This award is a cooperative grant to Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO), Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and Joint Oceanographic Institutions (JOI) for activities associated with the acquisition and development of a shipboard communications system that will be capable of high data rate transfers from ship to shore. The communications system will be installed on the research vessel THOMAS THOMPSON, a 279-foot vessel, owned by the Navy and operated by the University of Washington. The system will be heavily used in 1995 and 1996 to support the JGOFS Arabian Sea Program. This proposal is part of a cooperative proposal to develop a prototype shipboard communications system called SEANET. Proposals included in the cooperative grant are: Proposal # PI Institution #95-10117 Andy Maffei Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution #95-09870 Dale Chayes Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory #94-19306 Ellen Kappel Joint Oceanographic Institutions #95-26019 Rex Buddenberg Naval Postgraduate School These proposals outline an effort to develop a prototype shipboard communications systems as follows: 1) Dale Chayes at LDEO will purchase the shipboard hardware ($53,000), work with Andy Maffei to integrate the hardware, travel to Oman to install the system on the R/V THOMPSON, and participate in one cruise in order to trouble shoot the system and teach the THOMPSON's technicians/scientists how to use it. LDEO will also provide some administrative support to establish a billing system for INMARSAT charges resulting from use of the system during the year, and Chayes will remove and redeploy the system on another ship when JGOFS cruises are completed. 2) Andy Maffei at WHOI will assist Chayes with the integration of the hardware and will provide user-friendly software for the shipboard communications system. He will integrate the system's hardware and software, including the ship's system, INMARSAT satellites, earth groundstations, routers, and Internet connection s. He will be available to trouble-shoot the system as necessary during operations. 3) Ellen Kappel (JOI) and Rex Buddenburg (NPGS): Kappel will provide overall program management, including communication of program goals and progress to all UNOLS institutions, and will integrate the NSF's SEANET effort with complementary efforts of other agencies, including but not limited to NOAA, USCG and NASA. Buddenburg, a satellite communications expert, will provide technical coordination with NASA during the system development and analysis of options to use other satellite systems. The goals of creating a system that will support high-speed-data transfer from ship to shore and connections to the Internet are part of OCE's plan for the High Performance Computing and Communications (HPCC) initiative. Therefore, joint support for this effort will be provided by the Oceanographic Sciences Research Section (OSRS) and by the Oceanographic Facilities Section (OCFS).

Agency
National Science Foundation (NSF)
Institute
Division of Ocean Sciences (OCE)
Type
Standard Grant (Standard)
Application #
9419306
Program Officer
Alexander Shor
Project Start
Project End
Budget Start
1995-08-01
Budget End
1998-07-31
Support Year
Fiscal Year
1994
Total Cost
$52,819
Indirect Cost
Name
Joint Oceanographic Institutions Inc
Department
Type
DUNS #
City
Washington
State
DC
Country
United States
Zip Code
20005