Mariner Skills Simulator unveiled at North Carolina State University

RALEIGH, N. C. -- (NNS) -- The Navy's newest advanced Mariner Skills Simulator (MSS) was officially unveiled to the public April 3 with the Midshipmen of North Carolina State University Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps at the helm.

The event was part of N.C. State's dedication to the new Hunt Library on the Centennial Campus here.

Among those in attendance were former North Carolina Governor, James B. Hunt Jr. (for whom the building was named), the University Chancellor, Dr. Randy Woodson, and a host of donors whose generous contributions helped make the venue a reality. Now known as a flagship building of innovation and technology, Hunt Library was made available for tours to various VIPs, students, faculty, media, and the general public.

The new library houses the state-of-the-art MSS in its Creativity Studio. The MSS technology, in its basic form, is a program that enhances training in the areas of maritime navigation, ship handling, and Naval operations. During the dedication ceremony, guests had the opportunity to observe N. C. State midshipmen navigating a simulated guide-missile destroyer past Navy Submarine Base Point Loma, Calif., and into San Diego Bay.

"While this is certainly a valuable tool for Midshipmen, N.C. State was able to create an MSS lab that goes well beyond the functions of the basic product. Thanks to the opportunity the Hunt Library provided and the overwhelming support from the university, this particular MSS package has been turned into a full mission bridge simulator, second only to those located in major fleet concentration areas," said Capt. Doug Wright, commanding officer of the North Carolina Piedmont Region consortium that includes Duke University, University of North Carolina as well as N. C. State.

During the grand opening event, several midshipmen from the N.C. State NROTC unit had the opportunity to try out the MSS for the first time. The room is configured to replicate the bridge of an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, and the floor-to-ceiling 180-degree panoramic display screen helps set the scene for an inbound transit through San Diego Bay.

Midshipman 2nd Class Margaret Gresham applied theory from a recent naval science class by operating the radar and electronic navigation consoles.

"Standing here, fully immersed in the environment, makes me feel more comfortable in the bridge-like setting, and it makes me more confident as a future leader knowing that I have these tangible tools at my disposal," said Gresham, 20, from Wilmington, N. C.

Midshipman 2nd Class Christopher Robey, 21, from Leonardtown, Md., took a turn at driving the ship as the conning officer and learned how to use the visual range and other navigational aids to maintain track. By simultaneously receiving course recommendations, managing contacts, and giving commands to the helm, he got a real taste for standing a bridge watch underway.

"This simulator is an extremely dynamic learning tool that extends the concepts we learn in the classroom in a way that not only tests our knowledge, but also develops the critical decision-making skills not provided by a textbook," said Robey.

Lt. Brian Lin, a Naval Science Instructor currently assigned to the NROTC unit at N.C. State, was the liaison between the NSTC technical advisors and the University library staff to make the MSS fully operational.

"The MSS at Hunt Library will now enable our midshipmen to train with the same tools they will be using in the Fleet," said Lin. "We want our midshipmen to be prepared to immediately function in the shipboard environment once they receive their commission. This valuable training will help meet that goal."

According to Wright, fostering mutually beneficial relationships with each host university, since reporting as the Professor of Naval Science in 2010, is very important.

"The Maritime Skills Simulator project at the new James Hunt Library at N.C. State is a great example of our Navy working in partnership with the university and will provide a tremendous improvement in our ability to develop effective Naval Officers," said Wright. "We are very excited to work with each university to further transform our leadership development and technical proficiency efforts in educating future officers. The command intends to capitalize on this unique training opportunity for our 200 midshipmen and officer candidates for years to come."

Naval Service Training Command (NSTC), which oversees more than 160 NROTC units across the country, has been implementing MSS labs at many universities that have NROTC units based on availability, funding, and partnerships with host universities. The standard set-up includes a set of individual workstations, comprised of two monitors each, arranged in a classroom to provide students hands-on practice. The simulator at N.C. State also includes a 180-degree screen that shows animated video of various harbors around the world.

Headquartered in Building 1, the historic clock tower building on Naval Station Great Lakes, Ill., NSTC oversees 98 percent of initial officer and enlisted accessions training for the Navy. NSTC includes NROTC at more than 160 colleges and universities, Officer Training Command (OTC) on Naval Station Newport, R.I., Recruit Training Command (RTC), the Navy's only boot camp, at Great Lakes, Ill., and Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (NJROTC) and Navy National Defense Cadet Corps (NNDCC) citizenship development programs at more than 600 high schools worldwide.

The NROTC program was established to develop midshipmen mentally, morally and physically and to imbue them with the highest ideals of duty, and loyalty, and with the core values of honor, courage and commitment in order to commission college graduates as Naval officers who possess a basic professional background, are motivated toward careers in the Naval service, and have a potential for future development in mind and character so as to assume the highest responsibilities of command, citizenship and government.

For more information about NROTC, visit https://www.nrotc.navy.mil/. For more information about NSTC, visit http://www1.netc.navy.mil/nstc/ or visit the NSTC Facebook pages at https://www.facebook.com/NavalServiceTraining/.