Ribbon cutting event for new NOAA facility in North Charleston, South Carolina June 25, 2026 Charleston’s waterfront now has a new, state-of-the-art floating pier . The new pier and facility will provide essential support to NOAA Ship Nancy Foster, NOAA Ship Ronald H. Brown, and NOAA Corps officers and civilian mariners who rely on safe, resilient waterfront infrastructure to execute scientific and operational missions. (Image credit: Alan Blackwell/NOAA) Download Image NOAA Marine and Aviation Operations will hold a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of a new pier facility following renovations at the agency’s location in North Charleston, South Carolina. The renovations included demolishing and building a new pier with shoreside power for ships, as well as a warehouse, sea wall and living shoreline, and other supporting infrastructure. Reconstruction of the pier and other facility upgrades allow NOAA ships Ronald H. Brown and Nancy Foster to once again have a designated place to dock and better accommodate research missions in the Atlantic. Both ships are homeported in Charleston. WHAT Ribbon cutting ceremony for NOAA’s new pier facility in North Charleston, South Carolina. WHEN & WHERE Wednesday, July 8 at 10 a.m. EDT NOAA North Charleston Pier Facility 2234 S. Hobson Ave. Charleston, S.C. 29405 WHO Neil Jacobs, Ph.D., NOAA administrator Rear Adm. Chad M. Cary, NOAA Corps director and NOAA Marine and Aviation Operations assistant administrator Additional speakers invited RSVP Media interested in attending must email omao.publicaffairs@noaa.gov no later than July 3 to obtain access to this secure federal facility. BACKGROUND NOAA’s fleet of 15 research and survey ships are operated, managed and maintained by NOAA Marine and Aviation Operations . 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. Media contact Keeley Belva, keeley.belva@noaa.gov Marine & Aviation NOAA ships NOAA Corps 0