In July of 1980, the Hawai‘i Undersea Research Laboratory (HURL) was established by a cooperative agreement between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the University of Hawai‘i. HURL is an undersea facility uniquely positioned in the center of the world’s largest ocean and thus poised to study the deepwater marine processes, ecosystems, and resources located on the flan
ks of the thousands of islands and seamounts in the Pacific Ocean. HURL is now a regional center in the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, created by a merger of the National Undersea Research Program (NURP) and Ocean Exploration (OE). The Center supports highly-rated, peer-reviewed proposals to conduct undersea research in offshore and nearshore waters of the main and Northwestern Hawaiian Islands and waters of the central, southwestern, and western Pacific, including the new marine national monuments. In addition, HURL accepts funded requests from private, state, or federal agencies and participates in international collaborative research projects. HURL supports the NOAA national and regional priorities by providing an improved understanding of the Nation’s underwater resources to enable effective ecosystem-based management. Our primary responsibility is to engage academic- and government-based science and technology experts in developing solutions to problems facing the region, NOAA, and the Nation. Projects approved by the Center must further the NOAA mission by addressing specific themes including Extreme and Unique Environments, Ecosystems of Island, Atoll, or Seamount Flanks (including the Extended Continental Shelf), New Resources from the Sea, and Ocean Dynamics Involving Episodic Events to Long Term Changes. jurisdiction that provide data to guide large area ecosystem and resource management plans.
