At the beginning of December, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) leadership and partners celebrated the keel-laying for Navigator, a new charting and mapping vessel being constructed for NOAA. The vessel is being built by Thoma-Sea Marine Constructors, LLC., in Houma, La.
The keel-laying is a centuries-old maritime tradition that formally recognizes the start of a ship’s construction. During the ceremony, the initials of the ship’s sponsor, NOAA Corps Rear Adm. Evelyn Fields (ret.), were welded onto a steel plate that will be incorporated into the ship during construction.
In 2023, NOAA announced the addition of two new charting and mapping vessels to the NOAA fleet. Surveyor is expected to be completed in 2027 and Navigator in 2028. 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 $2.3 trillion worth of cargo that comes in and out of the nation’s ports and harbors. The new vessels will have additional capabilities to help assess and manage living marine resources and collect data for oceanographic monitoring, research and modeling activities.
The ships will be designed to coordinate, acquire, and process large data sets like those gathered from mapping the seafloor and characterizing marine habitats. They will also have the ability to deploy crewed survey work boats, scientific equipment and uncrewed systems, which enhance the work the ship does.
The vessel’s name, Navigator, highlights a central NOAA mission: facilitating the safe navigation of mariners throughout U.S. waters. The Navigator will be homeported in Newport, Ore.