Pictured Above: On the left, a welder from Thoma-Sea Marine Constructors, LLC, welds the initials of the Navigator’s sponsor, Rear Admiral (retired) Evelyn Fields, onto a steel plate that will be incorporated into the ship, in keeping with maritime tradition, at a keel-laying ceremony for the new ship on December 4, 2025, at the International WorkBoat Show in New Orleans, Louisiana; on the right, NOAA Corps officers and Rear Admiral (retired) Evelyn Fields (in center) gather at WorkBoat the same day to participate in the keel-laying event for NOAA’s new ship Navigator. (Image credits: NOAA)
NOAA leadership was joined by partners early in December 2025 at the International Workboat Show to celebrate the keel-laying for Navigator, the second of two new charting and mapping vessels being constructed for NOAA. Navigator is being built by Thoma-Sea Marine Constructors, LLC., in Houma, Louisiana near Guice Offshore’s home office.
In August 2025, Guice Offshore reported that NOAA leadership was joined by its partners earlier this year at Thoma-Sea’s headquarters to celebrate the keel-laying for Surveyor, the first new charting and mapping vessel they are also constructing for NOAA.
The keel-laying is a centuries-old maritime tradition that formally recognizes the start of a ship’s construction. During the ceremony, the initials of the ship’s sponsor, NOAA Corps Rear Adm. Evelyn Fields (ret.), were welded onto a steel plate that will be incorporated into the ship during construction.
“NOAA’s investments in data collection platforms, like Navigator, are integral to understanding and predicting our environment,” said Neil Jacobs, Ph.D., undersecretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator. “NOAA, and our science mission, is also proud to support the Maritime Industrial Base and our nation’s shipbuilding economy. We look forward to Navigator’s completion and the ability to incorporate emerging technologies like uncrewed systems to help NOAA meet its mission.”
In 2023, NOAA announced the addition of two new charting and mapping vessels to the NOAA fleet. Surveyor is expected to be completed in 2027 and Navigator in 2028. The ships will be used primarily for ocean mapping and nautical charting as part of NOAA’s mission to deliver tools and information to help mariners safely navigate the $2.3 trillion worth of cargo that comes in and out of the nation’s ports and harbors.
“Mariners navigating U.S. waters depend on NOAA charts,” said NOAA Corps Rear Adm. Chad Cary, director of the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps and NOAA Marine and Aviation Operations. “These new, state-of-the-art ships will ensure that we can continue to meet our mission to support safe navigation in established waters as well as evolving regions like the Arctic for decades to come.”
The vessel’s name, Navigator, highlights one of NOAA’s central missions: facilitating the safe navigation of mariners throughout U.S. waters. The Navigator will be homeported in Newport, Oregon.
Future of the NOAA Fleet
The new vessels are part of an ongoing effort to revitalize NOAA’s aging fleet. As of 2023, the average age of the ships in the fleet was 30 years old. By 2030, six of those ships will likely reach the end of their service life.
In addition to Surveyor and Navigator, there are two new oceanographic vessels that are under construction, Oceanographer and Discoverer. Those ships will support a wide variety of NOAA missions, ranging from oceanographic research and exploration to studying marine life, climate and ocean ecosystems. They are anticipated to be completed in 2026.
All of the new ships being built for the NOAA fleet will incorporate the latest clean energy technologies, including vessel emission controls and high-efficiency diesel engines, as part of NOAA’s net zero emissions goal.
NOAA’s research and survey ships are operated, managed and maintained by NOAA Marine and Aviation Operations, which comprises the largest fleet of federal research ships in the nation. Ranging from large oceanographic research vessels capable of exploring the world’s deepest ocean, to smaller ships responsible for charting the shallow bays and inlets of the U.S. The fleet supports a wide range of marine activities, including fisheries surveys, nautical charting and ocean and climate studies. NOAA ships are operated by NOAA Corps officers and civilian professional mariners.
