Marine scientiests gather in Biloxi

BILOXI, Miss. - Marine scientists and researchers are meeting in Biloxi this week for the Oceans '09 conference at the coliseum convention center. They're sharing information about ongoing projects and networking with colleagues. South Mississippi has a lot of activity in marine science issues, including the work at Stennis Space Center and the Gulf Coast Research Lab. (Source: WLOX-TV, 10/27/09)

Asian tiger shrimp reported in coastal waters

OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. - Scientists at The University of Southern Mississippi’s Gulf Coast Research Laboratory are keeping watch for Asian tiger shrimp in coastal waters and are asking local shrimpers to do the same. Within the last month, several have been caught in local waters. The potentially invasive, large shrimp are aggressive toward other shrimp. “These shrimp are in competition for resources needed by our native species and they also carry diseases that can affect both shrimp and crabs,” said Harriet Perry, director of the Center for Fisheries Research and Development at GCRL. “We’ve been aware for some time that these shrimp have been periodically taken in trawls in waters of the northern Gulf of Mexico, but these are the first specimens captured in Mississippi waters,” Perry said. The primary concern is the potential transfer of viral diseases to native shrimp. (Source: USM, 10/22/09)

USM program gets donation

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. - The Department of Marine Science at The University of Southern Mississippi received a donation of Fledermaus 3D visualization and software licenses from Interactive Visualization Systems for a third consecutive year. The licenses, nearly a $200,000 value, are to be used by the university’s hydrographic science graduate degree program, one of a select group of internationally recognized accredited hydrographic training programs. (Source: USM, 10/21/09)

GCRL site for ocean policy task force

OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. - The Gulf Coast Research Laboratory will serve as one of four satellite access sites for a video conference by a federal task force charged with helping recommend a national policy on oceans, coasts and Great Lakes issues. The meeting of the Gulf Coast Regional Ocean Policy Task Force is Monday from 3:30 to 7 p.m., and will be broadcast live from the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas in New Orleans. Other satellite locations are at Dauphin Island, Ala.; Corpus Christi, Texas; and St. Petersburg, Fla. The group will hold six meetings across the United States before drafting an ocean policy plan by December. An interim report last month noted the need to address issues such as overfishing, wetlands loss and nutrient pollution in rivers that leads to problems such as the Gulf of Mexico's perennial "dead zone." (Sources: Mississippi Press, 10/18/09; New Orleans Times-Picayune, 10/16/09)

White to head oceanography command

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead announced Friday that Rear Adm. (lower half) Jonathan W. White will be assigned as commander of the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command at John C. Stennis Space Center, Miss. White is currently serving as chief of staff of the command. (Source: DefenseLink, 10/16/09) Note: NASA's Stennis Space Center is best known for testing the space agency's rockets, but the Navy is the single largest tenant at the center in South Mississippi. In addition to the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command, it's also home to the Naval Oceanographic Office, a Naval Research Laboratory detachment and special warfare operations.