Despite substantial interference from hurricanes Bonnie, Charley, and Katrina, Operations Deep-Scope 2004 and 2005 were extremely successful. In addition to numerous discoveries (e.g., fluorescent sharks, new large deep-sea squid, UV vision in deep-sea crabs, the importance of polarized light and bioluminescent searchlights), these expeditions developed several new technologies. The Eye-in-the-Sea is now a robust stealth camera system; waveband, fluorescence, polarization, and UV imaging techniques are well-developed; and we can now collect deep-sea benthic species without damaging their eyes. Together these achievements place us in a unique position to explore the deep sea in innovative and exciting ways. In 2007 we propose to extend the envelope of this exciting frontier in ocean exploration in two ways: 1) developing further imaging and listening technologies, 2) using the currently developed methods to explore the cliffs in the Bahamas that range from the surface to 3000 feet in depth. Results from this proposal will characterize an important deep-sea benthic environment, and use new technologies to locate inorganic and organic ocean resources, fulfilling two of the main themes of Ocean Exploration. The proposed cliff sites range from shallow coral reefs to the abyssal plain and will allow us to explore a large number of benthic communities in a small location and learn how depth affects undersea life. Given the technological focus of our research however, if the ships' schedules should make it difficult to work in this area we would welcome the opportunity to test these new technologies at any biologically rich sites. Unlike many research cruises, which focus in depth on one problem and method, we propose a number of smaller projects that are linked by the methods and questions of visual ecology and optical oceanography. The ultimate goal of our highly interdisciplinary group of researchers is to explore and characterize the deep-sea world in these new ways.

This cruise used the remotely operated vehicle (ROV) Jason II to: explore 4-6 new sites for the occurrence of deep water coral reefs; made collections of Lophelia and other corals for genetic and physiological studies, made collections of communities associated with Lophelia and other corals for ecological studies; collected quantitative digital imagery for characterization of sites and coral communities; collect spatially explicit physical near bottom oceanographic data; deploy cameras and microbial arrays; reposition larval traps and current meters; collected push cores; and conducted a series of linked archaeological/ biological investigations on deep water shipwrecks.

This part of DS 781 presents video observations from cruise C0212SC in southern California. The vector data file is included in "c0212sc_video_observations.zip," which is accessible from https://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/781/video_observations/data_catalog_video_observations.html. In 2006 and 2009, the seafloor in central California was mapped by California State University, Monterey Bay, Seafloor Mapping Lab (CSUMB) and by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), using both multibeam echosounders and bathymetric sidescan sonar units. These mapping missions combined to collect bathymetry and acoustic-backscatter data from about the 10-m isobath to out beyond the 3-nautical-mile limit of California's State Waters. To validate the interpretations of sonar data in order to turn it into geologically and biologically useful information, the USGS ground-truth surveyed the data by towing camera sleds over specific locations throughout the region. During the 2012 ground-truth cruise, the camera sled housed two video cameras (one forward looking and the other vertical looking), a high-definition video camera, and an 8-megapixel digital still camera. The video was fed in real time to the research vessel, where USGS and NOAA scientists recorded both the geologic and biologic character of the seafloor into programmable keypads once every minute. In addition to recording the seafloor characteristics, a digital still photograph was captured once every 30 seconds. This ArcGIS shape file includes the position of the camera, the time each observation was started, and the visual observations of geologic and biologic habitat.

This data set contains oceanographic data (CTD Data, Fathometer, Knudsen echo sounder, Mocness plankton tow net, Oxygen, and Salinity). The researchers used a submersible, a remotely operated vehicle, and other technology to assess and record conditions in the water column and on the seafloor to gather baseline data along Florida's shelf edge.

This dataset contains oceanographic data (ADCP, CTD, underway), submersible data, images, and documentation. The cruise focused on several seep sites, canyons, and hard bottom features located less than 100 nm offshore. The goal of this expedition was to validate several seep targets, image and map seeps, canyons (e.g., Keller, Pamlico, Hatteras, and unnamed canyons), and hard bottom features located between Virginia and Georgia.