Expedition Support from
the Inner Space Center
To inspire the next generation of explorers, the
Inner Space Center facilitates access to ocean explo-
ration and research by pushing the boundaries of
telepresence technology.
More than 30 years ago, Robert Ballard first proposed
using satellites and high-bandwidth network connec-
tivity to transmit data and imagery from the bottom of
the ocean to shore in real time. The central hub for this
technology, the Inner Space Center (ISC), was developed
at the University of Rhode Island (URI) Graduate School
of Oceanography (GSO) to connect ships at sea with a
growing shore-based network. Partnerships with NOAA’s
Office of Ocean Exploration and Research and the Ocean
Exploration Trust have enabled the Inner Space Center to
operate as a robust, reliable, and versatile facility that can
quickly adapt to support rapidly changing operational
requirements. Today, based on nearly 15 years of collab-
orative efforts, OER, OET, URI, and other partners are able
to apply “telepresence” technology to ocean exploration
and educational endeavors routinely and globally today.
This capability effectively erases geographic and physical
boundaries and removes limitations on expertise at sea as
well as on the available workforce.
Since 2009, the ISC has been steadily facilitating the
telepresence-based operations aboard E/V Nautilus and
NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer. Live streaming video and
audio from both of these ships are fully integrated into
their operating models and are critical to their missions.
Both programs rely on a cohort of shoreside scientists to
assist in directing shipboard operations and sampling as
well as in connecting to classrooms and other learning
institutions for outreach during the expeditions. In addition
to the two main ships, the ISC supports diverse expeditions
aboard a variety of vessels, including those in the US aca-
demic research fleet and other ships of opportunity. The
ISC’s talented staff, including scientists, engineers, video
producers, and students, collaborate closely with partners
to develop innovative approaches to content delivery that
use advances in satellite communications, networking,
video broadcast, and streaming technologies.
The ISC was live streaming video well before many of
the popular Internet technologies available today. As
smartphones, multitouch screens, advanced high-speed
publicly accessible networks, and widespread streaming
on the commodity Internet become commonplace, the ISC
works hard to innovate faster in order to keep pace in this
rapidly evolving environment.
In the early days of telepresence-enabled ocean explo-
ration, from about 2004 to 2008, the prototype ISC and
its partners developed expensive technical solutions for
video/audio/data transmissions from ships, primarily mod-
ified from the professional broadcast industry. Off-the-
shelf, or “prosumer” grade, electronics did not exist, and
high-quality video streaming on the Internet was nascent
at best. These expeditions relied on Internet2, available pri-
marily at universities and other research-based institutions,
high-end encoders/decoders, and broadcast-quality inter-
com systems to interact with ships from shore at specially
designed Exploration Command Centers.
Collaboration is Key By Colleen Peters, Dwight F. Coleman, and Catalina Martinez
URI student and ISC Intern, Benjamin Hooks, monitors
a NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer dive in Mission Control
while a live interaction takes place with a high school
in Rhode Island. Image credit: Michael Salerno/URI