OIL & GAS

TEWKSBURY, Mass. -- Raytheon Company's Integrated Defense Systems has partnered with the University of Massachusetts, in Amherst, and other industry partners in the awarding of a National Science Foundation grant for the creation of a new Engineering Research Center (ERC) for Collaborative Adaptive Sensing of the Atmosphere (CASA). The grant for approximately $40 million is a first for the UMASS ERC and continues the long history of collaboration between Raytheon and UMASS-Amherst. "Support of academic excellence, particularly in math and science, are tenets of Raytheon's cultural and community goals," said Mark Russell, vice president of Engineering at Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems. "As a UMASS- Amherst engineering graduate of the Raytheon Advance Study Microwave Program, I am extremely proud of the expertise and dedication found at the university and look forward to strengthening Raytheon's commitments both in Amherst and with the Massachusetts school system." CASA's goal is to focus on revolutionary sensing technology that will enable earlier and more accurate forecasts of severe weather emergencies. Utilizing the radar design and technology expertise of this team, an intelligent network of mobile, low-power, low-cost sensors that will provide collaborative sensing of atmospheric conditions on the earth's surface. This new network of sensors is expected to increase the warning time for tornadoes, flash floods and other severe weather disturbances. UMASS-Amherst will lead the multidisciplinary team that includes the University of Oklahoma; Colorado State University; and the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez. Along with Raytheon, CASA's industry partners include IBM, M/A-COM, Vaisala, Vieux and Associates, Telephonics, and The Weather Channel. Government partners include NOAA's National Severe Storms Laboratory, the National Weather Service and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. This teaming continues a long history of partnering between Raytheon and the University of Massachusetts system, which includes an engineering program in Microwave Engineering that has provided a challenging and intensive graduate level program since 1980 at the University's Amherst campus. This program offers highly motivated, academically qualified Raytheon engineers the opportunity to expand their knowledge of microwave technology solid-state electronics and earn a Master of Science degree in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. The program has grown over the years to include systems engineering, computer engineering and communication systems disciplines.