspected Shipwreck

Raw multibeam point data of suspected wreck later confirmed to be Japanese cargo ship, Amakasu Maru No.1.

D2 Approaches the Bow

Remotely operated vehicle Deep Discoverer comes upon the bow of the Amakasu Maru No.1.

Hull Damage

Considerable damage seen on the hull of the Amakasu Maru No.1.

Shipwreck Habitat

The ship sits upright and intact on the bottom and now serves as a habitat for anemones, glass sponges, anglerfish, and other animals.

Lettering on the Stern

Lettering seen on the stern of the Amakasu Maru No.1.

The Bow of the Amakasu Maru No.1

Remotely operated vehicle Deep Discoverer comes upon the bow of the Amakasu Maru No.1.

Dive 12: Coronate Medusa

This red jelly was seen dancing through the water column during exploration of a guyot located southwest of Wake Island.

Sixgill Shark

A large sixgill shark checks out D2.

Caulophacus sponge

A Caulophacus sponge anchored to the seafloor.

Pillow Lava

Clearly visible pillow lavas seen during the exploration of an unnamed seamount despite the fact that the seamount is quite old and manganese-crusted.

Sandy Habitat

The soft-sediment environment of an unnamed seamount off of Wake Island. This sandy habitat likely provides homes for many critters living directly within the sediments of the seafloor.

Rock Sample

Scientists use Deep Discoverer to collect a rock sample from a hard-substrate environment.

Dive 11: Around the Next Corner

Dive 11 was the second of two shallower dives that targeted precious coral resources around Wake Island.

Deepwater Corals

Several large deepwater corals grow in a high-density community.

Mapping Team

Mapping Team Lead, Lindsay McKenna Gray, and Senior Survey Tech, Charlie Wilkins, working in the control room.

XBT Cast

Mapping Watch Lead, Dan Freitas, conducting an XBT cast.

Point Cloud

A point cloud of multibeam sonar soundings.

Sub-bottom Profile

Sub-bottom seismic reflection profile at the base of seamount. Notice the lighter reflected sediment deposited over the darker underlying bedrock.

Mapping Track Lines

Lines transited over McDonnell Seamount during the Mapping in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument expedition.

Before Mapping

Before the Okeanos Explorer collects mapping data in an area, all we know about the area is what we can see in the satellite-derived bathymetry.

Mapping in Progress

The multibeam bathymetry collected during during the mapping in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument expedition gridded to 75 meters. There was not enough time on that cruise to collect data over the entire seamount, which measures roughly 3,600 square kilometers.

Mapping Coverage Completed

On the current Deepwater Wonders of Wake expedition, we had a few weather days where we couldn’t deploy the ROVs, this allowed us time to map over McDonnell Seamount, completing coverage over the seamount.

Amakasu Maru No. 1 Shipwreck

The stern of the Amakasu Maru No. 1, with her name still visible 73 years after she was sunk.

Science Team

Deb and the rest of the expedition science team watch a remotely operated vehicle recovery during the Deepwater Exploration of the Marianas Expedition.

Harbor Branch Exploration Command Center

Deb working with interns at the Harbor Branch Exploration Command Center.

Dive 9: Amakasu Maru WWII Shipwreck

During the dive, the ROVs landed close to the intended target and quickly came upon the bow of a ship.

Dive 9: WWII Japanese Shipwreck

On August 10, 2016, we dove off of Wake Island, searching for the site of the shipwreck of the Japanese destroyer Hayate.

Iridogorgia Coral

This is a great look at the spiral shape of an Iridogorgia.

Dive 8: Deep-sea Ray

This deep-sea ray was seen cruising along the seafloor at a depth of 1,020 meters, during exploration around Wake Island.

Dive 8: Fish Faces

Dive 8 was the fishiest dive of the expedition, with a variety of eels, swimmers, squatters, a ray, and a shark.

Video Engineer Roland Brian

Video engineer Roland Brian works to troubleshoot some of the ship’s video equipment.

Sea Star Predation

A sea star eats its way up a whip coral.

Dive 7: Predation

A sea star eats its way up a whip coral in this closeup example of underwater predation.

Brittle Star Colony

More than two dozen ophiacanthid brittle stars cling to the branches of a primnoid octocoral colony on “Lafayette Guyot.” These brittle stars are thought to be suspension feeding—grabbing their food from the water column rather than feeding directly on the coral.

Squat Lobster

A chirostylid squat lobster in the branches of a Chrysogorgia octocoral on “Lafayette Guyot.” Chirostylidae translates from the Greek as “pointed hands,” in reference to the elongate chelipeds (clawed arms).

Sea Spider

A sea spider (Pycnogonida) clambering over a bamboo coral (Keratoisidinae) on “Lafayette Guyot.” The presence of the sea spider has caused the octocoral polyps to contract their tentacles over their mouths.

Sea Swell

The ship hits a large swell during a weather day spent mapping.

Studying the Forecast

The expedition coordination team and the science lead study the latest forecast.

Launching Deep Discoverer

ROV Engineer Chris Ritter manages the tether during recovery of Deep Discoverer.

Launching Seirios

Able-bodied Seaman Abe Mcdowell instructs Able-bodied Seaman Nicky Applewhite and General Vessel Assistant Frank Polonak during launch of ROV Seirios.

48-Hour Forecast

The 48-hour weather prediction from the National Weather Service/National Centers for Environmental Prediction, Ocean Prediction Center.

Whitetip Shark

While recovering the ROV, an oceanic whitetip shark cruised by to check out D2.

Sea Toad

A sea toad hanging out, waiting for its next meal to swim by.

