SAUNDERSTOWN, RI – Rhode Island’s Congressional delegation today congratulated the Rhode Island-based Ocean Discovery League (ODL) for being awarded $1,199,918 in federal funds for the development of a deep-diving, low-cost Deep Ocean Research & Imaging System (DORIS).  The development of this low-cost, next-generation deep ocean sensor and camera system will help lower the financial and technical barriers to deep-sea exploration, furthering ocean research and supporting the transition of emerging marine observing technologies. 

The $1.2 million federal grant is administered by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) Ocean Technology Transition award.

Overall, NOAA is awarding a total of $16.7 million to a dozen projects under the Inflation Reduction Act for (IOOS)’s Marine Life and Ocean Technology Transition programs.  These new awards seek to address coastal and ocean-based climate resilience issues, such as harmful algae blooms and ecosystem decline, to deep sea exploration, to support communities in preparing for, adapting to, and building resilience to changing climate conditions.

“We commend NOAA, Dr. Katy Croff Bell, Ph.D., and the entire team at Ocean Discovery League for their efforts to accelerate deep-ocean exploration by developing low-cost tools and technologies, such as deep-sea sensor and cameras like DORIS.  So far, only a fraction of the ocean has been explored.  By lowering barriers to study what lies deep beneath the waves, this project will broaden deep-ocean research and encourage more people and communities to participate,” said U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and Congressmen Seth Magaziner and Gabe Amo in a joint statement.

Accessible deployment and recovery systems are critical to the development of low-cost deep sea observation systems.

DORIS offers a novel, customizable tool consisting of interchangeable sensing and operational modules that can be configured to meet the mission of individual projects.  The high degree of flexibility and ease of use gives users the freedom to create a technological solution that meets their unique needs.  DORIS can also integrate with artificial intelligence-driven data processing tools for video and sensor data aggregation, analysis, and archiving to accelerate the pace of discovery for users.

The federal funding for this grant was made possible by the landmark Inflation Reduction Act (P.L. 117-169), which Democrats passed in 2022, and set aside $3.3 billion for NOAA to support the development of a more climate ready nation, including a set aside for IOOS to invest in our national observing system and in partnerships with public and private entities to better understand ocean processes and develop new approaches and solutions that support Coastal Communities and Climate Resilience. These federal funds, in concert with the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law investments, are the largest direct investment to date in U.S. coastal climate and economic resilience.

The grant is awarded to ODL in partnership with the Pacific Islands Ocean Observing System (PacIOOS), Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), and the University of Nebraska at Lincoln.