September 24, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:
NOAA Fisheries is cancelling the Northeast Fisheries Science Center 2020 Fall Ecosystem Monitoring Survey. The survey would have been conducted by the NOAA Ship Henry Bigelow, which is scheduled to begin a required drydock maintenance period on November 23, 2020, in Galveston, Texas. It is an 11-day transit from the ship’s homeport in Newport, Rhode Island, to the maintenance facility in Texas.
The maintenance is scheduled to be completed by February 19, 2021, positioning the ship to start the Spring 2021 Bottom Trawl Survey, as scheduled. Completing the Spring Bottom Trawl Survey is one of the highest priority surveys for the NEFSC in 2021.
The Fall Ecosystem Monitoring Survey captures seasonal changes in the ocean environment, information used for multiple scientific inquiries. Over its 33-year history, some seasons have been missed and the number of annual surveys has varied. Analytical methods have been developed to bridge these data gaps. Assuming surveys occur as planned in 2021, researchers can bridge the gap in 2020 data using these methods.