A remotely-operated-vehicle explores the sea floor in dim light.

a deep sea jellyfish

Deep Sea Overview

Ever want to explore the deep sea? This overview dives into everything to know about this under-explored world.

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Featured Content

a squid in blue water

Video

Quest for the Giant Squid

Teams of Robots Can Help Us Build 3D Maps of the Ocean

One of ten robots that examined an area of 800 cubic kilometers in northern Monterey Bay, over the course of 24 days, in 2006.

August 2017

Summer in a Sub: DROP Down to Discovery

A submersible explores the deep reefs off of Curacao in the Caribbean.

July 2011

What We DON'T Know About the Deep Sea

Dive through the zones of the ocean to the deep ocean bottom where many strange species live, and there are many yet to be discovered. Explore them in the Deep Ocean Exploration section.

July 2012

A variety of plankton images from the Gulf Stream

Overview

STREAMCODE – Planktonic Diversity of the Gulf Stream

Are You An Educator?

At Smithsonian Ocean, we have lesson plans, activities, and resources to help you engage your students in the wonders of our oceans.

see all lesson plans see exploration lesson plans

Exploration Articles

a burning oil platform

Video

Science in a Time of Crisis: Sampling the Source

a diver in blue water

Video

Blue Water Diving with WHOI

Take a Virtual Submarine Dive to the Deep

You can explore the Curasub from your computer! Inspect, launch, board and recover to get an idea of what it's like to mann an underwater submersible.

September 2015

Five Questions with Brigitte Ebbe, Polychaete Pundit

A red and white colored bristle worm swims in the water column.

April 2013

Expedition to the Line Islands

The Line Islands are one of the most remote places in the Pacific Ocean.

November 2009

Worth the Investment: Ocean Real Estate Reveals Hidden Diversity

A "reef hotel" made of PVS layers on the seafloor.

February 2015

Remembering the First Smithsonian Expedition to Puerto Rico

a black and white photo of a ship from the 1930s

September 2022

William Dampier - The Pirate Who Collected Plants

This portrait of William Dampier hangs in London’s National Gallery in recognition of his contribution to natural history.

December 2017

Peter Auster: The Gee Whiz Factor

Auster gets ready to study fish predators at Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary off the coast of Georgia.

July 2011

Happy 50th Birthday, FLIP – a Mobile Research Island

Scripps Institution of Oceanography's FLoating Instrument Platform, or FLIP, conducts sea trials off San Diego in May 2009.

July 2012

A researcher leans off of a boat to tag a great white shark.

Slideshow

Collaborator Research

A school of Atlantic bluefin tuna swimming.

Audio

Atlantic Bluefin Tuna: One Species at a Time