Department Lead |
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Nick Michel-Hart
Principal Engineer |
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Expertise |
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- Scientific and naval instrumentation
- Autonomous undersea vehicles
- Moorings, underwater structures and towers
- Harsh environment packaging (polar, shipboard, and airborne systems)
- Finite element analysis
- Acoustic transducers
- Corrosion and abrasion analysis and control
- Low-power, battery operated, embedded systems
- High-speed data acquisition systems and signal processings
- Custom analog and digital board design, PCB layout
- Complex system design, electro-mechanical systems
- Custom and OEM sensor integration
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- Embedded systems
- Remote/autonomous operation
- TCP/IP instrumentation
- Linux, Windows, and DOS systems
- C++, Visual Basic, Labview, Matlab, and web-based languages
- Deployment, operation, and recovery of equipment at sea and in the Arctic
- Logistics and operations support in the Arctic, at sea, and remote locations
- Diving — open water and under-ice (divers certified by the American Academy of Underwater Sciences and by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration for nitrox mixed gas diving)
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Persistent Environmental Monitoring Near an Operational Wave Energy Converter |
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A New Research Vessel for the APL-UW Fleet |
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Riding Waves to Generate Electricity |
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The first demonstration of oceanographic sensors powered only by wave energy.
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The R/V Russell Davis Light entered service in summer 2018.
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Projects |
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Media Coverage |
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Publications |
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Connecting to the Ocean's Power: Marine Energy Research at APL-UW
Chris Bassett, Brian Polagye
5 July 2023
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Using a Wave Energy Converter for UUV Recharge
Curtis Rusch, Morteza Derakhti, Brian Polagye, Dana Manalang, Jim Thomson
11 April 2022
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MuST Multi-Sensor Towbody
Kevin Williams, Timothy Marston, Tim McGinnis, Ben Brand, Nick Michel-Hart
7 March 2022
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Research buoy gets refresh on Bellingham Bay
Cascadia Daily News
Hailey Hoffman
20 August 2024
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How can we measure gases dissolved in seawater?
futurum
7 March 2023
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Plainsight and MarineSitu Using 'Computer Vision' to Protect Sea Creatures
Forbes
Jeff Kart
28 January 2023
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Ecobuoys for scalable oceanography
Nawaz, A., M. Steele, R. Branch, D. Burnett, K. Liao, M. Parker, and E. Roumeli
1 December 2025
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Lessons learned from the design and operation of a small-scale cross-flow tidal turbine
Bassett, C., P. Gibbs, H. Wood, R.J. Cavagnaro, B. Cunningham, J. Dosher, J. Joslin, and B. Polagye
1 July 2025
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Approaches to attributing underwater noise to a wave energy converter
Polagye, B., A. Hunt, L. Mackey, and C. Bassett
16 May 2025
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