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Mission
Record and measure geophysical, biological, meteorological, cryogenic and anthropogenic sound sources throughout the global ocean using innovative acoustic technologies and sensor platforms to characterize ocean soundscapes that inform stakeholders and the public on the health of marine ecosystems.
What's New
To collect consistent passive acoustic data simultaneously across all major regions of the US, NOAA and the National Park Service scientists have teamed up to create the Ocean Noise Reference Station Network (NRS).
Through vivid imagery and sound clips, NOAA's story map "Listening to the Sea" explores the NRS and its use of passive acoustic instruments to record sound in the ocean.
In the News
Was the infamous "bloop" a sea monster? Learn why this noise was a good reminder that we should keep an eye on the South Pole.
Listen to episode 3 of NOAA's podcast about NOAA's conservation, preservation, and sustainability work during Earth Month and beyond.... more
Feature Publication
Search all PMEL publications
The sei whale is a large baleen whale, in the same genus as the blue whale, found in most of the world's oceans outside the Arctic. From 2009 to 2014, we searched acoustically for sei whales off the northeast coast of Greenland on the edge of the Arctic Ocean. We did this by deploying hydrophones (underwater microphones) and recording ambient sound, then searching the resulting recordings for... more