Partners and Groups

Overview

Partners

The College of Marine Science maintains strong partnerships with federal and state agencies.

Groups

In addition to academic research pursuits, the College of Marine Science hosts the following groups.

  • C-IMAGE - A global ten-year, $36.6 million research program to understand the impacts of the oil spills on the Gulf of Mexico. 
  • Center for Ocean Mapping and Innovative Technologies (COMIT) - a five-year, $9 million cooperative agreement with NOAA to develop new technologies and approaches to ocean and coastal zone mapping to help build resilient coastal ecosystems, communities, and economies.
  • CMS Ocean Technology Group – an in-house engineering team that provides development engineering expertise and at-sea support (e.g., sensor development, underwater pressure vessel fabrication, custom software applications, marine acoustics, RF systems, networking, and real-time control systems).
  • Center for Red Tide Tracking and Forecasting– a five-year, $2.7 million agreement with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to improve red tide observation and forecasting tools aimed at mitigating public health risks and economic impacts in the State of Florida.
  • C-SCAMP - a program funded by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) to collect high resolution bathymetry data and other data products to improve our understanding of reef fish and sea turtle habitat on the West Florida Shelf.
  • Gulf of Mexico University Research Collaborative (GOMURC) - a multi-state university-based research consortium to promote scientific knowledge, workforce development, and understanding that informs natural resource management decisions at state, regional, national and international levels.
  • Institute for Marine Remote Sensing – a team that uses satellite and airborne sensor data to provide resource managers with information and tools about ocean change on large spatial and temporal scales.
  • Ocean Circulation Group- The Ocean Circulation Group within the USF CMS, established by Distinguished University Professor Emeritus Robert Weisberg – now led by Associate Research Professor and Director Yonggang Liu, engages in physical oceanographic studies of the ocean circulation and the interactions between the oceans and atmosphere.
  • Optical Oceanography Lab - This team uses optics and remote sensing to understand and quantify how light is affected by materials in the water and air and how the ocean ecosystem is changing (e.g., phytoplankton blooms, benthic habitats, and optical water quality), as well as connections between water quality, climate change and human activities.
  • Southern Ocean Science  – a research group dedicated to interdisciplinary research in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean that has broad implications for coastal communities globally, including here in Florida, particularly with respect to future sea levels and climate change.
  • The MERA Investigation – an innovative water quality investigation in Costa Rica to improve beach management and protect human health, with implications for other tropical beaches and locations around the world.
  • The USF Center for Maritime and Port Studies (CMPS) – a cross-departmental center at USF whose mission is to promote workforce development for the maritime transportation industry, conduct research to foster resilient maritime and port infrastructure and operations, and provide independent testing and evaluation of maritime sensor technologies.
  • The USF Glider Fleet - The glider team helps scientists refine ocean current models, predict red tides, perform habitat and marine assessments, forecast and monitor hurricanes, and monitor water quality.