{"id":166436,"date":"2022-10-04T12:05:34","date_gmt":"2022-10-04T22:05:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=166436"},"modified":"2022-10-04T11:31:15","modified_gmt":"2022-10-04T21:31:15","slug":"new-uh-vessel-imua","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2022\/10\/04\/new-uh-vessel-imua\/","title":{"rendered":"New UH<\/abbr> vessel to expand marine research, conservation efforts"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
\"renderings
Renderings of Imua<\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at Mānoa will welcome a new research vessel Imua<\/em> in fall 2023. The 68-foot semi-displacement aluminum catamaran will be used by a team of 12 researchers at the UH<\/abbr> Mānoa Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Institute of Marine Biology<\/a> (HIMB<\/abbr>), including two Coast Guard-certified captains who will operate the vessel. The All American Marine, which specializes in constructing vessels, was awarded the contract to build Imua<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Imua<\/em> is a part of the $50 million gift from Dr. Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg to HIMB<\/abbr> earlier this year to improve Â鶹´«Ã½\u2019s<\/span> ocean health<\/a>. The knowledge gained from science missions on this vessel will directly support the management and conservation of Â鶹´«Ã½\u2019s<\/span> marine resources.<\/p>\n

The twin-engine speed and fuel-efficiency of the vessel will be fundamental in meeting UH<\/abbr>\u2019s research goals and allowing researchers access to study marine environments in the Hawaiian Islands.<\/p>\n

\"renderings
Renderings of Imua<\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“We will use Imua<\/em> to deepen our understanding of Â鶹´«Ã½\u2019s<\/span> marine ecosystems, inspire and teach the marine scientists of tomorrow, and bring exciting K–12 learning experiences to local communities across the state,” said Chip Fletcher<\/strong>, UH<\/abbr> Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology<\/a> interim dean.<\/p>\n

Imua<\/em> can range from shallow coastal waters out to 150 nautical miles offshore while supporting a science crew of eight for up to a week. The vessel has been custom designed to support a diverse portfolio of science and outreach missions including advanced studies on marine megafauna, pelagic and coastal ecosystem research, oceanographic surveys, and K–12 learning experiences for up to 20 people.<\/p>\n

Expanded research abilities<\/h2>\n

Imua<\/em>\u2019s advanced research capabilities will give researchers important new insights into difficult-to-study wild animals such as sharks and whales, and enable monitoring a broad spectrum of ocean health parameters and exploration of lesser-known habitats such as the bathyal (down to the edge of the continental shelf) and pelagic zones (from the surface to the bottom of the sea).<\/p>\n

“This is an exciting opportunity for UH<\/abbr> and the Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> community because Imua<\/em> represents a substantial increase in our capacity for marine science research, training and outreach,” said Carl Meyer<\/strong>, UH<\/abbr> Mānoa assistant researcher at HIMB<\/abbr>. “For decades we have lacked a UH<\/abbr> vessel that fills the gap between small research vessels and large ocean-going research ships.”<\/p>\n

Imua<\/em> complements and enhances UH<\/abbr>\u2019s current research fleet and greatly enhances access to coastal and pelagic marine habitats around Â鶹´«Ã½.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"diver
(Photo credit: National Geographic<\/em>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The 68-foot semi-displacement aluminum catamaran will be used by a team of 12 researchers at the Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Institute of Marine Biology.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[665,53,1467,262,92,319,9],"class_list":["post-166436","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-research","tag-conservation","tag-hawaii-institute-of-marine-biology","tag-manoa-excellence-in-research","tag-marine-science","tag-school-of-ocean-and-earth-science-and-technology","tag-uh-foundation","tag-uh-manoa","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t