A request is made to fund additional and back-up instrumentation for the R/V Hugh M Sharp, a 146 foot Regional research vessel operated by the University of Delaware as part of the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System (UNOLS) research fleet. The request includes three items listed by priority:
1) Multibeam Upgrade 2) ADCP Replacement 3) Fiber Optic Instrument Frame
Broader Impacts: The acquisition, maintenance and operation of shared-use instrumentation allows NSF-funded researchers from any US university or lab access to working, calibrated instruments for their research, reducing the cost of that research, and expanding the base of potential researchers.
" (OCE1013118) was awarded on 06/27/2010. These funds were to purchase ADCP 300kHz Workhorse for science use aboard the R/V HUGH R. SHARP. The ADCP from Teledyne RDI was installed aboard the R/V HUGH R. SHARP in July 2011 when the exiting ADCP 600 Rio Grande failed. As soon as it was installed, the ADCP started to see use with Dr. North’s project Larval Transport NSF # OCE0829512, July 14, 2011. With the approval of Teledyne, RDI will conduct the ADCP commissioning service in the fall CY 2011, after the ship’s schedule allows time. This will complete the proposal project "Oceanographic Instrumentation" (OCE1013118). Broader Impacts and Intellectual Merit of Proposed Work Intellectual Merit: The proposed equipment will help support scientific operations and data collection in the mid-Atlantic region. The intellectual merit of these individual projects is determined by peer review at NSF. The scientific questions posed must be meritorious enough to warrant funding, and only those few will be fortunate enough to go to sea. Broader Impacts: The number of missions supported averages around thirty per year for a vessel in the coastal zone. The science support equipment proposed herein will enhance the infrastructure needed for research and education on the vast majority of those cruises. The University of Delaware, the College of Earth, Ocean and Environment, and the R/V HUGH R. SHARP operation are closely linked. The broader impacts of this ship/institution package on the public and the science community are many. The R/V HUGH R. SHARP is an integral part of the public outreach program at the CEOE in Lewes, Delaware. When not at sea, the ship is a focal point on the waterfront, and during "Coast Day" (an annual open house at the CEOE which drew nearly thirteen thousand visitors in 2009). Graduate students who sail aboard the ship (either from the University of Delaware or other institutions) gain exposure to field work and other disciplines in oceanography, and eventually grow to become the Principle Investigators of the future.
