Listen to a NOAA video podcast about the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer's Continuous Plankton Tow from Guam to California and sampling work conducted through the 'Pacific Garbage Patch'. Learn why systematic exploration aboard the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer is an evolving operational model referred to as a 'sticks and boxes' approach. The variety of data being collected onboard the Okeanos during this cruise from Hawaii to California represents a step forward in the exploration that can be conducted with the at-sea time allotted to the ship. Video courtesy of NOAA Okeanos Explorer Program.