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Ocean Temperatures, Hurricanes And Global Warming
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Hurricane Katrina
LANSING, NY / PR FREE / Sep 09 2005 --
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When environmental concerns meet business interests, the result is usually a compromise, at best. However, Advanced Design Consulting (ADC) in Lansing, N.Y., is fine-tuning the prototype of a miniaturized environmental monitoring system that will not only show commercial lobstermen where to fish for lobsters, it will also provide the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) with detailed information on ocean conditions.
"ADC has just received a second phase two year contract from NOAA to develop a MEMS miniaturized environmental monitoring sensor that can measure and store ocean temperature, pressure, pH, and salinity hourly for a period of three years," said Eric Van Every, ADC senior engineer and assistant principal investigator.
The sensor operates from a palm-size circuit card, housed in a watertight case. The Cornell NanoScale Science & Technology Facility (CNF) will serve as the key location for the building of these new sensor devices.
"The new sensor will be lowered to the ocean bottom attached to lobster traps, up to a depth of 1300 feet or 400 meters. Designed to be made at low cost, the sensors will consume minimal power," said Dr. Eric Johnson, ADC vice president of research. After data is retrieved on board a ship, the crucial ocean thermal data will be automatically transmitted instantly to NOAA via satellite and internet connection. In addition, the system will be capable of being modified to add sensing technology that can adapt to aquatic conditions such as toxins originating from algae blooms.
"When completed, this system will provide scientists and industry with a win-win situation," says Alex Deyhim, president of ADC. \"Having detailed information in real time will make it more economical for industry to operate, and because the system is easy to use, industry will be more willing to take part in data collection, which will enhance our understanding of ocean temperatures and to correlate with how hurricanes grow and to understand the effects of global warming."
Congressman Sherwood Boehlert (R-New Hartford), who oversees NOAA as Chairman of the House Science Committee, congratulated ADC on its contract award and praised the company's employees for their contribution to the nation's environmental monitoring capabilities. "This truly is yet another example of a Central New York company playing a critical national role," Boehlert said. "As we have seen with the massive devastation from Hurricane Katrina, the lives of the American people literally rest on the nation's ability to quickly and accurately predict hurricanes and other severe weather events. The early warning NOAA provided to the Gulf States no doubt saved countless lives, but ADC's new sensor will further enhance the agency's natural hazard prediction capabilities and thereby enhance our nation's security."
Boehlert added, "We have a tremendous amount of talent and expertise here in central New York and, as Chairman of the Science Committee, I will continue working to expose our area's resources and capabilities to federal agencies such as NOAA and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration that rely on private industry to fulfill many of their missions."
About Advanced Design Consulting, Inc.
Advanced Design Consulting, Inc. (ADC) is a privately owned company organized and structured to provide technical services to all types of clients from small scientific entrepreneurs to universities, government agencies and private industries. The firm's expertise and activities are primarily related to engineering design, research and development, testing and custom fabrication. It searches for innovative solutions to difficult problems.
To learn more about ADC products and services, visit www.adc9001.com.
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