On May 22, 2009, over 450 members from Virginia's maritime community and NOAA came together in Norfolk's brand new cruise terminal to celebrate the 76th annual National Maritime Day celebration....

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NOAA's National Geodetic Survey (NGS) develops and maintains a national system of positioning data needed for a range of applications, from navigation to mapping and construction. NGS's activities set the standards for other states to build their own statewide positioning networks. South Carolina is one state that is successfully pushing the limits of global positioning....

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Estuaries are tidally driven. Tides flush the system and provide nutrients to keep food webs functional. By doing this, tides create constantly changing conditions of exposure to air or increased levels of water in an estuarine environment. Because of tides, the water levels in an estuary are going up and down several times a day.

Estuarine organisms can adapt quite well to these changing conditions in estuaries. For example, fish or crabs are mobile and can move as needed throughout the day to adjust to changes in the estuary.

In addition, weather patterns, seasonal cycles, and climate change also affect and can change conditions in estuaries.

Estuaries and their surrounding wetlands are bodies of water usually found where rivers meet the sea. Estuaries are home to unique plant and animal communities that have adapted to brackish water.

For more information:
Estuaries.gov - About Estuaries
Estuaries (Diving Deeper podcast, 4.22.09)
National Estuarine Research Reserve System
Estuaries, NOS Education

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Estuaries - areas where fresh and saltwater mix - are made up of many different types of habitats. These habitats can include oyster reefs, coral reefs, rocky shores, submerged aquatic vegetation, marshes, and mangroves. There are also different animals that live in each of these different habitats. Fish, shellfish, and migratory birds are just a few of the animals that can live in an estuary.

For example, there are several habitats that make up the Chesapeake Bay. There are oyster reefs where oysters, mud crabs, and small fish may be found. Also in the Chesapeake Bay, there is submerged aquatic vegetation where seahorses, blue crabs, and other fish live. Finally, there is open water where sea turtles or rays can be found.

For more information:
Esturaries.gov - Life in an Estuary
Diving Deeper, Episode (Apr. 22, 2009) – What is an estuary?
National Estuarine Research Reserve System
Estuaries, NOS Education

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A hurricane has just ravaged the coast. Homes are damaged or destroyed. Family members are searching for loved ones. Ports are closed due to unknown hazards in surrounding waterways. Damaged vessels and chemical containers are leaking potentially hazardous material into the water. And in the background, NOS has sprung in to action, working to get things moving again...responding in the aftermath of the storm....

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Oceanography covers a wide range of topics, including marine life and ecosystems, ocean circulation, plate tectonics and the geology of the sea floor, and the chemical and physical properties of the ocean.

Just as there are many specialties within the medical field, there are many disciplines within oceanography.

Biological oceanographers and marine biologists study plants and animals in the marine environment. They are interested in the numbers of marine organisms and how these organisms develop, relate to one another, adapt to their environment, and interact with it. To accomplish their work, they may use field observations, computer models, or laboratory and field experiments.

Chemical oceanographers and marine chemists study the composition of seawater, its processes and cycles, and the chemical interaction of seawater with the atmosphere and sea floor. Their work may include analysis of seawater components, the effects of pollutants, and the impacts of chemical processes on marine organisms. They may also use chemistry to understand how ocean currents move seawater around the globe and how the ocean affects climate or to identify potentially beneficial ocean resources such as natural products that can be used as medicines.

Geological oceanographers and marine geologists explore the ocean floor and the processes that form its mountains, canyons, and valleys. Through sampling, they look at millions of years of history of sea-floor spreading, plate tectonics, and oceanic circulation and climates. They also examine volcanic processes, mantle circulation, hydrothermal circulation, magma genesis, and crustal formation. The results of their work help us understand the processes that created the ocean basins and the interactions between the ocean and the sea floor.

Physical oceanographers study the physical conditions and physical processes within the ocean such as waves, currents, eddies, gyres and tides; the transport of sand on and off beaches; coastal erosion; and the interactions of the atmosphere and the ocean. They examine deep currents, the ocean-atmosphere relationship that influences weather and climate, the transmission of light and sound through water, and the ocean's interactions with its boundaries at the sea floor and the coast.

All of these fields are intertwined, and thus all oceanographers must have a keen understanding of biology, chemistry, geology, and physics to unravel the mysteries of the world ocean and to understand processes within it.

For more information:
NOAA Ocean Explorer: OceanAGE Careers
MarineCareers.net

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States and communities struggling with how to prepare for climate change have a new place to turn for answers--their peers....

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Rip currents are powerful, narrow channels of fast-moving water that are prevalent along the East, Gulf, and West coasts of the U.S., as well as along the shores of the Great Lakes.

Moving at speeds of up to eight feet per second, rip currents can move faster than an Olympic swimmer.

Panicked swimmers often try to counter a rip current by swimming straight back to shore—putting themselves at risk of drowning because of fatigue.

Lifeguards rescue tens of thousands of people from rip currents in the U.S. every year, but it is estimated that 100 people are killed by rip currents annually. If caught in a rip current, don't fight it! Swim parallel to the shore and swim back to land at an angle.

While the terms are ofter confused, rip currents are different than rip tides. A rip tide is a specific type of current associated with the swift movement of tidal water through inlets and the mouths of estuaries, embayments, and harbors.

For more information:
NOAA Rip Current safety tips, surf forecasts
Coastal Currents Education Kit, NOS Education
Rip Current photos

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A new set of ocean observing data is expected to improve search and rescue efforts along the coasts of the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region....

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A Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS) now sits next to one of the country’s longest standing tide gauges at Battery Park in New York City, New York....

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