Update 09/30/2022:

Thank you to all who reached out with words of support and encouragement during the worst of Hurricane Ian. We are able to report that all FLR staff and the FLR network have come through well and services, with only a few minor hiccups, are up and running for our members.

Please keep those impacted by this terrible storm in your thoughts. While the FLR network will play an important role in helping our communities recover, the immediate concern is for the health and safety of those affected.

You can help right now by making a donation via the American Red Cross at https://redcross.org/donate/donation.html/ or to the reputable charity of your choice that is working in the area.

_________________

Original Statement:

State and National leaders have declared a state of emergency ahead of Hurricane Ian which is expected to impact the Florida peninsula beginning as early as Wednesday morning, September 28.

FLR is monitoring this system and is prepared to handle the impacts with engineers on call throughout the storm.  As always, members and affiliates needing assistance are encouraged to contact the FLR Network Operations Center (https://noc.flrnet.org/) with any issue that comes up.

Preparation Resources Ahead of the Storm:

National Hurricane Center: https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/

Florida Division of Emergency Management: http://floridadisaster.org

Road Conditions: https://www.fl511.com/

Traffic Incidents: https://www.flhsmv.gov/florida-highway-patrol/traffic-incidents/

Post Storm Resources:

Federal Emergency Management Agency: www.fema.gov

American Red Cross: www.redcross.org

Keeping your connections secure and operational remains our top institutional priority, but we want to stress that keeping yourself and your family safe is always the most important thing.  If you are anywhere along the West Coast of Florida, now is the time to make storm preparations.

Stay Safe!

- The FLR Team

Deployed over 1,540 miles of dark fiber, the FLR network infrastructure provides for a dedicated statewide communications facility linking major nodes located in Pensacola, Crestview, Tallahassee, Tampa, Winter Haven, Miami, Orlando, Gainesville, Melbourne, Ft. Lauderdale and Jacksonville.

The foundation of the infrastructure is a dense wave division multiplexing (DWDM)-based optical footprint using Cisco Systems’ NCS 2000 optical electronic systems with a capacity of 40 wavelengths per fiber pair. Each wavelength can support transmission up to 100 billion bits per second (100 Gbps).

On top of the optical infrastructure is built an Ethernet based MPLS transport facility which provides for Internet, Internet2 and high speed IPv4 and IPv6 transit between participants. Additionally, private layer 2 or layer 3 services (VPN) may be provisioned.

Each Equity Partner is provided a primary 10 Gbps and a secondary 1 Gbps connection to the MPLS backbone.   Through advanced technologies, multiple waves are available along the optical backbone in support of primary and secondary access for each partner institution, as well as dedicated waves for research activities across institutional boundaries.

The network operations center is hosted at the University of Florida. For more information, see the FLR NOC website.

Dynamic Bandwidth Allocation

Utilizing dedicated and shared 100 Gigabit Ethernet, 10 Gigabit Ethernet or 1 Gigabit Ethernet high-performance data circuits, FLR participants are provided with additional capacity “on demand” to accommodate bursts in data-traffic, videoconference, or other special requirements.

ISP Connectivity

Connectivity to Commercial Internet Service Providers is available in order to provide economical and reliable Internet service to FLR participants.

National and International Research Connectivity

Connectivity to advanced production regional and national networks, such as Internet2,  the GLIF, and Energy Sciences Network supports new applications and services.

High Speed IP transit

High Speed IP transit paths between participants, supporting both IPv4 and IPv6 protocols. FLR is designed to allow growth in terms of the number of hosts connected as well as the amount of data transmitted.

Peering

Arrangements with other networks and traffic exchange points allow FLR to route and exchange network traffic, resulting in fewer hops and faster access to user destinations.

Dedicated Wavelengths

For research applications needing a dedicated wavelength service, FLR offers participants point to point 1.0, 2.5, 10 or 100 gigabits per second optical lambdas as a complement to the FLR optical-based backbone services.

A compilation of Important Information and links related to the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak

As Florida's universities and colleges transitioned to on-line learning in response to the Covid-19 outbreak, we at Florida LambdaRail renewed our commitment to providing the same excellent service our members and affiliates have come to expect from us. We understand doing our job, and doing it well, is essential to ensuring college and university operations continue with no disruptions.

