Fathom Science’s Metocean Forecasting Technology Wades Into Uncharted Territory
Since receiving support from the Chancellor’s Innovation Fund in 2018, professor Roy He’s startup company — Fathom Science — has worked with clients across both the public and private sectors to deliver customized data analytics solutions.
When a storm’s coming, you want to know as soon as possible — especially at sea. Whether it’s a hurricane or an ocean “tornado” headed your way, extra time to prepare can make a world of difference.
Ruoying (“Roy”) He has devoted the better part of his last two decades to physical oceanography research that could, among other things, make it possible to accurately predict as far as three months out when ocean eddies — which He colloquially calls “ocean tornadoes” — will form.
“This has never been routinely done before,” says He, a Goodnight Innovation Distinguished Professor in NC State University’s Department of Marine, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences. “We are hoping our technology will enable that.”
He’s startup company, Fathom Science, has been asked by a leader in the oil-and-gas industry to predict the patterns of ocean eddies, circular currents of water which can wreak havoc on offshore drilling operations.
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