BY AMY ROBINSON
CMU's biological research capacity will expand this summer with the acquisition of a new open water research vessel.
The RV Chippewa is the newest tool for CMU researchers who explore the Great Lakes.
The Chippewa is a 32.5 ft. research vessel. It will allow researchers to deploy scientific equipment in the deep water of the Great Lakes. It also has a small laboratory onboard
Don Uzarski is Director of CMU's Biological Station on Beaver Island and Director of the CMU Institute for Great Lakes Research.
He said the Chippewa will provide the last piece in the puzzle for scientists who are trying to link research in the nearshore to that out in the open water of the Great Lakes.
Uzarski said one area of interest will be invasive species.
We currently have over 180 exotic species, and if that's not enough, we get a new one about every eight months. So it's really changing the ecosystem, drastically.
The RV Chippewa cost $300,000. Uzarski said the vessel will be delivered as soon as the weather breaks enough to put it out on the water.