The PIRATA Northeast Extension project is a joint AOML/PMEL effort to collect observations in the climate-critical Tropical North Atlantic region.  Maintaining observations requires an annual research cruise in the region.The 2014 PNE cruise was conducted on the UNOLS R/V Endeavor from December 29, 2014 to February 11, 2015, from Barbados to San Juan, Puerto Rico. Participating NOAA/AOML personnel were Rick Lumpkin (chief scientist), Zach Barton, Shaun Dolk, Erik Valdes and Kyle Seaton. NOAA/PMEL personnel were J. Michael Strick and Korey Martin. During the cruise, four ATLAS PNE moorings were recovered and redeployed, a T-FLEX mooring was recovered and redeployed at 4N 23W with a large number of AOML-supported current meters to study upper ocean velocity shear, five subsurface hydrophone moorings were recovered, 51 CTD casts with LADCP were conducted to a depth of 1500m, and 12 surface drifters were deployed.  A suite of additional underway observations were also collected.

All PNE moorings are currently successfully transmitting data on the Global Telecommunications System for studies of Atlantic Tropical climate variability.  The hydrophone mooring data will be used to study seismic activity in the Atlantic basin.