[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]


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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.

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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