University of Washington / R/V Thompson and R/V Rachel Carson - Oceanographic Instrumentation

This award is for Oceanographic Instrumentation (OI) for R/V Thompson, a 274-foot general purpose, global class research vessel, and R/V Rachel Carson, a newly outfitted 72-foot coastal research vessel, both operated by the University of Washington (UW) as part of the U.S. Academic Research Fleet (ARF). UW will develop an underway CTD system and will acquire 2 CTD probes to be used with it. Also, UW seeks to install a 150 kHz Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) to complement the existing ADCP systems of different operational frequency; it will also purchase an additional Seabird SBE911plus sensor for use with the existing CTD rosette system. The principal impact of the present proposal is under Merit Review Criterion 2 of the Proposal Guidelines (NSF 23-525). It provides infrastructure support for scientists to use the vessel and its shared-use instrumentation in support of their NSF-funded oceanographic research projects (which individually undergo separate review by the relevant research program of NSF). The acquisition, maintenance, and operation of shared-use instrumentation allows NSF-funded researchers from any US university or other organization access to well-maintained, high-quality, calibrated instruments for their research. It ensures the collection of high-quality oceanographic data in support of science, reduces the cost of that research, and expands the base of potential researchers. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.