For the majority of its lifespan, the NURTEC Research Program focused on the research and management needs of its sponsor, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).  With the cessation of NOAA funding in 2008, the Center moved towards a cost-center model, providing a range of underwater services to a broader constituency of state and federal programs.  The Center was was officially designated a University of Connecticut Service Center in July, 2013.  Through this service mechanism the Center supported 13 oceanographic expeditions that utilized three distinct technologies (the ROV’s Kraken2 and Hela and the towed imaging system ISIS2) working off six different research vessels (RVs Connecticut and Brooks-McCall, NOAA ships Nancy Foster, Loosanoff and MacArthur2 and MV Argo) and addressed a range of research themes.  Click here to view a map of some of the earlier Service Center supported projects.

The Center’s résumé illustrated the high degree of flexibility gained in working from a range of support ships, as well as the capacity to mobilize its systems across the nation and internationally.  NURTEC-UConn’s team of technicians and pilots worked closely with the science teams to modify and/or develop scientific sampling platforms to meet the needs of evolving research objectives.  Below are some images illustrating the diversity of projects supported by NURTEC.