The T. Wayland Vaughan Laboratory for Comparative Sedimentology was established on Fisher Island in 1971 by Robert Ginsburg to study modern sediments and their fossilized counterparts with a special focus on carbonate sediments. In 1990 the CSL moved to the Virginia Key Campus as part of the Division of Marine Geology and Geophysics of the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. In 1995 Robert Ginsburg handed over the laboratory to a group of faculty. Today, the CSL-Center for Carbonate Research consists of eight faculty, three associate scientists, a research associate, and ten students. The director of the CSL is currently Dr. Gregor Eberli.

The CSL-Center for Carbonate Research houses the following technical laboratories and facilities:

• Seismic processing and interpretation laboratory
• Petrophysics laboratory
• Stable isotope laboratory
• Ground Penetrating Radar acquisition and processing facility
• X-ray diffraction facility