New funding from the state of Florida will fund a week underwater in the Florida Keys for research teams.
Ocean engineering firm Deep has received $935,000 from the state to support research missions on Vanguard, the company’s pilot underwater human habitat at Tennessee Reef in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. The award comes just three weeks after Deep announced Vanguard’s deployment.
The funding will support up to six research teams from Florida universities, colleges and research institutions. Each selected team will complete a five-day mission on Vanguard between November 2026 and June 2027.
The Undersea Human Presence and Technology Advancement Program (UHPTAP) is open to research in two priority areas: reef restoration and environmental monitoring, and human-machine collaboration.
“Florida’s reefs need sustained bottom time to understand what’s happening to them. This funding gives Florida researchers access to Vanguard, so they can live and work at depth for days at a time,” said Dawn Kernagis, director of scientific research at Deep. “That’s the difference between observing a reef for an hour and actually being part of it. This program opens Vanguard to researchers who wouldn’t otherwise have access to a saturation habitat. Six teams, two research areas, real time at depth. That’s a meaningful expansion of what’s possible for Florida science.”
Eligible applicants must satisfy the following criteria:
- The program is open to public and private universities, colleges and accredited research institutions in Florida.
- The lead applicant must be a Florida institution, with multi-institution teams also eligible to apply.
- Personnel participating in in-water or habitat operations must meet Deep’s relevant dive, medical and safety requirements.
Applications are now open, with proposals due by Sept. 1.
Full eligibility requirements, priority areas, and submission instructions are available at deep.com/uhptap