Dive 6: Sea Toad

On August 6, 2016, during a remotely operated vehicle dive off of Wake Island, we found our old friend the sea toad.

Squat Lobster

A squat lobster at home in its octocoral.

Dive 5: Deepwater Denizens

During Dive 5, scientists believe that they found the bottom of the area's dense coral and sponge community depth range.

ROV Team

The Global Foundation for Ocean Exploration ROV team finish up their post-dive check list.

High-Density Coral Community

Deep Discoverer images a high-density coral community in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.

Dive 3: Delilah Seamount

Deep Discoverer explores a high-density coral community in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.

Lounging Crinoid

Crinoid perched on a glass sponge.

Dive 2: Coral Forest

During the second dive of the expedition, scientists found this large forest of coral.

VSAT Dome

The VSAT (large dome; stands for “Very Small Aperture Terminal”) is the critical piece of infrastructure that makes telepresence possible.

Telepresence Diagram

This diagram illustrates the flow of information from the seafloor and ultimately to viewers around the world.

Troubleshooting Mapping Equipment

Mapping lead Lindsay McKenna works on troubleshooting the multibeam.

Dive 1: Giant Anemone

This "whopping big" anenome was found and recorded during the first dive of the expedition.

Traditional Navigation

Traditional navigation on display: Traditional canoes sailing from Satawal to Saipan to attend the Festival of Pacific Arts in May and June 2016.

Okeanos Explorer Control Room

The control room on the Okeanos Explorer during our first dive of the expedition.

Calm Waters

The water is so calm, it is hard to believe that the nearest land is more than 400 nautical miles away.

Spanish Steps

A view of Spanish Steps as the ship departs Guam.

LTJG Aaron Colohan

Operations Officer LTJG Aaron Colohan scans the horizon while on watch.

ROV Deployment

The crew looks on as ROV engineer Chris Ritter attaches the pin securing ROV Deep Discoverer to the lift crane.

Seirios Practice

Remotely operated vehicle engineer Sean Kennison washes down Seirios after our launch and recovery practice.

IJN Destroyer Hayate

IJN destroyer Hayate.

American Defensive Positions

American defensive positions on Wake Atoll, 8-23 December 1941.

Surface Actions Around Wake Atoll

Surface actions around Wake Atoll on the morning of 11 December 1941. Japanese warships approached from the south to bombard the island before encountering fire from American shore batteries.

Pacific Prime Crust Zone

Pacific Prime Crust Zone (PCZ) boundary (green) shown in comparison to the U.S. Pacific monuments (pink) and U.S. EEZ boundaries (black). The PCZ extends from the Hawaiian Islands in the east to the border of the Mariana Trench in the west.

Cobalt-Rich Ferromanganese Crust

Cobalt-rich ferromanganese crust with batraoidal (bubbly) appearance characteristic of older, thicker deposits.

Mining Area of Interest

Map showing the ISA’s current area of most interest for Fe-Mn crust mining in the western part of the PCZ in the Pacific.

Mining Exploration Areas

Map of the Western Pacific showing the locations of Mn crust exploratory sites granted by the ISA.

Volcanic Hotspots

Map showing satellite-derived bathymetry of the Pacific Ocean based on gravity (color showing depth; purple to red is deep to shallow). The West Pacific has a larger number of seamounts than the rest of the ocean basin, and these are thought to be related to one of the hotspots (yellow stars) in French Polynesia. The arrows trace the volcanic chain back to currently active volcanism.

Pillow Lava Mound

A pillow mound composed of glassy pillow lavas.

Ferromanganese Crust

Ferromanganese crusts draping rocks (and even old sponge stalks) at Fryer Guyot in the Mariana region.

Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Map showing the location of Wake Island and the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.

WWII Pillbox

World War II shoreline pillbox at Wake Island.

Wake Island Shipwreck

One of the Wake Island shipwrecks just outside the channel to the marina.

Parrotfish

Bumphead parrotfish (Bolbometopon muricatum) at Wake Atoll, the largest known population of this species in the world.

Bamboo Coral

Large bamboo coral colonies on a guyot ridge.

Rat-Tail

A rat-tail fish that typically prefers calmer waters.

Guyot vs. Seamount

Flat-top guyot shown in comparison to a conical seamount.

Sea Cucumber

A sediment-dwelling sea cucumber.

Shrimp

A sediment-dwelling shrimp.

Bathymetric View of a Guyot

Partially mapped guyot showing cones on the summit that resulted from rejuvenated volcanism.

Side Scan Sonar Imagery Identifying Wreckage

Side scan sonar image of an F6F Hellcat fighter plane (lower right) off Pearl Harbor, Oahu.

Multibeam Imagery Identifying Wreckage

Multibeam sonar bathymetry image of the Japanese submarine, I-400.

Multibeam Backscatter Identifying Wreckage

Multibeam backscatter image of a Boeing B-29 Superfortress off Tinian Island. Data collected by NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer.

Raw Multibeam Point Data Identifying Wreckage

Raw multibeam point data of suspected wreck of Japanese destroyer Hayate.

Expedition Planning Map

This image shows the intended operating area for this expedition. The shaded area is the boundary of PRIMNM and the multi-color lines are bathymetry collected by via NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer earlier this year.

Deepwater Wonders of Wake: Exploring the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Image and Video Gallery

Daily Updates

Mission Logs

Image and Video Gallery

For Educators

Background Information

Meet the Explorers

Expedition Data

Deepwater Wonders of Wake: Exploring the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

Image and Video Gallery

Daily Updates

Mission Logs

Image and Video Gallery

For Educators

Background Information

Meet the Explorers

Expedition Data

Related Links