It was an eventful summer for the MARCO-managed Mid-Atlantic Ocean Data Portal, which saw the addition of several significant map products and tool enhancements. Among them were updates to the Portal’s artificial reefs, fish and marine mammal data, and a series of new maps showing average monthly sea surface temperatures, produced in partnership with MARACOOS.

The following is a rundown of some of the latest upgrades:

  • Marine Life: For the first time, users can now search the Portal’s Marine Life Library for maps depicting the distribution and biomass of individual fish species in both the spring and fall seasons. The Portal’s Cetacean maps were also updated to reflect the latest scientific data.
  • Artificial Reefs: The Portal Team worked with the MARCO states to expand its Artificial Reefs map to include dozens of new sites in the Chesapeake Bay and revise the footprints of some installations at sea.
  • Sea Surface Temps: Users can now automatically animate or manually toggle through a series of maps depicting average monthly sea surface by activating the MARACOOS Sea Surface Temperatures Monthly Slider
  • Submarine Cables & Pipelines: Three new maps were added showing the routes of telecom and power lines and submerged oil and gas pipelines in the Mid-Atlantic.
  • Linear Measurement Tool: By popular demand, a tool that allows users to measure the distance from one point to another in miles, nautical miles and kilometers was added.

This is only a sample of what’s new on the Portal. For all of the latest updates, visit the Portal Blog.

The MARCO-led Ocean Mapping and Data Team provides guidance on the continued development of the Mid-Atlantic Ocean Data Portal.

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