The Atlantic sea scallop, Placopecten magellanicus, shows great potential as an aquaculture species in the Northeast United States. With the availability of affordable and reliable acoustic release technologies, scallops can be cultured in bottom gear in ideal conditions without vertical buoy lines thereby eliminating entanglement risk to whales and other marine organisms. The major objective of this project is to develop an efficient and economical growout protocol to support the Atlantic sea scallop aquaculture industry. During a preliminary year-long trial we identified a shallow nearshore site and deep offshore site where we achieved high survival (>90%) and rapid growth (>0.12 mm/day). In our current study we are quantifying ideal water quality parameters, testing various cage designs, and evaluating stocking densities to maximize survival and growth. We are also determining the correlation between adductor mussel weight and external characteristics, to develop a more reliable metric for assessing time to harvest. Based on the results from the growout study we will develop an economic model to evaluate the viability of a “ropeless” bottom culture of scallops using condos.