Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary June Recap

Gray's Reef MATE ROV Southeast Regional Coordinator attends the MATE ROV Worlds Competition at Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary

On June 19th - 21st Gray's Reef Regional Coordinator attended the 2025 MATE ROV World Championship in Alpena, Michigan. Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary opened its doors to 79 teams from all over the world to compete in this incredible competition. Gray's Reef supported their sister sanctuary and the competition by judging Company Specification sheets of the competing teams and scorekeeping the entire event. Our team is excited to bring new ideas and opportunities to our Southeast Regional competition in May 2026, including educational workshops, a product demonstration from previous 1st place RANGER teams, and even a sneak peak at our ROV, Grover! For more information about the Gray's Reef Southeast Regional, please contact email graysreef@noaa.gov.

Image of the underwater props for the MATE ROV product demonstration portion of the competition. Photo by Danielle Oxman/NOAA

Image of the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary Visitor Center in Alpena, Michigan. Photo by Danielle Oxman/NOAA

Supporting Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary Foundation at Sips at the Station

Ardsley Station in Savannah, GA, hosts Sips at the Station, a monthly non-profit fundraising event, and our friends at the Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary Foundation were this month’s lucky non-profit. As close partners to the sanctuary, the Foundation asked Gray’s Reef to host a booth during the event. The Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary Foundation supports the sanctuary with funding opportunities and further spreads our mission. The event was a wonderful evening where guests got to learn about Gray’s Reef from our incredible volunteers! Our volunteers even provided a virtual dive experience to the attendees of the event. For more information about outreach events and learning about Gray’s Reef, please contact graysreef@noaa.gov.

Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary's Chapter Director, Sarah, welcoming guests to their event. Photo by Elizabeth Beattie/NOAA

Get Your Fins On: Gray's Reef Divers and Crew are Ready for Offshore Mission! 

This month, our dive and vessel operations teams were busy preparing for mission readiness for Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary. The teams are continuing their professional development by rehearsing diver recovery drills aboard the R/V Gannet and completing underwater dive training.  On top of the water, the vessel operations crew rehearsed of the most efficient and safe method of bringing an injured diver out of the water. The team worked through multiple scenarios, gaining valuable insight into the challenges of small boat diver recoveries. By refining our emergency response procedures, we are enhancing the preparedness and safety of our operations at Gray’s Reef.  

Under the waves, diver Quinn is currently working toward her American Academy of Underwater Sciences (AAUS) scientific diving certification, while divers Soss and Oxman are pursuing recertification. All three—NOAA affiliates through the University of Georgia—are preparing to support dive-related missions for Gray’s Reef. As part of their training, they successfully completed the AAUS swim test requirements and reviewed essential underwater skills in the pool. Their next step will be to complete offshore checkout dives to further demonstrate their readiness for field operations.

Building and maintaining a qualified crew and scientific diving team is essential to NOAA and Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary’s ability to conduct underwater research, monitoring, and equipment maintenance. The efforts of our divers and crew members contribute directly to NOAA’s mission to explore, understand, and protect ocean ecosystems and allow Gray’s Reef to carry out critical fieldwork aligned with its management and conservation goals. For more information about our dive and vessel operations, please contact the Gray’s Reef Vessel Operations Coordinator voc.grnms@noaa.gov.

Captain Ward and crew members Lieutenant Ring and Lieutenant Junior Grade Starsinic discussing optimal techniques for guiding safety equipment. Photos by Scott Kathey/NOAA

AAUS Diver Oxman practicing deploying a surface marker buoy, while diver Quinn learns the ropes of a new reel. Photo by Alison Soss/NOAA

Upcoming Events with Gray's Reef

2025 Super Sanctuary Summer: June 10th - August 15th

In honor of World Oceans Week, we’re kicking off our Super Sanctuary Summer and extending our Discovery Center hours! Starting on June 10th, we’ll be opening our doors Tuesdays - Fridays from 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. to host FREE daily activities and events. Each week will feature a new theme with talks, workshops, craft sessions, and more! The Gray’s Reef Ocean Discovery Center is located at 340 MLK Jr Blvd. Savannah, GA. For a detailed schedule of these events, check out our website below.

Ocean Depths Artistic Heights: Deep Dive Exhibit: Now - August 4th

The Gray’s Reef Ocean Discovery Center welcomes local artists to be a part of our new rotating art exhibit, Ocean Depths Artistic Heights. Check out local artist Cat Ward's exhibit, Deep Dive, which highlights her ocean inspired acrylic and sculpture series.

Sanctuary Advisory Council Meeting: July 10th

National marine sanctuary advisory councils are community-based advisory groups that provide advice and recommendations to the superintendents of the sanctuary sites on issues like management, science, community engagement, and stewardship. Members of the advisory council represent a broad cross-section of communities, industries, and stakeholders interested in and affected by the marine sanctuary. The Gray's Reef Sanctuary Advisory Council will be meeting on July 10th at the Ocean Discovery Center. More information about hours and agenda will be posted on our website soon!

Southeast Regional Ecosystem Assessment: July 21st - August 3rd

The Gray's Reef team will be embarking on the NOAA Ship Nancy Foster mission in July! This multidisciplinary mission will include underwater mapping, scientific dive surveys, and public outreach. The Nancy Foster will be docked on River Street, Savannah, GA on August 3rd, and opening its doors to the public! Join us to see this incredible vessel and learn about the important research that was conducted for this mission.

Gray's Reef Ocean Discovery Center is Getting a Makeover: August 18th

Beginning on August 18th, the Gray's Reef Ocean Discovery Center located in downtown Savannah, GA will be temporarily closing its doors to get brand new exhibits installed! We are so excited for these renovations, and will be posting sneak peaks and reopening dates on our website and social media. We hope to see you at our grand reopening in the fall! Dates will be sent out soon.

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