Coastal Institute teams with NUWC for environmental research, education

President Robert L. Carothers and Richard H. Nadolink

Coastal Institute teams with NUWC for environmental research, education

The University of Rhode Island’s Coastal Institute and the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) in Newport established an environmental research and education partnership.

The collaboration will allow URI students and faculty to participate in research being conducted at NUWC, the Navy’s full spectrum center for research, development, testing and evaluation for undersea systems, and to learn about the environmental science applications in use at its Newport facility. It will also provide NUWC scientists with access to URI facilities, personnel and research programs.

“Although the motivation and applications may differ, naval and oceanographic interests are closely linked,” said David Farmer, dean of URI’s Graduate School of Oceanography. “The naturally occurring sound that tells the oceanographer about breaking surface wave properties or whale distributions, for instance, is the background field the naval scientist must separate from the signal being sought.

“Naval scientists need the expertise oceanographers can bring to bear on the problems they face, and oceanographers can in turn benefit from the great experience and technical skills that naval acousticians possess. This will be a relationship that benefits both GSO and our colleagues at NUWC.”

Among the activities the partners may undertake include student internships and mentoring, joint research projects, and the exchange of people, laboratory equipment and other resources.

“Cooperative efforts such as this Education Partnership Agreement foster greater awareness of the roles the University and NUWC play in the region’s quality of life. Opportunities to leverage expertise and resources allow both parties to contribute to the study and maintenance of a healthy ocean environment,” stated Richard H. Nadolink, chief technology officer at NUWC. “Under the agreement, NUWC and the University seek to instill good stewardship as well as good science and technical capabilities in students.”

URI and NUWC have worked together on a variety of engineering, oceanographic and environmental research projects in recent years, including studies of marine mammal protection, unmanned underwater vehicles, lake dredging, and GIS mapping of the environment. The new partnership will expand the range and scope of such projects and include new opportunities for hands-on student learning.

By Todd McLeish