University of North Dakota - Research

Research

UND is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a doctoral/research-intensive institution. This level of research activity is shown in UND's research statistics which, in fiscal year 2006, included program awards that reached $94.3 million, sponsored program expenditures that reached $81.2 million, and an overall research portfolio that included $315 million in total ongoing and committed accounts. Research activity at UND focuses on health sciences, nutrition, energy and environmental protection, aerospace, and engineering. As a major component of the Red River Valley Research Corridor, UND operates many research units including the Energy and Environmental Research Center, the School of Medicine, the Center for Rural Health, the Center for Innovation, the Upper Midwest Aerospace Consortium, the Bureau of Governmental Affairs, the Bureau of Educational Services and Applied Research, and the Social Science Research Institute. The Energy and Environmental Research Center, located on the eastern fringes of the UND campus, has been recognized as a leader in researching cleaner, more efficient forms of energy. The EERC operates a number of research units at UND including the National Center for Hydrogen Technology.

In May 2006, students from UND unveiled a new space suit that they had developed to be used by astronauts that may someday travel to Mars. The students were working off of a $100,000 grant from NASA and the suit was tested in the Badlands of western North Dakota. The suit weighs 47 pounds and costs only a fraction of the standard $22 million cost for a NASA spacesuit. The suit was developed in just over a year by the students.