ACADEMIA

Mid-Atlantic Research Infrastructure Alliance Establishes Direct Connection to Meet Big Data Needs of Scientific Researchers

Internet2 and Virginia’s Mid-Atlantic Research Infrastructure Alliance (MARIA) announced today that universities throughout Virginia now have access to two, 5 Gigabit per second (2x5G) direct Internet2 connections that will enhance university-based researchers’ ability to collaborate on “Big Data” scientific research with national and global counterparts. The initiative also aims to optimally deliver support for advanced applications like remote instrumentation, real-time video, next-generation distance learning, voice and other types of collaboration applications for campus users.

The 2x5G connections to the Internet2 Network benefit all MARIA members: The College of William and Mary, George Mason University, James Madison University, Old Dominion University, The University of Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Virginia Commonwealth University. MARIA’s connections will also provide access for Virginia community anchor institutions including K-20 schools, museums, and libraries through the NetworkVirginia Sponsored Educational Group Participant program.

“The creation of the Mid-Atlantic Research Infrastructure Alliance (MARIA) and establishment of MARIA’s direct 2x5G Internet2 connection will be critical to efforts as diverse as UVA Professor Matthew Burtner’s 'Auksalaq: A Telematic Opera,' UVa’s new Center for Chemistry of the Universe, and our participation in important Internet2 NET+ Services,” said Michael R. McPherson, associate vice president and deputy CIO, The University of Virginia.

"MARIA represents the next cycle in the evolution of network infrastructure to enable research and advanced services in Virginia and the region," said Jeff Crowder, a member of the MARIA board and executive director for strategic initiatives, Communications Network Services, at Virginia Tech. "Inevitable technology-based transformations in research and education will require continually improving reliability and performance of services and increasing availability of optical and wireless networks. MARIA will focus on development of research infrastructure in collaboration among our members and with colleagues across the Internet2 community."

Additionally, MARIA in conjunction with the Mid Atlantic Crossroads (MAX) will adopt Internet2 Innovation Platform technologies aiming to create a regional environment for innovation in research and education. The Innovation Platform is a set of disruptive technologies bundled in the Internet2 Network that create the first open, national-scale production test bed of revolutionary software-defined networking (SDN) and OpenFlow standards, combined with the abundant bandwidth of the world’s first transcontinental network deployment of 100G technology.

The Internet2 Network is the national high-performance network connecting America’s colleges and universities to research and education collaborators worldwide. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA) Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) helped fund the network upgrade to 100 Gigabit Ethernet technologies and 8.8 Terabit per second capacity to support emerging bandwidth needs in research and education. The network upgrade also enables advanced networking features for more than 200,000 of the country’s essential community anchor institutions including libraries, hospitals, K-12 schools, community colleges and public safety organizations.

"We are delighted that universities throughout Virginia now have 2x5G direct connections to the upgraded 100G Internet2 Network to support the Innovation Platform participants and expand capabilities for the research and education community," said Rob Vietzke, Internet2 vice president of network services. "The new connections dramatically improve Virginia's ability to collaborate with hundreds of similarly connected advanced research organizations across the globe.”