Living Shipwrecks

Through NOAA’s new website, Living Shipwrecks 3D, you can explore the rich maritime history and diverse marine life of Monitor National Marine Sanctuary and the surrounding area. In a collaborative research project between the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science and the sanctuary, scientists collected data from several WWII shipwrecks to better understand the significance of these wrecks as artificial reef habitat, and documented them for further archaeological examination. This accessible research honors the valor of the U.S. Merchant Marine and advances sanctuary goals to protect and explore marine ecosystems.

High resolution image of W.E. Hutton ship with fish around it — High resolution image of *W.E. Hutton*, and the fish living on it. Fish school extent is displayed via white dots. Photo: NOAA

W.E. was stuck by a torpedo — In the early hours of March 19, 1942, *W.E. Hutton* was struck by a torpedo. The wreck site sits off the Cape Lookout area near Beaufort, North Carolina. Photo: NOAA

Living Shipwrecks

Data collected by visual and acoustic methods gives researchers detailed 3D imaging of the shipwrecks.