The main objectives of Leg 17 were to establish the regional pattern of oceanic crustal ages in the central Pacific, to obtain cores of the entire stratigraphic succession, especially from pre-Middle Eocene strata, To document the history of growth and subsidence of seamounts located along seamount chains, by drilling on the archipelagic apron of sediments near the foot of individual seamounts and to sample acoustic reflectors seen on seismic reflection profiles and to establish their physical properties and their ages.

From 1983 until 1989 NOAA-NCEI compiled the NOAA-MMS Marine Minerals Geochemical Database from journal articles, technical reports and unpublished sources from other institutions. At the time it was the most extended data compilation on ferromanganese deposits world wide. Initially published in a proprietary format incompatible with present day standards it was jointly decided by AWI and NOAA to transcribe this legacy data into PANGAEA. This transfer is augmented by a careful checking of the original sources when available and the encoding of ancillary information (sample description, method of analysis...) not present in the NOAA-MMS database.

Supplement to: Winterer, Edward L; Ewing, John I; Douglas, Robert G; Jarrard, Richard D; Lancelot, Yves; Moberly, Ralph; Moore, Theodore C; Roth, P H; Schlanger, Seymour O (1973): Initial Reports of the Deep Sea Drilling Project 17. U. S. Government Printing Office, XVII