Project ABLE

Project ABLE (Align, Build, Leverage and Expand) is a new 2-year, $1.3 million project funded through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and housed in the College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment (CEOE) in coordination with Delaware State University and the UD Center for Autonomous and Robotic Systems. The effort is the result of congressionally directed spending supported by Delaware’s federal delegation, Sen. Chris Coons, Sen. Tom Carper, and Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester.

Vision Statement: To make Delaware a leading national center in the application and development of autonomous systems in support of advancing the Blue Economy

Project ABLE will ignite the advancement of a BlueTech center of excellence in Sussex County, Delaware and advance the use and development of robotic systems to support offshore environmental research and monitoring particularly in support of offshore wind development and related activities.

Mission Statement: Create new jobs and increase our knowledge and stewardship of the coastal environment through the use and development of advanced autonomous systems and sensors. To train the next generation of BlueTech Innovators.

Our Goal

Our goal is to initiate a new Blue Economy Tech Center developing workforce and career training and testing new sensors and behaviors of marine robotics (surface, aerial, and subsurface) to catalyze public-private research and entrepreneurial activities directed across the sectors of environmental monitoring, defense, and energy applications.

Project ABLE Aims

1. Automated Vessels for Offshore Surveys

2. Acoustic Mapping and Machine Learning for UXO and object detection

3. Marine Habitat Mapping and Morphodynamics

4. Educational Outreach and Professional Training Opportunities

Lewes is within a two-hour drive of Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C., and its harbor is within 100 miles of four existing major offshore wind leases, with access to projects throughout the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.