Florida Atlantic University

MEDIA CONTACT: Kristine M. McGrath
561-297-1168, kmcgrath@fau.edu

FAU'S HUMAN POWERED SUBMARINE TEAM GLIDES PAST COMPETITION AT INTERNATIONAL RACES

Team places second, breaks record at contest

BOCA RATON, FL (July 13, 2005) - Florida Atlantic University's Human Powered Submarine Team recently returned from the Eighth International Submarine Races at the Surface Warfare Center in Bethesda, Maryland where it placed second overall and won the title of most efficient team. The team also broke its own fastest time clocking in at 6.1 knots, granting FAU membership in the very exclusive 6+ knot club.

FAU's Human Powered Submarine Team used the 15 year-old F.A.U.-Boat at the competition where each team must develop a one or two-person "wet" submarine, which floods upon submersion. Two-person subs like the F.A.U.-Boat must have one person who provides the propulsion and another person who navigates and steers. Both crew members breathe using self-contained breathing apparatuses (scuba) from the air supply carried aboard.

"The International Submarine Race is a great opportunity for FAU engineering students to put theory into practice," said Travis Steeves, pilot for this year's team. "Having the opportunity to compete and share information with other ocean engineering enthusiasts from around the world is definitely very exciting."

Each sub in the competition is unique, designed from scratch, and relies upon novel techniques for propulsion and guidance. The International Submarine Race's specific goals are:

To inspire students of the various engineering disciplines to delve into broad areas of underwater technology advancement and to provide them an educational experience that translates their theoretical knowledge into reality.
To foster advances in subsea vehicle hydrodynamic, propulsion and life support systems.

The building of human-powered submarines dates back more than 200 years. Contemporary submarines represent many months, if not years, of effort in labs, workshops and garages by engineering students or individual entrepreneurs. The goal is to design an underwater vehicle that can be powered successfully by scuba-clad teams through the course without malfunctioning, crashing into the bottom, popping to the surface or simply failing to move through the water.

This year's event drew competitors from throughout the United States and from as far away as the Netherlands. Participants included universities, corporations, government agencies, individuals and research labs. Various awards were given, including ones for best overall performance, innovation, speed, best use of composite materials and spirit of the race.

Team members include: Cynthia Cleveland, David Darwent, Scott Gibbs, Zach Grabe, Gerry Kaufman, Kenny Patek, Faydra Schaffer, Travis Steeves (team leader/pilot), David VanEpps and David Wilkinson.

In 1989, The International Submarine Races were started by FAU's Department of Ocean Engineering and entrepreneur H. A. "Hap" Perry. The competition was originally held in Florida in the open ocean; however, weather problems moved the races to the indoor basin at the Surface Warfare Center in 1995.

FAU's Department of Ocean Engineering, a unit of the College of Engineering and Computer Sciences, was founded in 1965 as the first ocean engineering undergraduate program in the nation. The department's world-class Institute for Ocean and Systems Engineering, known as SeaTech, is located at FAU's Dania Beach Campus. The Institute focuses on ocean and related engineering education, research, development, testing, implementation and product commercialization.

SeaTech's integrated educational and research capabilities have facilitated the development of research projects in a program consistently ranked among the top internationally.

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