EM302 Water Column Sonar Data Collected During EX1803

Okeanos Explorer (EX1803): Gulf of Mexico (ROV and Mapping) -
2018 (EM302). From April 11 through May 3, 2018, a team of scientists and
technicians, both at-sea and shore-based, will conduct exploratory
investigations into the diversity and distribution of deep-sea habitats and
associated marine communities in the Gulf of Mexico basin. The 23-day expedition
will focus on acquiring data on priority exploration areas identified by ocean
management and scientific communities. This is our final expedition planned in
the Gulf this year before transiting back to the East Coast. Operations will
include the use of the ship's deep water mapping systems (Kongsberg EM302
multibeam sonar, EK60 split-beam fisheries sonars, Knudsen 3260 chirp sub-bottom
profiler sonar, and Teledyne Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler), XBT and CTD
casts in support of multibeam sonar mapping operations, OER's two-body ROV Deep
Discoverer and Seirios, and the ship's high-bandwidth satellite connection for
continuous real-time ship-to-shore communications. Operations are planned in and
around the US Gulf of Mexico and potentially the international waters of the
Gulf.