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Utility Navigation

OMAO administers the NOAA fleet of ships & aircraft and trains divers to safely facilitate Earth observation.

National Marine Sanctuary: Gray's Reef

Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary is one of the largest near shore "live-bottom" reefs of the southeastern United States. It is just one of 14 marine protected areas that make up the National Marine Sanctuary System and is governed by the National Marine Sanctuaries Act.

The Sanctuary is located 16 miles east of Sapelo Island, Ga. between Savannah and Brunswick, Ga. Click here for a location map. It encompasses 22 square miles (about 14,000 acres) of live-bottom and sandy bottom habitat as well as the overlying water column.

Direct access to the reef itself requires experience in open-ocean diving; so the opportunities for a first hand encounter with the Sanctuary for novice divers are limited. However, the Sanctuary is popular with recreational anglers, boaters and more experienced divers.

Topics

Facility Group

National Marine Sanctuaries, National Marine Sanctuaries: Southeast Region, National Marine Sanctuaries: Gray's Reef

Global region

Georgia

Operation

Diving Program

Topics

Reef

You are here: https://www.omao.noaa.gov/explore/facilities/national-marine-sanctuary-grays-reef
Reviewed: June 13, 2016. Contact us with page issues.

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