[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 57 (Monday, March 27, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Page 15186]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-06012]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Publicly Available Biologic and Geologic Samples From the 2015
and 2016 NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer Expeditions
AGENCY: Office of Ocean Exploration and Research (OER), National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Commerce
(DOC).
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: NOAA OER announces the availability of biologic and geologic
samples that were collected during NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer
expeditions in 2015 and 2016. Biologic specimens from all 2015 and 2016
expeditions are now available for loan through the Smithsonian
Institution's National Museum of Natural History. Rock samples
collected during the three legs of EX-15-05 are now available through
Oregon State University's Marine Geology Repository.
Information about individual samples as well as all imagery and
oceanographic data collected during these expeditions can be found in
the digital record for each cruise on the OER Digital Atlas, (http://explore.noaa.gov/digitalatlas).
The biologic and geologic samples described in this notice are
available immediately from the designated repositories.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Craig Russell, National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration, 7600 Sand Point Way NE., Seattle, WA
98115, (206) 526-4803, [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The specimens listed below were collected by
NOAA during seven telepresence-enabled Okeanos Explorer ocean
exploration expeditions: EX-15-04 Legs 2, 3, and 4 of the ``2015 Hohonu
Moana: Exploring Deep Waters off Hawai'i'' expedition that focused
operations within the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument
(northwest Hawaiian Islands); EX-16-03 ``2016 Hohonu Moana: Exploring
Deep Waters off Hawai'i'', which also conducted sampling operations
within Papahanaumokuakea; EX-16-05 Leg 1 and Leg 3 of the ``2016
Deepwater Exploration of the Marianas'' expedition that focused
operations in and around the Marianas Trench Marine National Monument,
Guam, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands; and EX-16-
06 ``Deepwater Wonders of Wake'' expedition that was focused within the
Wake Atoll unit of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.
These expeditions are part of NOAA's `Campaign to Address Pacific
monument Science, Technology, and Ocean NEeds' (CAPSTONE)--a major
multi-year effort focused on collecting baseline information in
deepwater areas of U.S. marine protected areas in the central and
western Pacific.
NOAA OER conducts collaborative and systematic global ocean
exploration with NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer to provide lasting benefits
for the nation's environmental, economic, and societal needs.
Expeditions are planned collaboratively with input from partners and
stakeholders and are executed to benefit NOAA, the broader scientific
community, and general public. OER ocean exploration expeditions are
designed to catalyze follow-on research and to meet management needs.
These expeditions are conducted mainly in unexplored or poorly
known areas where high-resolution mapping and initial sampling will
result in initial site descriptions. The rationale that guides sampling
during Okeanos Explorer expeditions is to enable a general
characterization of physical, chemical, and biological environments in
the area of interest.
Once the expeditions are complete, samples are cataloged and
prepared for archival. Biologic samples are sent for primary archival
to the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History
Research and Collections to provide access to as many researchers as
possible. There the samples are taxonomically identified, curated and
made accessible through the Invertebrate Zoology Collection. Metadata
about the samples and information on how to request samples is
available through the museum's online portal (http://invertebrates.si.edu/collections.htm).
During at-sea sample processing, prior to additional preservation
techniques such as ethanol or formalin, small tissue samples are
preserved onboard for later genomic DNA and RNA extraction at the Ocean
Genome Legacy Center (OGL) at Northeastern University. Available
materials can be searched, browsed, and requested through the online
catalog on the OGL Web site (http://www.northeastern.edu/ogl/).
Additionally, selected coral and sponge specimens will be
subsampled and made accessible through the Bernice Pauahi Bishop
Museum's marine invertebrate collection. Descriptions of holdings, a
searchable database, loan request forms, and Frequently Asked Questions
for specimens are available on the museum's Invertebrate Zoology
collection Web site (http://www.bishopmuseum.org/collections-3/invertebrate-zoology/).
Rock samples collected during the three legs of EX-15-04 are
archived at Oregon State University's Marine Geology Repository where
they have been entered into the Repository's sample library. The
Repository provides online metadata about the samples, images of thin
sections, and how to request specimens (http://osu-mgr.org/noaa-ex/).
Digital records of all Okeanos Explorer sampling operations can be
accessed through the OER Digital Atlas (http://explore.noaa.gov/digitalatlas). Through the Digital Atlas, users can find the
``Collected Specimens'' from the Data Access tab of cruises for which
samples were collected. Additional information about the sampling
operations and access to select images of each specimen can be found in
OER's Okeanos Explorer Atlas (http://explore.noaa.gov/okeanosatlas), a
GIS application which can be used to access a point layer of sampling
locations. In-situ, close-up, and laboratory images of each specimen
are also available through this Atlas.
All other associated video, oceanographic, and bathymetric data
from these expeditions that provide context for collected samples are
also available through the OER Digital Atlas.
Dated: March 22, 2017.
Paul Johnson,
Acting Deputy Chief Financial Officer/CAO, Office of Oceanic and
Atmospheric Research, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. 2017-06012 Filed 3-24-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-KA-P