page_title: NOAAS Okeanos Explorer
section_title: Galápagos Rift Expedition 2011
hierarchical_section_title: NOAAS Okeanos Explorer / Voyages / Galápagos Rift Expedition 2011
caption_attribution_description: A deep-sea skate glide through the outskirts of a vent field. Image ID: expl6380, Voyage To Inner Space - Exploring the Seas With NOAA Collect Photo Date: 2011 July 15 Credit: NOAA Okeanos Explorer Program, Galapagos Rift Expedition 2011
context_page_description: NOAAS Okeanos Explorer is a converted United States Navy ship, now an exploratory vessel for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, officially launched in 2010. Starting in 2010, NOAA entered into a five-year partnership with the San Francisco Exploratorium. The focus is on gathering scientific information about oceans for the public as well as for scientific uses. As much as 95% of the ocean remains unexplored, NOAA officials said. The ship is equipped with cameras and will provide real-time viewing of the ocean floor for scientists and for the public.
  This is a pioneering use of what NOAA calls "telepresence technology". The Okeanos Explorer is the only vessel owned by the U.S. government that is dedicated to exploring the seabed and ocean crust. The ship is named after Okeanos, the Ancient Greek god of the sea, from which also comes the word "ocean".
context_section_description: From June to July 2011, a team of scientists and technicians both at-sea and on shore conducted exploratory investigations on the diversity and distribution of deep-sea habitats and marine life in the vicinity of the Galápagos Islands. The 50-day expedition is divided into two ‘legs’ and includes work in Ecuador, Costa Rica, and international waters.
  Mapping and water column information collected during Leg I identified a number of exciting targets to explore with the Institute for Exploration's Little Hercules ROV during Leg II. Between July 11 and July 28, the ship explored seamounts, the oldest known vent fields, off-axis sulfide mounds, deep fracture zones, and newly discovered vents.
  The expedition also marks the debut of a new camera sled and lighting platform named Seirios. When deployed from the ship with the Little Hercules, provided scientists and the audiences onshore with the very first video footage from a number of deepwater areas around the Galápagos.
caption: An abyssal stingray (Bathyraja abyssicola) observed off Galapagos in 2011.
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