The National Ocean Mapping, Exploration and Characterization (NOMEC) Council

The NOMEC Council and its Interagency Working Groups coordinate ocean mapping, exploration, and characterization for the United States.

The NOMEC Council

The National Ocean Mapping, Exploration, and Characterization (NOMEC) Council was formed in June 2020 in response to national imperatives highlighted in the 2019 Presidential Memorandum on Ocean Mapping of the United States Exclusive Economic Zone and the Shoreline and Nearshore of Alaska "to act boldly to safeguard our future prosperity, health, and national security through ocean mapping, exploration, and characterization." The NOMEC Council coordinates agency policy and actions, as well as develops and implements multi-disciplinary and collaborative approaches needed to advance mapping, exploration, and characterization of the coastal, ocean, and Great Lakes waters of the United States. Critically, part of this effort involves supporting collaboration with non-governmental partners and stakeholders, as well as government-to-government collaborations with Tribal Nations. Codified in 2022 (Pub. L. 117-263; 33 USC 3408), the NOMEC Council reports to the Ocean Science and Technology Subcommittee of the Ocean Policy Committee, which provides support and guidance for the Council’s work as appropriate. The Ocean Policy Committee also provides strategic direction and facilitates interagency resolution of policy issues as appropriate. 

The NOMEC Council oversees activities of two interagency working groups (IWGs):

Member Agencies

The NOMEC Council includes members from 14 Federal Agencies and Departments and is led by three Co-Chairs: two from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and one from the Department of the Interior, United States Geological Survey (USGS). An Executive Director and a team of Executive Secretaries support the NOMEC Council and the activities of its two subsidiary bodies, the Interagency Working Group on Ocean and Coastal Mapping and the Interagency Working Group on Ocean Exploration and Characterization.

Agencies involved in NOMEC
Member Agencies

  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (co-chair)
  • United States Geological Survey (co-chair)
  • Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
  • Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement
  • United States Coast Guard
  • National Aeronautics and Space Administration
  • National Science Foundation
  • Department of Transportation
  • Department of Defense
  • Office of the Director of National Intelligence
  • White House Office of Management and Budget
  • White House Office of Science and Technology Policy

What is mapping, exploring, and characterizing? 1

  • Mapping: The terms "map" and "mapping" mean activities that provide comprehensive data and information needed to understand sea floor characteristics, including depth, topography, bottom type, sediment composition and distribution, underlying geologic structure, and benthic flora and fauna.
  • Exploring: The terms "exploration", "explore", and "exploring" mean activities that provide— (A) "a multidisciplinary view of an unknown or poorly understood area of the sea floor, sub-bottom, or water column"; and (B) "an initial assessment of the physical, chemical, geological, biological, archaeological, or other characteristics of such an area."
  • Characterizing: The terms "characterization", "characterize", and "characterizing" mean activities that provide comprehensive data and interpretations for a specific area of interest of the sea floor, sub-bottom, water column, or hydrologic features, such as water masses and currents, in direct support of specific research, environmental protection, resource management, policymaking, or applied mission objectives.

1James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023, 33 U.S.C. § 3407 (2022). 

Why map, explore, and characterize U.S. waters?

The U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone is one of the largest in the world, yet much of this area is still unmapped, unobserved, and unexplored. This area was also recently expanded by approximately 1 million square kilometers - an area twice the size of California - with the announcement of the Extended Continental Shelf (ECS). A comprehensive understanding of our coastal, ocean, and Great Lakes waters is fundamental to bolstering the Nation's economy while informing decisions of ocean use, enhancing national security and safe navigation, and developing new technologies through scientific advancement.

An Alaskan commercial fishing boat off the coast of Kodiak Island. NOAA economists report that, in 2014 alone, commercial and recreational saltwater fishing in the United States generated more than $214 billion in sales and supported 1.83 million jobs.

A Blue Economy

Three million Americans currently work in the maritime sector, representing over $300 billion in goods and services. An ocean-based economy - a blue economy - generates new jobs in shipping, resource exploration, recreation and tourism, energy, aquaculture, and more. However, we cannot realize the full benefits of the Blue Economy without a foundational understanding of the physical ocean environment. Mapping, exploration, and characterization provide the baseline data needed to build opportunities and grow the efficiency and productivity of the blue sector. 

United States Coast Guard Cutters DALLAS (WHEC 716) and GALLATIN (WHEC721)

National Security

 Today, United States waters face complex threats, including smuggling of contraband, illegal fishing, surveillance by competitors and adversaries, terrorism, and cyber-attacks on marine infrastructure. By mapping, exploring, and characterizing U.S. waters, we achieve a major component of maritime domain awareness - or the understanding of anything associated with the maritime domain that could impact the nation's security, safety, or economy. Foundational knowledge of our Nation's waters allows for preemptive or interdiction actions that protect and preserve our waterways from threats before they can occur and position us to prevail in future crisis or conflict.

The DriX uncrewed surface vehicle conducts seafloor mapping in the Atlantic Ocean off New Hampshire in 2024.

Technology Development

 A key part of the NOMEC Strategy is to facilitate the development and maturation of new and emerging technologies aimed at mapping, exploration, and characterization efforts. This role is critical to keeping pace with innovations and assimilating them into efforts to make these activities more efficient and effective. Recent progress in developing autonomous platforms, advanced fleets, artificial intelligence, and remote sensing have furthered this goal, with ongoing efforts to identify gaps in technologies and strategies to improve data collection. The NOMEC Council facilitates critical partnerships across the private sector, academia, federal agencies, and non-governmental organizations to coordinate efforts in developing and testing emerging technology. Moving forward, the Council will prioritize these public-private partnerships to increase the pace and quality of data acquisition in order to map all U.S. waters by 2040. 

Regional Campaigns - Get Involved!

With the 2023 U.S. announcement of newly delineated Extended Continental Shelf (ECS), the scope of the NOMEC Council's work has expanded to cover an area of approximately 3.9 million square nautical miles. This vast area is subdivided into regions, where partners collaborate to drive NOAA and its partners to increase survey efficiency, foster cooperation, and encourage the open sharing of data. For more information on Regional Campaigns and how to get involved, see the IWG-OCM Regional Campaign webpage: