The Center is composed of four integrated laboratory activities and three support groups: The Davidson Laboratory The Marine Observation and Prediction Laboratory The Coastal Engineering Research Laboratory The Maritime Security Laboratory The Instrumentation and Design Group The Marine Operations Group The Information Systems Group Each of these will be described below.

In addition to the experimental facilities, research addressing engineering problems involving complex flow phenomena is conducted using computational fluid dynamics. The laboratory’s simulation software suite is made up of a combination of commercial and in-house modeling codes, several mesh generation tools, and advanced flow visualization tools. Past and on-going projects encompassing numerical simulation-based research include analysis related to supercavitation, vortex induced vibrations, extreme wave loads on off-shore structures, hydrodynamic and hydroacoustic signatures of submerged bodies and wake hydrodynamics, and aero-hydromechanics of high performance racing yachts. The later involving design analysis support for America’s Cup and Volvo Ocean Race teams and boat designers.
 
Point of Contact: Dr. Raju Datla(rdatla@stevens.edu)

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The Marine Observation and Prediction Laboratory is addressing the many challenges facing estuarine and coastal communities – including natural and man-made hazards by improving our ability to detect, understand, predict, and respond to changes to the marine environment. A knowledge of the existing conditions within New York Harbor and the coastal waters of New York and New Jersey are obtained via a network of real-time harbor sensors. This system, designed and operated by CMS researchers, is part of the national Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) and provides continuous observations regarding present ocean and weather conditions throughout the region. The network provides a test-bed for emerging ocean observation platforms, including CTD, water level, and atmospheric sensors, wave gauges, CODAR surface radar, and model driven UUV sensors. Robust dynamic data sampling techniques such as autonomous model controlled event detection and power/data transfer optimization schemes are continuously pursued. Modeling systems for estuarine and coastal ocean nowcasts and forecasts are being constantly refined to provide the most accurate realizations possible of the marine environment. The enhancement of model accuracy is being addressed through the assimilation of observations provided in real time to the hydrodynamic model. A Newtonian relaxation scheme (nudging), incorporating spatially variable correlation scales, is being tested for tidal and estuarine settings and considers water level, salinity and temperature observations as well as CODAR based surface currents. The utility of Local Ensemble Transform Kalman Filtering (LETKF) is also being assessed. The basis of the modeling systems is the Princeton Ocean Model (POM) and its shallow water derivative model, ECOMSED (Estuarine and Coastal Ocean Model with Sediment Transport). It is the modeling engine for the Laboratory’s New York Harbor Observing and Prediction System and the NJ Coastal Observation and Prediction System (NYHOPS+NJCOPS). The system  is a real-time observation and forecasting system that provides continuous information regarding both present and 48 hour forecasted ocean and weather conditions. The data and model forecasts are disseminated to the public via the Internet at http://www.stevens.edu/maritimeforecast/.

Point of Contact: Dr. Thomas O. Herrington (therring@stevens.edu)

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The Coastal Engineering Research Laboratory conducts transformational research and develops new knowledge, models, and tools for the improvement of the effectiveness of coastal hazard mitigation and enhancement of coastal community resilience. The creation and evaluation of innovative coastal protection technologies is conducted through physical modeling studies in the Davidson Laboratory and in-situ field investigations supported by the Marine Operations Group. This research is supplemented by real-time observations and numerical simulations and forecasts provided by the Marine Observation and Prediction Laboratory to enable robust understanding of the present and future conditions within the coastal zone for coastal hazard analysis, forecasting and response. High-resolution coastal topography and advanced visualization techniques are applied for the investigation and forecasting of coastal inundation impacts, shoreline change analysis, surf zone circulation studies and coastal protection levels.

Recognized as an international leader in shoreline stabilization techniques, the CERL houses the New Jersey Coastal Protection Technical Assistance Service (CPTAS), a unique resource created to both inform and counsel New Jersey citizens and government officials regarding coastal protection technology, and the Stevens-NOAA New Jersey Sea Grant Cooperative Extension in Coastal Processes, formed to improve the public’s literacy in coastal issues through outreach and education.  Both services draw upon the experience and expertise of researchers at the CERL to develop effective coastal hazard mitigation techniques, and education and outreach methods to ensure informed decisions are made by coastal residents, public officials and coastal interest groups for the mitigation of coastal hazards and improvement of coastal community resilience.

