Proposal Number: 0943484 Institution: University of Miami PI: R. Kniffin
This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).
The proposal requests numerous Shipboard Scientific Support (SSSE) items for the vessel operated by the University of Miami; namely the R/V WALTON SMITH. The requests specifically include items that have been recommended from past NSF inspections, or Post-Cruise Assessments (PCA's) and have been otherwise deferred by the operators due to cost. All of the items requested will either improve safety, enhance science support capability, or extend vessel service life. Due to the nature and timing of these requests, the vendor quotation standards normally required by the SSSE Program were waived out of necessity with many of the figures provided as estimates for budgetary purposes and based mainly on past experience of the vessel operators for similar work.
Broader Impacts: The R/V WALTON SMITH supports federally funded scientific research in the southern Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico in order to expand human knowledge of the ocean environment. During operations, the vessel routinely exposes graduate and undergraduate students to seagoing oceanography. Pubic outreach is also achieved through real-time satellite connectivity from ship to shore, open house events, and educational cruises. The WALTON SMITH is scheduled to complete over 70 NSF sponsored days in 2009.
