For more than 25 years, the U.S. Geological Survey Gas Hydrates Project has compiled and maintained an internal database of locations where the existence of gas hydrate has been confirmed or inferred in research studies. The existence of gas hydrate was considered confirmed when gas hydrate was recovered by researchers or videotaped from a vehicle (such as a submersible or remotely operated vehicle) near the sea floor. The existence of gas hydrate was considered inferred when seismic data, borehole logs, or ...

In 2007, the California Ocean Protection Council initiated the California Seafloor Mapping Program (CSMP), designed to create a comprehensive seafloor map of high-resolution bathymetry, marine benthic habitats, and geology within California’s State Waters. The program supports a large number of coastal-zone- and ocean-management issues, including the California Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) (California Department of Fish and Wildlife, 2008), which requires information about the distribution of ...