Coastal USM Participates in Oceans 2023 Conference

Fri, 10/06/2023 - 09:02am | By: Gabriela Shinskie

Oceans 2023 Gulf Coast kicked off its annual convention gathering worldwide scientists, engineers, students and leaders September 25-28 at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum and Convention Center in Biloxi. The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) showcased various coastal programs and research projects throughout the week.

Dr. Chelsea Peterson, Assistant Professor in the School of Ocean Science and Engineering (SOSE), is based at the Stennis Space Center and explained why Coastal USM’s presence at the conference was essential.

“We are showcasing some of our ocean engineering equipment. A lot of different people are here with different perspectives of USM,” said Peterson. “A USM presence at Oceans is really important. One, because of the larger community and the location is prime for us because of our coastal campuses. It’s important to make ourselves known and open to different connections within this community.”

Attendees had opportunities for networking and learning more about coastal research. Primary focuses included Uncrewed Maritime Systems (UMS) and sustainability. Government officials and advocates emphasized the Gulf Coast collaborations of different organizations to strengthen the blue economy.

At the conclusion of Oceans, USM’s Roger F. Wicker Center of Ocean Enterprise Marine Research Center (MRC) hosted The Advanced Naval Technology Exercise (ANTX) for the U.S. Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command (CNMOC) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) at Ocean Enterprise’s Marine Research Center (MRC) to display different UMS vessels as well as informative sessions inside on operational oceanography.

Dr. Jason McKenna, Director of Research, Development, Testing, Evaluation and Training (RDTE&T) at the Roger F. Wicker Center for Ocean Enterprise, expressed pride in partnering with the public and private companies to further advance maritime technologies.

“This is a chance for industry and academic partners to work together and test the most recent technology centered around the Navy’s operational meteorology, oceanography command over at Stennis Space Center as well as NOAA’s various line offices,” said McKenna. “We try to talk about how we can quickly advance new technology and demonstrate its relevance to Navy and NOAA missions.”

McKenna’s hope is that, by seeing the research center and what it has to offer, interested stakeholders and partners can see Coastal USM as a meaningful partner in research and data-driven technology to enhance the blue economy.

“Events like ANTX demonstrate to our industry and  government partners that you can work and do meaningful research at USM. We are an emerging hub for all things blue economy. We want people to see that, recognize that and be proud of that,” said McKenna.

Learn more about the School of Ocean Science and Engineering along with the Roger F. Wicker Center of Ocean Enterprise at Coastal USM.