Yachting Contributions to Global Community
From Dockwalk
For many, yachting’s allure is the adventure of voyaging to some of the most exclusive locations in the world. This means venturing into the unknown. According to Seabed 2030, a global initiative by the Nippon Foundation and GEBCO to map the world’s oceans by 2030, “Less than 20 percent of the world’s ocean floor has been mapped. We know the topography of the moon and Mars in greater detail than that of our own planet.
Ensuring safety when sailing means knowing how deep the water is. Even in well-charted areas, there are challenges. The U.S. has some of the best charts, yet according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), “About half of the depth information found on NOAA charts is based on hydrographic surveys conducted before 1940.” Sometimes, particularly in Alaska, depth measurements are so old that they may have originated from Captain Cook in 1778.
