This award supports purchase of a 32 foot aluminum hulled, inboard powered research/instructional vessel, with cabin and A-frame capable of trawling, dredging, and handling oceanographic arrays. This new vessel will replace an existing 31 foot fiberglass vessel whose passenger, freight and lifting capacities are inadequate to meet the current demands of field investigative and instructional activities at the Shannon Point Marine Center (SPMC). The existing vessel is severely handicapped with respect to the weight of dredges and other oceanographic equipment that can be deployed. In contrast to the older vessel, the new vessel will increase passenger capacity by 50%, cruising speed by 300%, and lifting capacity by 750%. The increased capacity and speed will benefit both research and educational programs at the Center, including field trips by students and faculty from a number of local institutions, including three community colleges. The SPMC hosts an NSF sponsored undergraduate research program that has supported and trained 83 students in the past 5 years. SPMC has participated in the Minorities in Marine Science Undergraduate Program; as a result, the Center received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Math and Engineering Mentoring in 2003.
