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    • NOAA NCCOS Assessment: Prioritizing Areas for Future Seafloor Mapping, Research, and Exploration Offshore of California, Oregon, and Washington

    Metadata Updated: May 22, 2025

    Spatial information about the seafloor is critical for decision-making by marine resource science, management and tribal organizations. Coordinating data needs can help organizations leverage collective resources to meet shared goals. To help enable this coordination, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) developed a spatial framework, process and online application to identify common data collection priorities for seafloor mapping, sampling and visual surveys offshore of the West Continental United States Coast (WCC). Twenty-six participants from NOAA’s West Coast Deep Sea Coral Initiative (WCDSCI) and Expanding Pacific Research and Exploration of Submerged Systems (EXPRESS) entered their priorities in an online application, using virtual coins to denote their priorities in 10x10 minute grid cells. Grid cells with more coins were higher priorities than cells with fewer coins. Participants also reported why these locations were important and what data types were needed. Results were analyzed and mapped using statistical techniques to identify significant relationships between priorities, reasons for those priorities and data needs. Ten high priority locations were broadly identified for future mapping, sampling and visual surveys. These locations were distributed throughout the WCC, primarily in depths less than 1,000 m. Participants consistently selected (1) Exploration, (2) Biota/Important Natural Area and (3) Research as their top reasons (i.e., justifications) for prioritizing locations, and (1) Benthic Habitat Map and (2) Bathymetry and Backscatter as their top data or product needs. This ESRI shapefile summarizes the results from this spatial prioritization effort. This information will enable NOAA WCDSCI, EXPRESS and other WCC organization to more efficiently leverage resources and coordinate their mapping of high priority locations along California, Oregon and Washington.

    Access & Use Information

    License: No license information was provided. If this work was prepared by an officer or employee of the United States government as part of that person's official duties it is considered a U.S. Government Work.

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    Dates

    Metadata Date May 15, 2025
    Metadata Created Date October 18, 2024
    Metadata Updated Date May 22, 2025
    Reference Date(s) 2019 (creation), 2019 (publication)
    Frequency Of Update

    Metadata Source

    Harvested from NOS NCCOS

    Other Data Resources

    Graphic Preview

    Browse Graphic: NCCOS

    Additional Metadata

    Resource Type Dataset
    Metadata Date May 15, 2025
    Metadata Created Date October 18, 2024
    Metadata Updated Date May 22, 2025
    Reference Date(s) 2019 (creation), 2019 (publication)
    Responsible Party (Point of Contact, Custodian)
    Contact Email
    Guid gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:58183
    Access Constraints Cite As: National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, [Date of Access]: NOAA NCCOS Assessment: Prioritizing Areas for Future Seafloor Mapping, Research, and Exploration Offshore of California, Oregon, and Washington [Data Date Range], https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/58183., Access Constraints: None, Use Constraints: None
    Bbox East Long -117
    Bbox North Lat 48.6
    Bbox South Lat 30.4
    Bbox West Long -129.2
    Coupled Resource
    Frequency Of Update
    Graphic Preview Description Browse Graphic: NCCOS
    Graphic Preview File https://cdn.coastalscience.noaa.gov/csmedia/2017/09/NCCOS-with-tag-to-side-wht-bld.png
    Harvest Object Id 08ff3d0a-ccbb-492e-81f5-b84f69805b91
    Harvest Source Id 9594655d-43d5-48eb-bc7d-86f579a54e78
    Harvest Source Title NOS NCCOS
    Licence NOAA provides no warranty, nor accepts any liability occurring from any incomplete, incorrect, or misleading data, or from any incorrect, incomplete, or misleading use of the data. It is the responsibility of the user to determine whether or not the data is suitable for the intended purpose.
    Lineage
    Metadata Language eng
    Metadata Type geospatial
    Old Spatial {"type": "Polygon", "coordinates": [[[-129.2, 30.4], [-117.0, 30.4], [-117.0, 48.6], [-129.2, 48.6], [-129.2, 30.4]]]}
    Progress completed
    Spatial Data Service Type
    Spatial Reference System
    Spatial Harvester True
    Temporal Extent Begin 2019-03-01
    Temporal Extent End 2019-04-01

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