Title,Recipient,Competition,"Fiscal Year","Award Number","Federal Funding","Principal Investigator",State,City,County,District,Lat/Long,"Grant Dates",Abstract,Partners "Exploring Inner Space: Linking Aquariums with Ocean Scientists","Sea Research Foundation / Mystic Aquarium","2009: Ocean Education Grants for AZA Aquariums",2009,NA09SEC4690043,"$1,799,964","Dwight Coleman",Connecticut,Mystic,"New London",CT02,"41.37327, -71.95316","2009-12-31T23:00:00 - 2014-12-30T23:00:00","This program is a pilot project and collaborative effort to develop partnerships and educational programming using state of the art technology. The project partnership is comprised of a leading ocean science research and education institution, the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography and its new state of the art Inner Space Center (ISC), and two strong national ocean science education networks: the National Centers for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence (COSEE) Network and NOAA's Office of Exploration and Research (NOAA-OER) Education Alliance. In addition, two partner sites will serve as proof of concept sites and education hubs - Mystic Aquarium and Institute for Exploration (CT) and South Carolina Aquarium (SC), both affiliated with COSEE, the Coastal Ecosystem Learning Center Network (CELC), and NOAA-OER. Through this initiative, the ISC will install new Exploration Command Stations (ECSs) and enhance Ocean Today kiosks at the partner sites, strategically selected aquariums. Through this pilot project, the ECSs and kiosks (modeled after the original Ocean Today kiosk in the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History’s Sant Ocean Hall) will form an Ocean Interpretive Station at the partner sites. The ISC will provide live links from the Center's facilities to the newly installed ECSs and kiosks using feeds from various remote Ocean Exploration platforms, including the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer and the exploration vessel, E/V Nautilus. The project's Content Development Team (CDT) will develop associated educational materials for use in public programs at the partner sites.","Oregon State University (OSU) / Hatfield Marine Science Center, Seward Association for the Advancement of Marine Science / Alaska SeaLife Center, Coastal Ecosystem Learning Center (CELC) Network, Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL), University of Rhode Island (URI) / Inner Space Center (ISC), South Carolina Aquarium"