Potential Fields Pool Equipment

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole MA

Investigators

Abstract

A request is made to provide funds to purchase equipment for the establishment of a Potential Fields Equipment Pool. It is intended that the Potential Fields Pool Equipment (PFPE) effort would continue as a long-term service to UNOLS ship operators. The equipment would include needed spare parts and related electronics needed to repair broken gyros on behalf of all UNOLS operators running BGM-3 gravimeters on their ships for academic research, as well as to purchase a portable magnetometer system that could be used by any UNOLS operator for marine magnetics surveying. The services and equipment includes: 1) Repairs to BGM-3 gyros 2) Acquisition of Lockheed-Martin spare BGM-3 electronics boards $ 3) Acquisition of 1 complete surface towed Marine Magnetics SeaSPY magnetometer system & winch (including shipping) 4) Gyro equipment cabinets, tools, shipping cases 5) Shipping and Telephone costs (yearly) 6) Recalibration of s/n210 BGM-3 sensor The principal impact of the present proposal is under criterion two, providing infrastructure support for scientists to use the vessel and its shared-use instrumentation in support of their NSF-funded oceanographic research projects (which individually undergo separate review by the relevant research program of NSF). The acquisition, maintenance and operation of shared-use instrumentation allows NSF-funded researchers from any US university or lab access to working, calibrated instruments for their research, reducing the cost of that research, and expanding the base of potential researchers.