By Aida Havel The following is a personal commentary by Aida Havel, Board Member of the Outer Banks Lighthouse Society, on the future restoration of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. The lighthouse is undergoing a restoration, which includes the potential re-installment of the original 1850s Fresnel lens, or the installment of a handcrafted replica. (The original lens [...] Island Features |  Full Article

The Pea Island Preservation Society, Inc., (PIPSI) is pleased to announce two events being held on Saturday, October 9, 2021, to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the rescue of the E.S. Newman by Keeper Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesavers.  Both are to encourage people who are visiting or who live on the Outer Banks [...] Island Features |  Full Article

With the arrival of (slightly) cooler weather comes a yearning for the flavorful products of the fall harvest. Who doesn’t look forward to Eastern North Carolina sweet potatoes and winter squash, and apples and honey from the N.C. mountains paired with N.C. pork? Fortunately, Gilroy, California’s garlic harvest comes at the same time! Around 1979 [...] Island Features |  Full Article

North Carolina Oyster Week is Oct. 11 through 15. The “shellebration” entails a series of in-person and virtual oyster-related events along the coast and in the N.C. Triangle region, featuring opportunities to engage with oyster growers and harvesters, seafood restaurants and retail markets, recreational outfitters, coastal conservation and education organizations, and seafood festivals. “Oysters benefit [...] Island Features |  Full Article

From the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Saildrone Inc. and the NOAA have released the first video footage gathered by an uncrewed surface vehicle (USV) from inside a major hurricane barreling across the Atlantic Ocean. The Saildrone Explorer SD 1045 was directed into the midst of Hurricane Sam, a category 4 hurricane, which is [...] Island Features |  Full Article

Look to the northeast for Andromeda and Triangulum Galaxies, and the PacMan Nebula! The Andromeda and Triangulum Galaxies are two nearby deep space objects (DSO) that you can see with your naked eye or a pair of binoculars. The Andromeda Galaxy (M31) is the bigger and closer of the two. It is only 2.5 million [...] Island Features |  Full Article

On October 11, 1896, a most remarkable rescue by the most remarkable crew of the U.S. Life-Saving Station No. 17 Pea Island took place, which became a pedestal of honored U.S. Coast Guard achievements. Etheridge’s Early Years When there was suddenly an opening for Keeper of the Pea Island Life-Saving Station, a surprising thing happened. [...] Island Features |  Full Article

An Outer Banks fishing charter captain spotted an eerie sight out in the Atlantic Ocean on Sunday. Turns out it wasn’t a pirate ship or anything nefarious or supernatural. The crew confirms what Carolina Girl Sportfishing saw was the tall ship Nao Santa Maria, a full-scale replica of the flagship led by explorer Christopher Columbus in [...] Island Features |  Full Article

Researchers at North Carolina State University (NCSU) have recently developed a methodology for quantifying landscape changes on barrier islands, using Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge and the Outer Banks as their primary focus. In doing so, the researchers found that past storms which devastated human infrastructure also created new opportunities for coastal wildlife to thrive, [...] Island Features |  Full Article