The April 2007 magnitude Ms 8.1 earthquake off the New Georgia Group in the Solomon Islands generated a tsunami that killed 52 with locally focused run-up heights of 12 m, local flow depths of 5 m as well as tectonic uplift up to 3.6 m and subsidence down to 1.5 m. GTS associate professor Dr. Hermann Fritz was a member of a reconnaissance team deployed within one week of the event, investigating 65 coastal settlements on 13 remote islands. One year later, the geologic and economic effects of the disaster are distinctly visible.

Georgia Tech and the Skidaway Institute of Oceanography, both units of the University System of Georgia, are developing a joint advanced education and research program for Fall semester 2008 entitled Coastal Science and Engineering.

This year nine of the 11 programs within the College of Engineering ranked among the top 10 in their respective disciplines.