Hatfield Marine Science Center

Hatfield Marine Science Center
Campus on Yaquina Bay
Name origin: Mark Hatfield, a former U.S. Senator
Country United States
State Oregon
County Lincoln County
Municipality Newport
Elevation 16 ft (5 m) [1]
Coordinates 44°37′09″N 124°02′44″W / 44.61917°N 124.04556°W / 44.61917; -124.04556Coordinates: 44°37′09″N 124°02′44″W / 44.61917°N 124.04556°W / 44.61917; -124.04556 [1]
Founded 1965
Area 49 acres (20 ha)
Location of Marine Center in Oregon
Website: Hatfield Marine Science Center

Hatfield Marine Science Center (HMSC) is a marine science research and education center next to Yaquina Bay of the Pacific Ocean in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is operated by Oregon State University (OSU) in cooperation with five state and federal agencies co-located on site. Named after Mark Hatfield, a former U.S. Senator from Oregon,[2] the HMSC occupies a 49-acre (20 ha) site in Newport.[3]

Visitor Center

Opened in 1965, the Hatfield Marine Science Visitor Center is the public education wing of the HMSC. The visitor center's exhibits focus on marine species, marine research, and the coastal environment.[4] Live marine animals on display include a Giant Pacific Octopus.[5] Other exhibits focus on weather, tsunami, commercial fishing, ocean resource management, microscopic sea life, and tide-pool creatures and habitats.[5] The visitor center offers public programs and tours and is open year-round.[6] Admission is by donation.[6]

Employees

More than 300 people work at the HMSC, including OSU faculty, graduate students, researchers, and staff from agencies including Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, US Fish and Wildlife Service, US Environmental Protection Agency, US Department of Agriculture, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).[7] NOAA employees at the HMSC are affiliated with the Alaska Fisheries Science Center,[8] Northwest Fisheries Science Center, or the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, all of which are headquartered in Seattle, Washington, though NOAA itself is now located in Newport. The HMSC (and the Seafood Research & Education Center in Astoria) are home to the Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station (COMES),[9] the largest of 12 branch agricultural research stations in Oregon.

The OSU College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences operates the Research Vessel Wecoma which has its home port adjacent to the center.[10] The college also operates the Research Vessel Elakha (Sea Otter) out of Newport.[11]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Hatfield Marine Science Center, Oregon State University". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. May 22, 1986. Retrieved January 3, 2011.
  2. ↑ "A Message from Senator Hatfield". Friends of the Hatfield Marine Sciences Center, Oregon State University. 2003–04. Retrieved January 5, 2011. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ↑ "Hatfield Marine Science Center: Strategic Plan" (PDF). Oregon State University. December 2006. p. 4. Retrieved January 3, 2011.
  4. ↑ "Hatfield Marine Science Center Visitor Center: About Us". Oregon State University. Retrieved January 3, 2011.
  5. 1 2 "Exhibits and Events". Oregon State University. 2011. Retrieved January 4, 2011.
  6. 1 2 "Visit". Oregon State University. 2011. Retrieved January 4, 2011.
  7. ↑ Killen, John (September 5, 2009). "Woods Hole of the West? That's what Newport hopes to become". Oregon Live LLC. Retrieved January 4, 2011.
  8. ↑ "Alaska Fisheries Science Center: Fisheries Behavioral Ecology Program". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 27, 2009. Retrieved January 3, 2011.
  9. ↑ "Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station (COMES)". Oregon State University. 2005. Retrieved May 2, 2008.
  10. ↑ "R/V Wecoma". Oregon State University. Retrieved January 4, 2011.
  11. ↑ "R/V Elakha". Oregon State University. Retrieved January 4, 2011.
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