2021

New Technology and the Search for Shipwrecks

With grant funding from NOAA's Office of Exploration and Research, the sanctuary and its partners explored an area off Two Rivers, WI using autonomous technology.

New Real-Time Buoys Enhance Public Safety and Recreation

a person deploying a auv over the side of a ship
A University of Delaware graduate student deploys an autonomous underwater vehicle in the Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary. Photo: NOAA

With grant funding from the Great Lakes Observing Network, the sanctuary installed three real-time wind and wave buoys in the sanctuary, located off Port Washington, Sheboygan, and Two Rivers. The buoys also provide real-time water temperatures at different depths.

Mapping the Sanctuary

NOAA's Office of Coast Survey surveyed about 70 square-miles of the sanctuary. The data will be used to characterize both cultural and natural features in the sanctuary. Once fully processed, the data will be made publicly accessible.

2016 to 2020

Lakebed Characterization

NOAA's National Centers for Ocean and Coastal Science, Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, and Great Lakes Environmental Research Lab began mapping the mid Lake Michigan area to better understand both cultural and natural features. The project involved input from over 20 stakeholders with an interest in mapping data. Among the products are publicly accessible data such as a bio mapper and digital atlas.