Crews with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration — NOAA — recently completed National Marine Sanctuary Southeast Regional Ecosystem Assessment for Gray's Reef.

The assessment for the reef located about 20 miles from the coast of Georgia's Sapelo Island was conducted aboard the NOAA Ship "Nancy Foster." According to a release from NOAA, the mission collected critical data on offshore live-bottom habitats in the South Atlantic Bight to better understand species distribution and ecological connectivity in and around the reef.

Operating around the clock, the mission alternated between nighttime high-resolution sonar mapping and daytime scientific diver surveys to document seafloor characteristics, measure structural complexity and record observed species and their quantities.

The expedition yielded helpful data for regional conservation strategies. According to the release, the team successfully mapped 22.8 square miles of seafloor and conducted 70 conductivity, temperature and depth casts over 1,624.9 nautical miles.

Divers explored the habitat in 69 individual dives totaling 31.5 dive hours, in addition to 10 camera drops to capture essential imagery in non-diveable areas.

Public outreach during the assessment saw 230 people tour the Nancy Foster and 284 people visited the Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary booth during a three-hour open house in Savannah.