NOAA Awards $3.1 Million To Cuny For Remote Sensing Research

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration granted $3.1 million to the City College of the City University of New York to support the Cooperative Remote Sensing Science and Technology Center. NOAA is an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

The grant will be used to recruit and train students in remote sensing technologies. Remote sensing is the science of determining, processing and interpreting the properties of an object, such as the Earth, through its interaction with electromagnetic radiation. Training programs focus on sensor development, ground-based field measurements, satellite remote sensing, data processing and analysis, modeling and forecasting. CREST works with NOAA scientists on research in applying remote sensing to four major areas including coasts, land, hydro-climate and the atmosphere.

“Funding from this NOAA grant will ensure a strong future of scientists and specialists in the field of advance remote sensing technology, a discipline we will rely on more in the future,” said retired Navy Vice Adm. Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Ph.D., under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator. “NOAA and the Bush Administration are dedicated to supporting research and education initiatives like those of the City University of New York. I’d especially like to thank Rep. Jose Serrano for his leadership in bringing CREST and NOAA together.”

CREST is a consortium of institutions including the City College of the City University of New York; the University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez; the University of Maryland, Baltimore County; Bowie State University and Columbia University. The center was established to conduct research consistent with NOAA’s environmental assessment, prediction and stewardship missions, and to recruit and train students in remote sensing technology.

"I'm proud to be working together with NOAA and CUNY to help recruit and train students in remote sensing technologies," said Congressman José E. Serrano (D-NY). "I've long believed that our nation needs a new generation of highly-trained scientists to stay competitive. This grant will help to improve CUNY's already high-quality scientific work."

Each year, NOAA awards approximately $900 million in grants to members of the academic, scientific, and business communities to assist the agency in fulfilling its mission to study the Earth’s natural systems in order to predict environmental change, manage ocean resources, protect life and property and provide decision makers with reliable scientific information. NOAA’s goals and programs reflect a commitment to these basic responsibilities of science and service to the nation for the past 34 years.

NOAA is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and providing environmental stewardship of our nation’s coastal and marine resources. To learn more about NOAA, please visit http://www.noaa.gov.