Point of Contact: Dr. Thomas O. Herrington (therring@stevens.edu)


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The Maritime Security Laboratory is a uniquely equipped and uniquely located “maritime situation awareness” laboratory with unique expertise, that taken together is a national resource, primarily for the US Navy but also for the domestic security, maritime industry, and natural hazards mitigation communities.  The laboratory provides the critical steps between laboratory proof-of-concept and system deployment through a working laboratory combined with a full scale maritime environment.  Areas of research include: 1) Maritime Force Protection research and technology development, 2) Urban estuary real-time acoustic characteristics, 3) Maritime integrated model-assisted surveillance, 4) Wireless networking and signal processing, 5) Gaming theory applications, 6) Mobile sensor and situational awareness systems, 7) Optimal placement and use of sensors, and 7) Hostile intent decision analysis.
A laboratory infrastructure has been established in the Hudson River, connected to the Stevens campus in Hoboken.  This laboratory infrastructure is being augmented with additional platforms in the water, including unmanned, underwater vehicle’s (UUV’s), and additional on-shore data integration and data distillation capabilities to support a wider range of sensing technologies, sensing systems, and detection-enhancement processes. The Laboratory is designed to enable system-level experiments and data-driven modeling in the complex environment of an urban tidal estuary and is constantly working to address future man-induced and natural threats as they become identified. The Laboratory provides researchers, and others who may wish to use the laboratory, with a flexible real-world testing environment and an infrastructure of in-the-water platforms, communication links, and information integration that are being leveraged to quickly and easily try out new types of sensing technologies and sensing systems.  Information gathered (e.g., hydrophone data, camera and video information, GPS data, environmental data, etc.) is sent to a Visualization and Analysis Center (VAC).  Among other functions, the VAC provides the capability to administer and control experiments, enables the ability to reconfigure experiments in response to the data received, and provides a demonstration capability for key stakeholders and potential customers and users.  More information on the Maritime Security Lab may be found on http://www.stevens.edu/msl

Point of Contact: Capt Thomas Barnes(tbarnes@stevens.edu)


The Instrumentation and Design Group supports the center’s research activities in developing necessary mechanical and electronics equipment. The mechanical shop provides support in equipment fabrication, tow-tank model setup, as well as maintenance and repair facilities for all of the equipment used for laboratory and field studies. The electronics shop provides complete instrumentation support for the full spectrum of the lab's experimental studies; and support for video and still photography systems including high speed underwater photographic systems designed for towing tank studies. The group provides the specialized equipment needed to support research activities by means of a fully equipped machine shop that has design and manufacturing capabilities. 

The Marine Operations Group provides support through the use of the laboratory’s two research vessels, the RV Phoenix, and the RV Savitsky.  The RV Phoenix is a 25-foot outboard, and the RV Savitsky, our newest acquisition, is a 40-foot inboard diesel.  Both vessels are equipped with modern electronics for both navigation and surveying.  Both are also equipped with electric side winches, and the RV Savitsky is outfitted with a 1500-pound capacity hydraulic A-frame winch.  The laboratory is also equipped with a suite of modern instrumentation to measure currents, both locally and remotely, turbidity and suspended particle distribution, as well as salinity, temperature and depth.

The Information Systems Group provides support both for real-world data acquisition and model forecasting, data storage for both, and the generation of high-resolution model and real-time data images for visualization. The computational environment comprises over two dozen computers running on Red Hat & Fedora Linux Operating Systems, ranging from single to 8-core systems. Access is available to supercomputing facilities at DoD HPC centers. Data storage is provided by a series of MySQL relational database servers, with a combined storage capability of over 20 Terabytes of redundant storage. Data security is provided by 6 terabytes of external fire- and water-protected storage. The website provides continuous access to real-time hydrological and meteorological data and 48-hour forecasts, and is utilized by a wide range of private and public sector users. The Center is composed of four integrated laboratory activities and   three support groups.

Point of Contact: Dr. Alan F. Blumberg (ablumberg@stevens.edu)