Should you have any questions or concerns regarding how FLR may help your institution during the on-going Covid-19 response, do not hesitate to reach out to us. As always, we make it our mission to ensure your needs are met.

The FLR team

Information from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control

Covid-19 Information from the CDC ...
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Florida Department of Health Covid-19 Information

https://floridahealthcovid19.gov/ ...
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Covid-19 Information from FLR’s Partner Institutions

Below are links to each FLR Equity Partner's #Covid-19 update pages: Website FAU http://www.fau.edu/coronavirus/ FGCU https://www.fgcu.edu/coronaupdate/ FIT http://www.fit.edu/coronavirus FIU https://www.fiu.edu/coronavirus/ ...
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Led by geosciences Professor Jennifer Collins, the team is advancing hurricane evacuation research.

Full Story

Update 09/30/2022:

Thank you to all who reached out with words of support and encouragement during the worst of Hurricane Ian. We are able to report that all FLR staff and the FLR network have come through well and services, with only a few minor hiccups, are up and running for our members.

Please keep those impacted by this terrible storm in your thoughts. While the FLR network will play an important role in helping our communities recover, the immediate concern is for the health and safety of those affected.

You can help right now by making a donation via the American Red Cross at https://redcross.org/donate/donation.html/ or to the reputable charity of your choice that is working in the area.

_________________

Original Statement:

State and National leaders have declared a state of emergency ahead of Hurricane Ian which is expected to impact the Florida peninsula beginning as early as Wednesday morning, September 28.

FLR is monitoring this system and is prepared to handle the impacts with engineers on call throughout the storm.  As always, members and affiliates needing assistance are encouraged to contact the FLR Network Operations Center (https://noc.flrnet.org/) with any issue that comes up.

Preparation Resources Ahead of the Storm:

National Hurricane Center: https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/

Florida Division of Emergency Management: http://floridadisaster.org

Road Conditions: https://www.fl511.com/

Traffic Incidents: https://www.flhsmv.gov/florida-highway-patrol/traffic-incidents/

Post Storm Resources:

Federal Emergency Management Agency: www.fema.gov

American Red Cross: www.redcross.org

Keeping your connections secure and operational remains our top institutional priority, but we want to stress that keeping yourself and your family safe is always the most important thing.  If you are anywhere along the West Coast of Florida, now is the time to make storm preparations.

Stay Safe!

- The FLR Team

A supercomputer housed at the University of Florida is being used by researchers at multiple state universities to address some of Florida’s most-pressing agricultural and environmental problems.

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Florida has five public institutions ranked in the Top 100, the fifth-most in the country.

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The National Science Foundation grant will aid a USF-led interdisciplinary team of researchers as they develop a standardized approach to protecting those critical ecosystems.

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Florida Tech researchers are examining a novel sustainable approach to address harmful algal blooms in Florida’s lagoons. Their goal is to utilize locally produced low-cost sustainable biochar to control harmful algal blooms in St. Lucie Estuary, Indian River Lagoon, Tampa Bay Estuary and Sarasota Bay.

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The USF Health Morsani College of Medicine is the fastest-rising medical school in the country, climbing over the last decade from #80 to #46 in U.S. News & World Report rankings for medical schools for research.

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With $1.076 billion in research expenditures, UF joins an exclusive group of about 15 public universities around the country to surpass $1 billion, including the University of Michigan, UCLA and the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

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In the last 18 months, UCF has had 71 space-related research projects approved and awarded with grants exceeding $10 million, according to UCF spokeswoman Zenaida Kotala.

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To prepare for extreme weather, Florida International University plans to simulate some of the world's most catastrophic storms.

Full Story from National Geographic

The mission will explore a region of the moon never before visited and may identify minerals and chemical resources available for future exploration.

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Researchers at Florida State University’s Center for Advanced Power Systems (CAPS), in collaboration with Colorado-based Advanced Conductor Technologies, have demonstrated a new, ready-to-use superconducting cable system — an improvement to superconductor technology that drives the development of technologies such as all-electric ships or airplanes.

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