The article was prepared for the 1998 Annual Meeting of the Marine Technology Society, held in Baltimore, Maryland.
Dr. Steven L. Miller
NOAA’s National Undersea Research Center at the University of North Carolina Wilmington
515 Caribbean Dive, Key Largo, Florida 33037
smiller@gate.net
1.0 Background | 2.0 New Communication Technology | 3.0 The Future
The human presence in space and beneath the sea first captured the attenion and imagination of the nation in the 1960s. Trips to the moon helped provide global perspective about the smallness and fragility of our planet. The voyages of Jacques Costeau and his images of our oceans helped demonstrate that the vastness of the oceans was not protection against pollution or misuse. During the early days of space exploration there were also programs developed to explore the oceans. Questions about whether or not people could live and work in space, or underwater, for extended periods of time were major research efforts. Exploration of space and travel to the moon developed into a major national objective. At the same time, underwater habitats were built and tested, but most programs were short–lived.
Funding for ocean exploration and underwater living was always a problem, programs were not designed with compelling science objectives, and in some cases injuries or fatalities shut things down. Despite these obstacles, one such program still survives. Indeed, as we move to the next century, one program is poised to do what has never previously been achieved — earning credibility among scientists while at the same time attracting public interest and support. Perhaps surprisingly, Aquarius is the world’s only saturation diving laboratory in our oceans today, despite its legacy that dates to the early days of exploration in the 1960s.
Aquarius is operated and administered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Undersea Research Program at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. Nearly 60 habitat programs have come and gone in the last 35 years, and together with Hydrolab, the predecessor to Aquarius, the two programs reflect the longest running and most successful underwater laboratory programs in the history of underwater living. NOAA has successfully administered the programs for over 20 years. Approximately 180 Hydrolab missions were conducted in the Bahamas (100 missions in the early to mid 1970s) and St. Croix, USVI (80 missions from 1977 to 1985), and over 40 missions have already been completed using Aquarius, first in St. Croix, USVI (13 missions), and currently in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (28 missions as of July 1999, with five more scheduled between August and November).
There are several lessons learned during the many years of program research in underwater living that provide the foundation upon which Aquarius 2000 operations are built. The hazards of underwater living are well known and minimally restrict scientists who conduct underwater research. People can live and work comfortably in underwater laboratories for missions of two weeks or more, without threat to their health or safety. The question of safe operations is paramount throughout all Aquarius 2000 activities. A simple risk analysis demonstrates that the chance of a catastrophic accident occurring during Aquarius missions is quite small, as it should be since scientists should not have to risk their lives to study coral reefs. The combined success rate for Hydrolab and Aquarius, where success is defined as not having a catastrophic accidental surfacing or injury (producing a fatality), is 100 percent.
One accidental surfacing occurred during a Hydrolab mission and the aquanauts were quickly recovered and returned to pressure without residual affects. This one surfacing event, with over 220 missions conducted in the two programs and over 900 aquanaut participants, results in a mission success rate (defined as no accidental surfacings) per mission or per participant of 99.54 and 99.78 percent, respectively. Considering the variable levels of dive skills found in the science community, the success rates reflect the high quality of pre–mission training conducted by staff, and the inherent safety of saturation operations.
Programs are always required to justify their existence in terms of money spent and products produced. The return on the Aquarius investment is unambiguous. Information produced by Aquarius addresses specific national and regional needs defined by NOAA, and the results of Aquarius–supported science are of immediate value. For example, a recent Aquarius mission documented changes to deep coral reef environments to depths of 90 feet, but discovered that the deepest reefs at the work site (105 to 115 feet deep) were in good condition. This contrasts with observations in shallower waters where coral reefs are generally in serious decline.
Additional science achievements of the program include discoveries related to the damaging effects of ultraviolet light on coral reefs, geological studies that use fossil reefs to better understand the significance of present–day changes to coral reefs, research that is rewriting the book on how corals feed, water quality studies that evaluate sources of pollution, and long–term studies of reefs to help distinguish changes caused by natural system variability or humans (due to pollution and overharvesting).
Aquarius 2000, in addition to science described above, is also used as a presentation platform to capture the attention and imagination of the public, so scientists and managers can explain their work and highlight critical environmental science issues related to the condition of our oceans. Aquarius 2000, for the first time, includes coordinated media coverage and development of educational programs that target middle school students. The world–class scientists that participate with the program also contribute time and expertise to get the message out about what they do, and why it’s important.
Related to funding and other indirect types of program support, Aquarius 2000 represents a unique partnership among government, industry, academia, and a nonprofit organization (see below for details about program costs). The University of North Carolina Wilmington operates and administers the program, NOAA funds Aquarius 2000, Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution assisted during refurbishment with engineering support and in–kind services, and NOAA’s National Data Buoy Center provided the 10 meter discus buoy that was converted by the partners to support Aquarius 2000 operations.
The formation of the partnership allowed the program to successfully complete refurbishment (1996 — 1997) and to implement more efficient operations (see paper by Cooper, Styron, and Buckley). With significant accomplishments attained during its first operational years in Florida, and a successful inaugural mission in August, 1998, the program is poised to provide continued service to the marine science community and the public.
1.0 Background | 2.0 New Communication Technology | 3.0 The Future
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