Tomer Ketter is a passionate and experienced Hydrographer and Oceanographer, currently with the Science Department on board Schmidt Ocean Institute’s flagship research vessel Falkor (too). During his two decades on the water, Tomer has participated and led numerous mapping expeditions in remote waters exposing and documenting underwater landscapes through advanced mapping technologies and GIS visualizations.
Prior to his role at SOI, Tomer was a partner and Head of Mapping at SUB-MERGE Corp., providing underwater exploration technologies and expertise for human-occupied submersible operations. Tomer also volunteers as Director of Exploration for the US-based non-profit Map the Gaps, which he helped co-found in 2019. Map the Gaps is a strategic partner of PROTEUS Ocean Group, The Five Deeps Expedition, the Ocean Research Project, R2Sonic and more.
Beforehand, Tomer has spent several years working at the Center of Coastal and Ocean Mapping – Joint Hydrographic Center (CCOM-JHC) as part of Seabed 2030 Arctic and North Pacific Regional Data Center and the NSF Multibeam Advisory Committee. During Tomer’s preceding role, as Hydrographer of the National Oceanographic Institute of Israel and head surveyor of regional-class research vessel R/V Bat-Galim, he completed a national survey of Israel’s 26,000 sqkm EEZ.
A highlight in Tomer’s career was participating in and winning the grand prize ($4M) of the Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE in 2019 with the GNFA team and partners Kongsberg Maritime and Ocean Floor Geophysics.
Tomer’s journey into ocean exploration began by following his passion of technical diving into marine sciences with a B.Sc. in Marine and Environmental Studies from Ruppin Academic Center, followed by an M.Sc. in Marine Geosciences from the University of Haifa. He’s also a graduate of the Advanced Ocean Mapping program at the University of New Hampshire’s Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping (UNH-CCOM) with a IHO/FIG/ICA Category A certification in Hydrographic Surveying.
Based in Costa Rica, Tomer’s work and drive for exploration are fueled by a genuine curiosity and love for the ocean and indigenous seafaring nations. He’s a fellow of The Explorers Club and a recipient of the Nippon Foundation’s GEBCO Fellowship, acknowledging his contributions to marine science. When he’s not diving into his next big project, Tomer is likely out there climbing, swimming, paddling, driving his camper van or capturing the night sky and landscape on his camera.
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