National Deep Submergence Facility (NDSF)

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Human Occupancy Vehicle Alvin (photo provided by WHOI)

The National Deep Submergence Facility (NDSF) hosted at WHOI, is a federally - funded center that operates, maintains, and coordinates the use of three vital deep ocean vehicles. 

To request use of the National Deep Submergence Facility (NDSF) vehicles, please submit a UNOLS Ship-time and Marine Equipment (SME) request form. Click the appropriate box(es) in the "Ancillary Facilities" section of the form to specify ALVIN or the ROVs. 

To view all funded requests for the NDSF vehicles, navigate to the UNOLS Ship Time Request System Detailed Project and Request Search.

NDSF Vehicle Debriefs

In order to better track the status of NDSF vehicle and system performance, DESSC will conduct debrief interviews of Principal Investigators who use Jason, Alvin, and Sentry. Agendas for DESSC meetings will include summary reports of these debriefs. Participation in the debriefs will include a DESSC representative, the science user, and the NDSF Chief Scientist (Anna Michel). A list of items that have been identified as problems or areas where improvement is needed will be documented.

Standardized questions have been developed for use during the debrief interviews, see them here

The following individuals are the current DESSC representatives who will conduct debriefs:

  • ROV Jason – Andrew Thurberr / OSU

  • HOV Alvin - Roxanne Beinart / URI

  • AUV Sentry – Scott White / University of So. Carolina

View the Debrief Summaries and Corrective Actions

Other Important NDSF - Related Resources