NOAA's Undersea Research Program - NURP
This story entered on 6rd Feb, 2003 12:14:15 PM PST

The Underwater Intervention 2003 (UI 2003) conference and exposition will be held February 10-12, 2003 in New Orleans, LA. At this conference there will be two separate panels being led by NOAA. They are:

1. "Advancements in Wet Diving for Science"

Co-Chaired by: Barbara Moore, Director
NOAA's Undersea Research Program

and Ross Saxon, Executive Director
Association of Diving Contractors International

2. "Use of ROVs for Science Based Exploration"

Chaired by: Captain Craig McLean, Director
Office of Ocean Exploration

The emphasis for both of these panels will be discussing NOAA's future diving and ROV requirements, specifically where the future science operations need to be going, and the constraints to reaching those future goals. Representatives from NOAA, U.S. Navy, universities, research institutions, the commercial diving industry, and the ROV industry will be presenting at UI 2003.

Discussions will explore reasonable NOAA underwater diving and ROV goals and objectives that can be met through uniting science and industry, providing market research for industry, and expanding communication through person to person discussions with industry leaders who can partner, advise, and guide NOAA in underwater technology.

Contact information:
Name: Gene Smith
Tel: (301) 713-2427
gene.smith@noaa.gov