Contact: Diane Godwin

STARKVILLE, Mississippi — The Northern Gulf Institute led by Mississippi State University is receiving up to $ 86 million for further strategic research in the Gulf of Mexico.

Funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will support the institute’s operations and research for the next five years. A cooperative institute of NOAA, NGI develops, operates and maintains an increasingly integrated research and transition program, the results of which are increasing awareness and understanding of the Gulf region.

NGI is a consortium of six complementary academic institutions and NOAA, addressing important national strategic research and education goals. In addition to MSU, this collaboration includes the University of Southern Mississippi, Louisiana State University, Florida State University, Alabama’s Dauphin Island Sea Lab, University of Alabama at Huntsville, as well as scientists of NOAA located in various laboratories and operational centers in the Gulf. from the region of Mexico.

“The Northern Gulf Institute is a prime example of the impactful partnerships we have built and continue to build as a university,” said Julie Jordan, MSU’s vice president of research and economic development. “This commitment from NOAA is a testament to the value NGI brings to the Gulf Coast region, and I look forward to seeing the exciting research and outreach programs ahead from Director Robert Moorhead and his team.”

NGI research focuses on the effects of climate change and climate variability on regional ecosystems, coastal risks and ecosystem management, as well as effective and efficient data management systems supporting a data-driven economy.

“NGI has been recognized as essential and well positioned to meet the basic, current and future science and awareness needs of the region,” said Moorhead.

The institute has proven its worth in serving marine residential, professional and scientific communities during disasters in the Gulf of Mexico such as Hurricane Katrina and Deepwater Horizon. Current research includes the impacts of sea level rise on coastal communities, predictions of hypoxia zone (low oxygen levels in the Gulf) and its impact on marine life, and the use of unmanned aerial systems to capture and provide real-time data to assist the National Weather Service includes major weather events to improve warnings and forecasts, among others.

“The NGI consortium’s research creates strong relationships and partnerships with scientific and residential communities that have direct and indirect impacts on environmental and human health, socio-economic outcomes and the need to improve protection of critical infrastructure – things we depend on like water, energy, transportation, wildlife, agriculture and Gulf ecosystems, ”Moorhead said. “The funding also gives our institute a unique opportunity to work with selected research institutes in Mexico to collaborate and focus research on these critical findings that affect our quality of life. “

NGI’s research partners in Mexico have signed a memorandum of understanding that ensures scientists from both countries will continue to work together to provide high-level research to NOAA.

As NGI receives the new $ 86 million NOAA funding over the next five years, it also welcomes Jamie Dyer as an associate director. Dyer will serve on a part-time basis while continuing to be a full-time professor of geosciences at MSU. He joins the NGI management team which includes Co-Director Paul Mickle and Associate Director Just Cebrian, based at the Stennis Space Center on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

For more information on the Northern Gulf Institute and NOAA, visit www.ngi.msstate.edu and www.noaa.gov.

The National Science Foundation ranks the State of Mississippi among the top 100 research institutions in the country and the leading research university in the State of Magnolia. For more information, visit www.msstate.edu.

MSU is Mississippi’s premier university, available online at www.msstate.edu.