THE WOODS HOLE OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTION IS KNOWN TO THE WORLD AS HOME BASE FOR "ALVIN", THE DEEP SUBMERGENCE VEHICLE USED TO EXPLORE THE "TITANIC" AT THE BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN FLOOR. WE HAVE BEEN FORTUNATE TO PURCHASE A SMALL NUMBER OF THESE RARE BRASS MEDALLION KEY CHAINS MINTED IN 1980 TO CELEBRATE THE 50th ANNIVERSARY OF THIS FAMOUS RESEARCH FACILITY IN MASSACHUSETTS. THEY WERE CAREFULLY STORED AWAY OVER 40 YEARS AGO. ONE DOUBLE-SIDED MEDALLION KEY CHAIN AND STORAGE CASE.

THIS BEAUTIFUL EMBOSSED, DOUBLE-SIDED BRASS MEDALLION MEASURES 1 1/2 INCHES IN DIAMETER. THE FRONT IS INSCRIBED "WOODS HOLE OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTION, 1930-1980" AND DEPICTS WHOI's ORIGINAL KETCH-RIGGED "ATLANTIS" SAILING SHIP, AND THE MORE MODERN "ATLANTIS 2." THE REVERSE SIDE SHOWS THE ENTRANCE TO THE BIGELOW LABORATORY.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: WHOI is A PRIVATE NON-PROFIT RESEARCH FACILITY dedicated to the study of marine science and to the education of marine scientists. It is the largest independent oceanographic institution in the world. WHOI is dedicated to research and higher education at the frontiers of ocean science. Its primary mission is to develop and effectively communicate a fundamental understanding of the processes and characteristics governing how the oceans function and how they interact with Earth as a whole. WHOI operates the US Navy-owned Deep Submergence Vehicle (DSV) Alvin as a national oceanographic facility. A typical eight-hour dive takes two scientists and a pilot as deep as 4,500 meters (14,764 feet). When working at maximum depth, it takes about two hours for the sub to reach the seafloor and another two to return to the surface. Typically, three video and two 800-frame, 35-mm cameras are mounted on Alvin's exterior for either automatic or selective operation. Because there is no light in the deep sea, the sub carries 12 lights to illuminate the bottom. Two hydraulic, robotic arms manipulate sampling and experimental gear specially designed to work with their �hands.� Alvin has made more than 3,500 dives for a wide variety of scientific endeavors. The sub's most famous exploits include locating a hydrogen bomb accidentally dropped into the Mediterranean Sea in 1966 (two years after the sub's delivery to Woods Hole), exploring deep-sea hydrothermal vents discovered some two decades ago, and surveying the sunken ocean liner Titanic. Located in the village of Woods Hole, Massachusetts, and on the nearby Quissett campus, WHOI�s shore-based facilities encompass 219 acres of land and waterfront and 58 buildings and laboratories. Paid staff members number about 650, with more than half of them involved directly in scientific research. The Institution�s higher education programs enroll about 130 students in graduate-level studies and about 35 in summer fellowships. The land-based facilities of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution present only part of the picture. The premier feature of the Institution is its research vessels -- truly, floating laboratories -- which define the oceanographic endeavor, allowing scientists access to the seas. WHOI�s ships carry investigators across the globe for diverse studies that range from tracking large and small currents and investigating coastal pollution to studying Earth�s crust beneath the seafloor and examining marine animals from whales to microbes. The largest independent, not-for-profit, oceanographic research institution in the U.S., WHOI is a unique collection of individuals working in a number of disciplines toward one primary goal: world leadership in advancing and communicating a basic understanding of the oceans and their decisive role in addressing global questions.

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