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A Newsletter for Friends and Alumni of the University of Washington
A Word from President Emmert: Perseverance yields excellence
With scientific research, as with many things in life, perseverance is a virtue.
Just ask UW Oceanography Professor John Delaney, who spent the past decade working on an ambitious project to install an extensive sensor system along the Juan de Fuca plate, located off the coasts of Oregon, Washington and British Columbia. As envisioned, this undersea laboratory would transmit real-time data from the ocean’s depths, transforming our understanding of planet Earth and helping us better understand climate change, the dynamics of earthquakes and other scientific questions.
As Professor Delaney and his colleagues have dedicated themselves to this important effort, so have the friends who have supported their vision. Their commitment has helped Delaney and his colleagues advance their science and successfully apply for federal funding from the National Science Foundation. Construction of the project, which is now part of a collaborative partnership with a number of institutions across the country, could begin as soon as next year.
In a time when people often seek instant gratification, Professor Delaney’s long-term commitment to this effort is even more impressive. I’m proud of him and of all of our world-class researchers at the UW whose commitment to excellence and willingness to persevere are yielding discoveries that will benefit all of us.
Mark A. Emmert (’75)
President
Feature: Undersea vision becoming a reality
Undersea exploration is top-of-mind for UW Professor John Delaney (right), whose vision of an undersea observatory is moving
closer to reality.
Professor John Delaney More than a decade ago, UW Oceanography Professor John Delaney and his colleagues envisioned a new method of exploring the oceans: instead of sending researchers to the ocean, the ocean would send information to the world. A cabled system of interconnected sensors associated with the Juan de Fuca tectonic plate in the northeast Pacific Ocean would use high-bandwidth communications to transmit vast amounts of real-time data to scientists, teachers, schoolchildren and the general public.
That vision is now becoming a reality, due in part to the generous support of private donors who shared Delaney’s belief in the value of ocean exploration. Private funding enabled Delaney and his colleagues to pursue some of the early steps in developing this innovative ocean observatory, long known as NEPTUNE (North East Pacific Time-Integrated Undersea Networked Experiments).
In May, the UW received funding to develop detailed engineering plans for the undersea observatory. The UW is on track to receive an additional $120 million over six years for construction through the National Science Foundation’s (NSF)Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI).
Coordinated by the Joint Oceanographic Institutions Inc. with funding from the NSF, the OOI has collaborators from across the country, including the UW, San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Oregon State University, Arizona State University, University of Oregon and Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute.
“This new approach to undersea exploration is going to revolutionize not only how we look at the oceans and earth, but eventually the way we manage our entire planet,” says Delaney, a marine geologist and the first holder of the Jerome M. Paros Endowed Chair in Sensor Networks.
This transformational approach to oceanography could help scientists determine how the oceans absorb greenhouse gases and why seafloor stresses cause earthquakes and tsunamis. Exploration could lead to new pharmaceuticals derived from microbes that thrive in the extreme environments of the ocean’s depths and in the rocks below the seafloor. Data could help improve weather forecasting and management of valuable fish, including salmon.
The potential for discovery motivated a number of donors to support this project long before its recent award of federal funding. Gifts from Tai Ping, a small private foundation, as well as Dr. Lloyd Chapman and his wife, Katherine, advanced the vision. An anonymous donor last year provided support that helped the UW hire critical employees for the project and created graduate student fellowships. And a gift from the W. M. Keck Foundation helped support research that led to the funding awarded in May.
“The Keck Foundation is proud to support the University of Washington’s Project NEPTUNE, which will provide new ways to study the ocean floor and reveal new insights to this most important driver of the quality of life on earth,” says the foundation’s program director, Mercedes Talley.
Delaney says that private funding has been a vital part of the project. “Private support has helped us move our vision forward. We now stand on the brink of a revolution that will lead to a much-improved understanding of the oceans.”
For more on the Ocean Observatories Initiative, visit www.ooi.washington.edu.