Scientists at the Naval Research Laboratory at Stennis Space Center (NRL-SSC) are supporting Haiti relief operations. The Marine Geosciences Division's Geospatial Sciences and Technology branch is providing a specially configured version of its patented NRL Tile Server and Geospatial Information Database (GIDB) that will host maps, imagery and other geospatial information for dedicated use in Haiti relief missions. This version of the NRL Tile Server and GIDB resides on computer systems at NRL-SSC.
NRL scientists set up this dedicated resource in response to the Haiti earthquake. NRL's substantial computational resources and specially developed techniques for providing rapid, efficient access to geospatial information are required to meet the increased demand prompted by the natural disaster. The resource has been online for more than two weeks, and has supported as many as 10,000 users and 200,000 web page requests per day.
NRL conducts an extensive research program in geospatial sciences and technology that has provided several important tools to the U.S. military. In addition to authoring hundreds of patents and scientific publications, the Geospatial Sciences and Technology branch has developed the technology behind military mapping systems that have provided millions of map images to U.S. Department of Defense uniformed and civilian personnel.