Virtually cruise aboard a NOAA ship for a fish trawl survey

Crew on NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson prepare to deploy the trawl net on the back deck while the ship adjusts its heading based on the wind and sea conditions.
Trawling a net behind a boat is a long-standing way of catching fish at sea. NOAA research vessels use trawling for many of the agency's fisheries surveys every year, providing important data that have helped the U.S. become a model of sustainable fisheries. This series of photos shows how a trawl operation collects those data for scientists and fisheries managers. The information plays key roles in fishery stock assessments and ecosystem science studies. To learn more and see photos of a NOAA Fisheries Survey Vessel in action, check out this web story. (Source: NOAA Communications)