Accomack County VA, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center ‘s (GSFC) Wallops Flight Facility and the Marine Science Consortium have joined forces with other stakeholders to establish a research park focused on commercial aerospace, applied earth science and educational offerings.

WRP Partners:

• Accomack County is located on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, at the southern tip of the Delmarva Peninsula. This 662-square mile region (consisting of Accomack and Northampton Counties) is bounded on the north by the Maryland state line, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean and on the south and west by the Chesapeake Bay.
• Wallops Flight Facility is NASA's premier site for small suborbital and medium large orbital flight projects, earth science research and technology development and is home to NASA's only owned and operated launch range.
• Marine Science Consortium is a non-profit educational corporation comprised of 13 member universities and colleges – primarily regional Pennsylvania institutions. The Consortium is committed to excellence in education and research in the marine and environmental sciences.

Accomack County, Wallops Flight Facility, and Marine Science Consortium.

WRP Goal:

The overall goal of the WRP is to provide a long term environment that attracts and maintains science, technology, and educational endeavors to supplement the core capabilities of GSFC’s Wallops Flight Facility, other WFF Partners, and the Marine Science Consortium while contributing to the economic development of the Eastern Shore of Virginia and Maryland region.

Specific objectives for the WRP:

• Develop comprehensive planning that enables growth in all sectors.
• Leverage existing federal facility investment and employment opportunities to spark Wallops area as a regional research and technology area.
• Supplement educational and work force development opportunities on the Shore in the scientific and technical fields for increased collaboration, professional development and outreach.
• Create high tech jobs to retain the Shore’s best and brightest and attract others with our quality of life.

The specific goals for each of the three park principals are:

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center’s Wallops Flight Facility

The WRP will provide near site opportunities for research, technology development, and operations involving industry and academia that will enhance GSFC’s ability to carry out its exploration and earth and space science missions.  From a business perspective, the WRP will allow GSFC’s WFF to take advantage of creative and innovative partnership opportunities for the use of existing NASA infrastructure and external commercial infrastructure to both enhance NASA capabilities and reduce NASA infrastructure responsibilities.  The WRP will also enhance GSFC’s ability to attract and develop the caliber of future engineers, scientists, and other professionals necessary to meet GSFC’s mission though local advanced degree programs.  The WRP will also provide facilities for dual-use (governmental & commercial) processing of space flight hardware, as well as facilities for commercial aerospace users of WFF, and for existing area contractors. The WRP will also directly support WFF partner missions while specifically strengthening the Commonwealth of Virginia and the State of Maryland’s position in the global marketplace for commercial space launch, space launch research, and related products and services.  Ultimately, the WRP will facilitate the evolution of the WFF area as a world leader as a research range technology maturation and low cost, rapid response launch range operations to support National Space Policy initiatives.

Marine Sciences Consortium 

The WRP will provide a modern more attractive environment for facility enhancements and program growth through increased collaboration with NASA Earth Science researchers and other WRP occupants, such as other universities, the Virginia Space Flight Academy, and others.  The park will also enable capabilities enhancement that increase telecommunications, distance learning, and other institutional capabilities for its participants.

Accomack County, Virginia 

The WRP will provide the location, infrastructure and overall environment to attract and support economic growth through new commercial and educational institutions affiliated with WFF activities.  The WRP will also house the supporting services that will enable these new enterprises, as well as support the resident County workforce, such as a business incubator, and workforce training facilities.