July 14, 2005
Thursday

NOAA Fisheries Service is inviting people to watch construction of the new Ted Stevens Marine Research Institute at Lena Point in Juneau, Alaska through a web cam.

"If you pull up www.fakr.noaa.gov/lena/ on the internet, you will be able to view the on-going construction. The camera takes a low-resolution snapshot every second or so," said Ron Berg, Acting Administrator for the Alaska Region of NOAA Fisheries.

"The web cam has a 14 mile zoom. It can pan 360 degrees and tilt 180 degrees," said NOAA Fisheries computer expert Will Jones, who coordinated the various contractors who put together the web cam at the site. The camera is mounted on top of a 30 foot pole, with a complete view of the construction site. The unit is designed to withstand severe weather, including 110 mile per hour winds.

Staff at NOAA Fisheries' Regional Office in Juneau control the camera, which stands on a bluff overlooking NOAA's Lena Point construction site.

Scientists and staff will occupy 85 offices and 14 laboratories in the new Ted Stevens Marine Research Institute. The facility will contain 69,000 square foot of floor space configured in two stories with a partial basement. Livingston Slone, Inc. of Anchorage designed the $51 million dollar building which is being built by the Northwest Office of J.E. Dunn Construction.

Officials estimate that people will occupy the new building by February, 2007. At that time, the web-cam will be converted from a tool monitoring construction to a security camera, part of the facility's overall security system.

Leaders of the University of Alaska Fairbanks also plan to build a marine research facility at Lena Point, co-locating with the NOAA Fisheries Service facility. All site work and planning accommodate that plan.

Source:

NOAA
http://www.noaa.gov

 

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