Ocean & Atmosphere facilities in MS
12 facilities
10-ft and 5-ft Wave Flume Facility
Vicksburg, MS
Two glass-walled wave flumes are used to support research and site-specific studies. The flumes are both 63 m (208 ft) long and 1.5 m (5 ft) deep. One flume is 1.5 m (5 ft) wide while the other is 3 m (10 ft) wide. Both two-dimensional glass-walled flumes are equipped with computer-controlled electro-hydraulic wave generators. The wave generators are capable of creating irregular waves with a maximum wave height of 0.46 m (1.5 ft), and wave periods of 0.75-10.0 secs. A steady flow system is also an integral part of the flumes. The facility includes an automated data acquisition and control system, extensive fluid measurement instruments and a laser profiling system.
18-in and 3-ft Wave Flume Facility
Vicksburg, MS
Specifications: Two glass walled wave flumes are used to support research and site-specific studies. The flumes are both 45 m (148 ft) long and 0.91 m (3 ft) deep. One flume is 0.46 m (18 in) wide while the other is 0.91 m (3 ft) wide. Both two-dimensional glass-walled flumes are equipped with computer-controlled electro-hydraulic wave generators. The wave generators are capable of creating irregular waves with a maximum wave height of 0.23 m (0.75 ft), and wave periods of 0.50-10.0 secs. The facility includes an automated data acquisition and control system.
Coastal Harbors Modeling Facility
Vicksburg, MS
The Coastal Harbors Modeling Facility is used to aid in the planning of harbor development and in the design and layout of breakwaters, absorbers, etc.. The goal is to optimize harbor protection and verify acceptable project performance. Design of small-craft harbors is very difficult due to the complexity of wave interaction with the complicated geometry of most harbors. Additional complications caused by nearby or adjacent rivers, and/or harbor oscillation problems caused by long-period wave energy make analytical methods inadequate for final design. Many small-boat harbor projects can be examined in a thorough and efficient manner using the dedicated small-scale boat harbor physical model.
Coastal Inlet Model Facility
Vicksburg, MS
The Coastal Inlet Model Facility, as part of the Coastal Inlets Research Program (CIRP), is an idealized inlet dedicated to the study of coastal inlets and equipped to represent the most significant physical processes at and around inlets. An inlet is a region connecting two or more large bodies of water by a relatively short and narrow channel. The water bodies may be an ocean and lagoon, a large lake and a bay, or a river entering a sea or lake. Many processes at inlets can be examined in a thorough and efficient manner in a dedicated inlet physical model. A 1:50 undistorted scale was assumed to determine reasonable inlet dimensions, however other scales can easily be assumed to accommodate the study of specific processes because of the simplified bathymetry in the model. The basin at this time contains an inlet with fairly steep beach slopes so that additional features (such as an ebb shoal) can easily be added. Also the bathymetry can be remolded in the inlet entrance area to the more complex bathymetry of an actual inlet, either in fixed-bed (concrete) or movable-bed (sand). Ebb and flood shoal areas can also be modified to represent more complex bathymetries.
ESTEX Facility
Vicksburg, MS
ESTEX has three main components: a 60 ft by 60 ft by 10 ft deep water research facility (DWRF) directly connected to a 420 ft by 60 ft by 4 ft deep research basin (REBA), and a parallel 10 ft wide, 480 ft long flume with depths of 4 ft and 10 ft. A removable partition wall permits formation of an inset flume of any width up to 60 ft and a variable cross-section. It is capable of time-varying unidirectional or reversing flows. Tides and/or currents can be generated separately in the flume as well as in the basin. Pumps installed on two large, fully covered sumps with recirculating arrangement generate flow and tides.
Field Research Facility
Vicksburg, MS
Located on the Atlantic Ocean near the town of Duck, North Carolina, The Field Research Facility (FRF) is an internationally recognized coastal observatory. Instruments at the facility constantly record the changing waves, winds, tides, and currents. Central to the facility is a 560m(1840 ft) long pier and specialized equipment like the CRAB, LARC, and SIS.
Flood Fighting Products Research Facility
Vicksburg, MS
A wave research basin at the ERDC Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory has been modified specifically for testing of temporary, barrier-type, flood fighting products. Modifications to the wave basin were sponsored by GI R&D; through the Technologies and Operational Innovations for Urban Watershed Networks (TOWNS) Program. Modifications include construction of wing walls to which the flood fighting structures will be attached, installation of an 8-ft diameter sump with pumps and flow meters for measuring seepage rates and recirculating water during overtopping tests, and development of a cable towing system for debris impact studies.
L-Shaped Flume Wave Basin and 2-ft Flume Facility
Vicksburg, MS
Specifications: The L-Shaped flume consists of a 76 m (250 ft) long by 15 m (50 ft) wide, 1.8 m (6 ft) deep three-dimensional wave basin with an attached wave flume measuring 61 m (200 ft) long, 0.41 m (2 ft) wide, and 1.8 m (6 ft) deep. For both flumes, irregular waves can be generated by computer-controlled, electro-hydraulic wave generators. The wave generators are capable of creating a maximum wave height of 0.61 m (2 ft) with a 0.91 m (3 ft) stroke, and wave periods 0.50-10.0 secs. The facility includes an automated data acquisition and control system, and features local steady current capabilities. The L-shaped end of the basin contains a shallow-sloping rock absorber to prevent unnatural wave refraction effects in the model, hence the name L-Shaped Flume.
Large-Scale Laboratory Facility For Sediment Transport Research
Vicksburg, MS
Effective design and maintenance of inlet navigation and shore protection projects require accurate estimates of the quantity of sand that moves along the beach. The accuracy of present methods for estimating longshore sand transport (LST) rates is uncertain, but believed to be no better than +/- 30 to 50 percent. As part of a thrust to improve capabilities for predicting LST rates, researchers have developed a mobile-bed Large-scale Sediment Transport Facility (LSTF).
Los Angeles and Long Beach Harbors Model Facility
Vicksburg, MS
The US Army Engineer Research and Development Center constructed a physical model of the Los Angeles-Long Beach (LALB) Harbors complex during the period from July 1972 to July 1973. It is the largest wave action model ever constructed in the United States. The Ports of Los Angeles (POLA) and Long Beach (POLB) have been developing plans for harbor expansion. These plans will be constructed in phases, leading up to a master plan development targeted for the year 2020. The harbors have a history of surge due to long-period waves that create excessive ship motion in certain areas. Consequently, the ports and the Corps plan to ensure optimization of proposed expansions to minimize ship motions in the new basins, as well as preventing adverse effects in existing harbors areas.
Naval Ice Center
Stennis Space Center, MS
The National Ice Center (NIC) is a multi-agency operational center representing the Department of Defense (Navy), the Department of Commerce (NOAA), and the Department of Transportation (Coast Guard). The NIC includes personnel from two departments within NOAA, the National Environmental Satellite Data Information Service (NESDIS) and National Weather Service (NWS). The Navy component within NIC is called the Naval Ice Center (NAVICECEN) and is a fourth echelon command reporting directly to the Naval Oceanographic Office (NAVOCEANO) at the Stennis Space Center, Mississippi. Both NAVICECEN and NAVOCEANO are part of the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command, headquartered at the Stennis Space Center.
Sectional Model Flume Facilities
Vicksburg, MS
Benefits: These flumes are design to allow interchanging of structures to facilitate overlapping studies and the ability to easily revisit older model studies if prototype construction generates additional investigation needs.