WASHINGTON, DC U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) today announced that Rhode Island has taken an important step toward home-porting the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations (NOAA) first ship of exploration, Okeanos Explorer, at Quonset Point/Davisville near the University of Rhode Island (URI). Construction of the ship is anticipated to be completed in spring of 2008 and NOAA is expected to complete a pro forma environmental review of the Quonset Point/Davisville site by this spring. In 2005, Reed, working with Senators Daniel Inouye (D-HI) and Chris Dodd (D-CT), secured $18 million for NOAA to convert a former Navy vessel, the USNS Capable, into the Okeanos Explorer. This federal funding also provided command and control equipment for URIs Inner Space Center. The Okeanos will be used by leading researchers and scientists, including Dr. Robert Ballard, an oceanography professor at URIs Graduate School of Oceanography I am pleased that NOAA intends to homeport the Okeanos Explorer in our state, said Reed, a member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies. This new vessel, the first of its kind for NOAA, will provide us with fascinating new information about our oceans and help keep Rhode Island on the cutting edge of ocean exploration and research. Home-porting Okeanos in Rhode Island could have a profound impact on the future of oceanography and a positive economic impact on our state. In November of 2005, Reed sent letters to retired Navy Vice Admiral Conrad C. Lautenbacher Jr., Ph.D., under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator, and to Rear Admiral Samuel P. De Bow Jr., director of the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps and NOAAs Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, which manages the NOAA fleet, requesting that they support the home-porting of the Okeanos Explorer in Rhode Island. In addition to Senator Reed, Rhode Island Governor Donald Carcieri sent letters of support to NOAA requesting that it consider Rhode Island as the homeport for the Okeanos. Im very pleased that NOAA has agreed to seriously consider basing the Okeanos Explorer in the Ocean State, Rhode Island Governor Donald L. Carcieri said. I have long argued that Rhode Island can and should be one of America's leading centers of oceanic research. To further that goal, I worked with Senator Reed and Admiral Lautenbacher to bring the Okeanos Explorer to Rhode Island. Doing so will enable our state to build on the research capacity weve already developed at URI, while also exploiting the potential of Quonset Point/Davisville as a launching point for exploring the ocean's untapped and largely unknown resources. I especially want to thank Senator Reed for all his help in making this news possible. Reed also cited the important work of Dr. Robert Ballard, noting: Dr. Ballards work has been essential to helping us gain a greater understanding of what lies underneath the surface of our oceans and seas. Allowing the Okeanos to join the Endeavor in the Ocean State will give Rhode Island-based researchers a powerful one-two punch, concluded Reed. The Okeanos is expected to spend 250 days each year exploring oceans throughout the world.