In 2023, NOAA announced it would be adding two new charting and mapping vessels to the NOAA fleet. These two research ships will be named Surveyor and Navigator.
The names were selected from suggestions provided by NOAA staff earlier this year. In accordance with NOAA policy, the names for the new vessels must fall into one of several narrowly defined categories. Both of these fall into the category of NOAA ships named for missions.
In fact, Surveyor, falls into two categories, it is also the name of two former ships. The original Surveyor was the first oil-burning steamer in the fleet of the Coast and Geodetic Survey, one of NOAA’s predecessor agencies. The ship was built in Manitowoc, Wisconsin in 1917 and spent most of its service working in the waters of the North Pacific and Bering Sea. Surveyor Bay in Alaska was named for the ship, which was used for surveys in the vicinity in 1936. The second Surveyor was in service from 1960 to 1995, during which it conducted hydrographic surveys in areas ranging from Norton Sound in Alaska to American Samoa.
New ships, long-standing mission
The Surveyor and Navigator will be built by Thoma-Sea Marine Constructors in Houma, Louisiana, and are expected to be completed in 2027 and 2028. The homeports for the ships have not been decided.
The ships will be used primarily for ocean mapping and nautical charting as part of NOAA’s mission to deliver tools and information to help mariners safely navigate the nation’s ports and harbors. Since 1807, then as the U.S. Coast Survey, NOAA has supported safe navigation and kept people and commerce moving through U.S. waters. Today, the agency enables nearly $5.4 trillion in economic activity generated by U.S. ports each year, and ensuring safe, efficient navigation remains a central focus.
NOAA ships help to survey thousands of square miles of our nation’s waters every year. The data collected is then integrated into nautical charts and other products that are essential to mariners in U.S. waters.
Future of the NOAA Fleet
The new vessels are part of an ongoing effort to revitalize NOAA’s aging fleet. As of 2023, the average age of the ships in the fleet was 30 years old. By 2030, six of those ships will likely reach the end of their service life.
In addition to Surveyor and Navigator, there are two new oceanographic vessels that are under construction, Oceanographer and Discoverer. Those ships will support a wide variety of NOAA missions, ranging from oceanographic research and exploration to studying marine life, climate and ocean ecosystems. They are anticipated to be completed in 2026.
All of the new ships being built for the NOAA fleet will incorporate the latest clean energy technologies, including vessel emission controls and high-efficiency diesel engines, as part of NOAA’s net zero emissions goal.