Network communications experts at UC Santa Cruz are providing a crucial link in an ambitious project to bring live video from the National Marine Sanctuaries to people at sites across the country.

The first step in this project involves an interactive theater at the Mystic Aquarium in Mystic, Connecticut, with a live link to a set of cameras and a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.

The project is led by Robert Ballard, founder and head of the Institute for Exploration at Mystic Aquarium.

With support from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which oversees the sanctuaries, Ballard's team is developing an interactive exploration exhibit for the general public, called the Immersion Institute, which will also serve as the basis for an educational curriculum for use in schools.

In the initial phase, launched in June, visitors to the Mystic Aquarium are able to explore Monterey Bay's kelp forests from a high-tech theater, using interactive consoles to drive an ROV outfitted with live video cameras.

"Nearly 10 years ago, I envisioned creating an opportunity for people to go on their own explorations using the same tools that we use for deep-sea expeditions," said Ballard, a marine scientist and deep-ocean explorer best known for finding the wreck of the Titanic. "By wiring these National Marine Sanctuaries we can now bring the wonders of the sanctuaries to people who would otherwise never have an opportunity to witness them."

The network capacity required for the system to work in a real-time, interactive mode, however, is far beyond what is currently available on the commercial Internet. That's where UCSC came in. Ballard invited the campus's Institute of Marine Sciences to participate in the project by helping to establish a connection to the Internet-2 Abilene research network. Technical staff with UCSC's Communications and Technology Services (CATS) also set up a high-capacity microwave link from a site on Monterey's Cannery Row to the UCSC campus.

"This is an exemplary application for Internet-2, because it is serving an educational purpose and it's just the kind of advanced application that the Internet-2 project is intended to support," said Jim Warner, a network engineer with CATS who led the effort at UCSC.

Scientists, teachers and students at more than 200 Internet-2 member universities and research centers, including UCSC, currently use the Abilene network to support advanced applications, such as high-quality video multicasting, remote control of scientific instruments, and immersive virtual reality. John Corallo, technology director at the Institute for Exploration, said earlier tests using other networking options gave poor results.

"Without Internet-2, there's no way we would be able to do this," Corallo said. "We now have four video streams coming in simultaneously, and the quality is beautiful."

The ROV has three underwater video cameras on it and roams around in the kelp forest off Cannery Row at a depth of about 50 feet. It is tethered to the shore via 1500 feet of cable that lead to the offices of the Sea Studios Foundation on Cannery Row. There is also an above-water camera on the Sea Studios building pointed at a jetty frequented by seals, sea lions, and sea birds.

The closest connection to Internet-2 is at UCSC, so data are transmitted between Cannery Row and UCSC via microwaves. Contractor Total RF of Pennsylvania mounted a radio and antenna on the roof of the Sea Studios building and aimed it at another radio and antenna set on UCSC's Oakes Learning Center, 27 miles away. The microwave dishes are 4 feet in diameter and project a narrow beam that transmits data at 45 megabits per second.

Warner worked with the contractors and a team of UCSC technical staff to complete the work in about one week and meet the project's deadline. The facility at Mystic Aquarium will serve as the initial presentation site and eventually as a distribution center for the program, Ballard said. The next installation is planned for the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary.

"Once perfected, our plan is to make the program available to other interested educational institutions, as well as to interested scientists who want to take advantage of this high-bandwidth link that will operate on a 24-hour basis," Ballard said.

Gary Griggs, director of UCSC's Insitute of Marine Sciences and campus sponsor for the project, said UCSC's connection to Ballard's project raises exciting possibilities. For example, the video feeds might eventually be displayed to the public at the campus's Seymour Marine Discovery Center. UCSC researchers might also find ways to make use of the ROV. In addition, Ballard has expressed interest in visiting the campus to give a talk.

"Our connection to his program is an important link to the larger world of ocean exploration. It's all part of understanding the ocean better and getting people excited about it," Griggs said.