MTS/IEEE Oceans 2006 Features Revolutionizing Marine Technology

Oceans'06 will be organized in Boston (MA, USA) from 18 September to 21 September 2006. The organisation expects to attract 2500 visitors for the keynote sessions, workshops and exhibitions. All contributions feature marine technology developments, as the theme of the conference will be Revolutionizing Marine Technology.



The week of Oceans'06 Boston kicks-off on Monday 18 September with a lineup of tutorials and workshops during the day and concludes with advance registration and a welcome reception in the evening.



Tuesday 19 September marks the official commencement of the Technical Program and opening of the Exhibition Hall. The Tuesday morning plenary session focuses on Ocean Observing Systems, featuring Dr. Margaret Leinen, the Assistant Director for Geosciences at the National Science Foundation, Dr. Richard Spinrad, the Assistant Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and Dr. Jose Achache, the Group on Earth Observations GEO Secretariat Director.



Wednesday's plenary will focus on the theme of Oceans'06. A great deal of technical innovation has sprung forth from the mission-driven challenges of developing and deploying advanced technologies in the world's oceans.

Wednesday evening will feature the Oceans gala which will be held at the Boston Museum of Science. The entire Blue Wing of the museum is reserved for our use as well as the "Theatre of Electricity". The Canadian partners will be providing the pre-gala reception at the Museum.



On Thursday 21 September, the final official day of technical sessions and exhibition, a brown bag lunch and tour of the exhibit hall will attract secondary school students and educators, offering them an opportunity to be introduced to marine technology in a hands-on manner.



The technical program will have a very strong representation in a number of hot topic areas, foremost among those being Coastal and Ocean Observatories. Sonar signal processing will also be prominently featured, particularly in the areas of Synthetic Aperture Sonar, Vector Sensor Array Processing, and Acoustic Communications. Additional areas expected to be well represented will include Oceanographic Instrumentation, Gliders and AUV applications, Aquaculture Engineering, and Current Measurement and HF Radar.



Exhibits Chairman, Mike Stewart, of MJ Stewart Associates, reports: "The exhibit area is filling up and currently we have 72 companies and organizations that have reserved 114 booths. We expect to end up with 175 to 200 booths by showtime. There are several larger pavilions that will be representing NOAA, Hawaii Ocean Science & Technology, Government of Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador."



To shine a light on all the students in the greater Boston area, we will have an enlarged student poster area. Hundreds of students are expected to visit Oceans 2006 in search of career opportunities. Adjacent to the poster sessions will be displays of unmanned AUVs and ROVs developed by students. Education and research institutions will be represented in the exhibit hall and two daily sponsored coffee breaks in the exhibit area will bring welcome 'traffic' to the exhibit hall. On Tuesday evening, there will be a wonderful reception held in the exhibit hall towards the end of the day.



This year, the Exhibitor Product Showcase that attracted standing room only audiences at Oceans 2000 in Providence has returned. All exhibitors are invited to submit abstracts and then full papers to the Exhibitors Showcase track. Exhibitors will be provided with a scheduled time to give talks or demonstrations on their new technology, applications, or programs.



Oceans'06 is shaping up this year to have a large connection with the Canadian Marine Technology industry, in advance of next year's Oceans'07 in Vancouver, and '08 in Quebec City. The Canadian Consulate in Boston has signed on as a major sponsor of the conference. They will have a 10 booth pavilion and are heavily marketing Canadian companies to show their products and services at the Exhibition, taking advantage of booth discounts negotiated as part of their sponsorship agreement. They are confident of attracting 25 Canadian companies to the show. In addition, the Government of Newfoundland will have a 9 booth pavilion and is expecting 5 to 10 companies from their Province to come. Finally, the Government of Quebec is developing a marine technology cluster located around Remouski on the Saint Lawrence River, and has made inquiries about booth space and discounts.