Charting the Great Lakes on the NOAA Survey Ship Thomas Jefferson | North Coast Chronicles

North Coast Chronicles: Tales from the Great Lakes journeys to Lake Erie with CDR Matt Jaskoski, Commanding Officer of the NOAA Survey Ship THOMAS JEFFERSON.  After 35 years, NOAA returns to the Great Lakes to update hundreds of nautical charts to modern standards.  While not exactly updating lead line surveys (the real old fashioned charts), many charts were last updated when bathymetry surveying was single dimensional and limited in detail.  Homeported in Norfolk, Virginia, the THOMAS JEFFERSON is used to map the ocean to aid maritime commerce, improve coastal resilience, and understand the "marine" environment. The THOMAS JEFFERSON ventured up the East Coast and into the St. Lawrence River, Lake Ontario, around Niagara Falls through the Welland Canal and into Lake Erie where it has been running survey operations to understand the "lake" environment!  Commander Jaskoski talked to us while on the ship in the Erie, PA area after having already surveyed around the Lake Erie islands in the western basin.  We learn when and how they use launches to manage near shore surveying, what it's like to live on the ship, and how to find a career with the NOAA Corps sailing for science!