Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) is awarded funding to support NSF scientific research operations on R/V Atlantis in CY 2012. Eighty nine percent of the 217 days scheduled will support NSF peer-reviewed programs; other funding sources support the remainder of the year's schedule. An ONR multiple-ship operation will be conducted along with R/V Knorr in the Atlantic in early Spring which tie both WHOI ships to the Atlantic. R/V Atlantis will carry out two cruises for the US Global Ocean Carbon and Repeat Hydrography program (CLIVAR; lines A20 and A22. ROV Jason will deploy from R/V Atlantis to study Seep Connectivity off Barbados for an NSF sponsored voyage in early summer. A hydrophone deployment in the Equatorial Atlantic has been inserted on Atlantis' schedule after the submission of the proposal. A final cruise to study the Plume of the Amazon Basin will conclude the year's operating schedule. Work will then be conducted to continue upgrading the Alvin Handling System on R/V Atlantis in preparation for Alvin rejoining the ship in last 2012. This is a five-year cooperative agreement, and funding for each year of the agreement will be negotiated and is dependent on the number of days at sea in support of NSF-funded research. R/V Atlantis operates as a UNOLS ship, adhering to the UNOLS safety standards, INSURV and NSF inspections.
Technical and Intellectual Merit These peer-reviewed projects supported by operations on R/V Atlantis in 2012 have been rigorously evaluated for scientific and intellectual merit as an integral part of the NSF grant review and award process. The competitive nature of the award granting process ensures a very high level of intellectual merit. Knowledge gained and the discoveries made by the research programs supported by R/V Atlantis will enhance understanding of the oceans and address a broad range of important scientific questions. The goal of this proposal is to provide funding support to safely and productively operate and maintain R/V Atlantis in 2012 and to ensure it is maintained to support its planned life-cycle. This support is an essential prerequisite for safe and successful scientific missions.
Broad Impact Statement WHOI research vessels provide at-sea laboratories necessary to effectively and safely take science to sea. This community includes senior oceanographic scientists, post-doctoral and doctoral students, graduate and undergrad students as well as engineers, technicians, and teachers. These intellectual endeavors have broadened our understanding and have spurred on new questions and scientific theory. Research supported by R/V Atlantis next year will be important in understanding the Earth?s climate and how it changes over time. In 2012 R/V Atlantis will deploy Jason to sample 2 hydrothermal fields recently discovered on the Mid Cayman Rise and conduct Seep Connectivity studies. R/V Atlantis will also conduct a project for the US Global Ocean Carbon and Repeat Hydrography program (CLIVAR). R/VAtlantis will also support plans to bring the Human Occupied Vehicle ALVIN back into operations.Educational and outreach programs such as Dive & Discover http://science.whoi.edu/DiveDiscover,NSF?s COSEE Center, Ridge 2000, and Women Exploring the Ocean will be featured on thesecruises. All of these intellectual endeavors will continue to broaden our understanding of the oceans, stimulate new questions, and confirm scientific theory for years to come, benefiting society at large. Oceanographic expeditions are an extension of university classrooms and are an extraordinary educational experience. Voyages expose participants to new ideas, teach fundamental scientific principles through observation and practice, and inevitably raise questions that stimulate new thinking about how the oceans work. An increased awareness of our responsibility to bring this science into the classroom and to the public has resulted in the development of new avenues to share these scientific findings. The cruise web site concept has effectively reached classrooms with real-time images, data and two-way communication between scientists and students in schools across the country. These efforts have extended the sea-going experience from a handful of participants to thousands of students in classrooms across the country, as well as to the general public. Scientists on WHOI vessels will use this tool to present their data through web-based approaches either at their home institution or through web sites maintained by community organizations. The WHOI web site, www.whoi.edu, has pioneered efforts to present the results of research expeditions to the public. Outreach programs continuing in 2012 from WHOI vessels with the Perkins School for the Blind and Disabled represent cutting edge efforts to broaden the experience of conducting research at sea to every American.
