NOAA’s Nautical Charting Products and Services Michael Henderson, Navigation Manager Maritime Education Standards Council - June 8, 2016

Mariners Have Trusted Coast Survey for Over Two Centuries First U.S. govt science agency, formed in 1807 Surveys 3.4 million square nautical miles Creates and updates over 1,000 nautical charts Speeds re-opening of ports after hurricanes and other disasters Develops hydrodynamic models for coastal management

Briefly, a nautical chart is a specific portrayal of the environment in which mariners must safely navigate their vessel. Charts show what is under the water – that which we can’t see. Soundings, or the water depth – not the bathymetry, but a shallow – or shoal – biased portrayal. That’s because the mariner needs to know if they have enough water underneath them. It’s important to note that NOAA does not make changes to any significant charted feature, when that change is based solely on non-authoritative data (crowdsourced data), since NOAA is legally responsible for the accuracy of nautical charts. The Federal Tort Claims Act permits private parties to sue the United States for torts committed by persons acting on behalf of the United States, e.g. for errors in hydrographic surveying and nautical charting.

Improving chart production Currently maintains 1,025 nautical charts Checks each chart weekly, and applies all critical corrections Data from Local Notices to Mariners Creates new chart editions New bathymetry and shoreline data from NOAA ships, contracted surveys, and remote-sensing aircraft

Click on the map-based chart locator at nauticalcharts.noaa.gov

http://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/staff/print_agents.html

Getting more charts into boaters’ hands

Making data more accessible Tremendous innovation Platforms for faster chart delivery to millions of customers Connectivity creates new opportunities i.e., raster tile service

LIDAR Systems Accurately Position Shorelines and Other Features Chart of NGS Remote Sensing Division’s shoreline work – LIDAR can correct position of a feature by 10 m on a 1:15,000 scale chart…can make a big difference for a 1000 ft long ship

NGS: Post-storm Aerial Photos http://storms.ngs.noaa.gov/storms/irene/

NOAA Tides / Tidal Currents NOAA Current Predictions More accurate NOAA tidal current predictions accessible via the Web. Customized tidal current predictions for a user-selected day, week or year available in graphical and text format. Capability to highlight current speeds above or below a user-defined threshold. Station updates distributed on a quarterly basis; more frequent than annual published Tidal Current Tables NOAA Tide Predictions Expanded NOAA Tide predictions easily accessible via the Web Customized display information for a selected day, week, month or year Enhanced options for a variety of tidal datums, selections for height units, time zones, and threshold values Maintained operationally with quarterly updates Book mark capability for user friendly options

One-stop-shop website for NOAA’s Nautical Charting Products www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov Print-on-Demand paper charts meet carriage requirements Free downloadable PDFs need plotter, or crop/reduce image for home printing BookletCharts print out on 8 ½ x 11 paper NOAA ENC® and NOAA RNC® Online chart viewer - ENC and RNC U.S. Chart #1 - now includes ENC symbols Talk about additional vendors Chart #1 is downloadable and has electronic chart symbols

Blog: noaanauticalcharts.wordpress.com Twitter @nauticalcharts www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov Blog: noaanauticalcharts.wordpress.com Twitter @nauticalcharts Kyle Ward - Navigation Manager Charleston SC C: 301-651-4852 E: - Kyle.Ward@noaa.gov