Patience, Patience, Patience

Posted on September 19, 2019 by Cait Goodwin

This post is part of a series chronicling the September 12-15, 2019 research cruise on board the R/V Oceanus, Oregon State University’s largest research vessel. This cruise was funded by Oregon Legislative funds through the Oceangoing Research Vessel Program. Coordination and additional support was provided by Oregon Sea Grant and the Oregon Coast STEM Hub.

Follow the adventures of the students, educators, and researchers who are on board engaging in #STEMatSea.

By Noah Goodwin-Rice

It has now been a few days since we returned from our four-day cruise on the R/V Oceanus, so I have had ample time to reflect on my experience. More than anything else, I believe that this opportunity has helped show me the value in demonstrating patience while conducting work in the field.

In particular, this concept was impressed on me by Dr. Leigh Torres and her Ph.D. student Dawn Barlow while conducting cetacean surveys from the ship. At times during our surveys, the vessel would proceed for hours across the ocean without the slightest indication of any whales. Eventually, we would sight an individual off on the horizon; then, within the span of perhaps 30 minutes, we would find our ship surrounded on all sides by so many humpbacks that it became difficult to keep track of them all! I soon realized that, inevitably, the monotonous stretches of empty ocean we traversed would reward us with the sight of the animals we sought so much. And the animals were always a treat to see; I truly enjoyed the chance to observe the whales we saw each day.

two people looking out to sea from the deck of a ship

Of course, our time during the cruise wasn’t solely devoted to whale surveys. There were other lessons in the value of patience each time we took samples of the ocean floor, gathering information on benthic ecology. To take samples of the ocean floor at various locations on the cruise, we used a winch at the stern of the ship to lower a box coring device that would return a scoop of sediment to the surface.

Then, after each sample was recovered on the ship’s deck, our job became the rather tedious work of picking out any small invertebrates that were carried up along with the sediment. This prepared the biological contents to be analyzed later back on shore.

It could be monotonous work, but I actually found the job to be incredibly fulfilling. Each sample became almost like a scavenger hunt, and it was fun to come across the many different unique species of annelids, arthropods, cnidarians, echinoderms, and molluscs. As I changed out of my hard hat and waterproof gear at the end of each sampling session, it felt great to have accomplished something that would further our understanding of the ocean floor – even if each sample demanded a significant investment of time to process.

Looking back on my experiences this past week on the R/V Oceanus, I feel exceedingly grateful to have been able to participate in this special opportunity. One reason I was so keen to be a part of this research cruise is because I am currently in the process of considering which paths to pursue in my future. My experience these past several days at sea has helped me realize that this is a line of work that I might be interested in continuing, and this will likely play an important role in my ultimate choices in the coming months.

Five people in hard hats, facing forward — Students participating in the R/V Oceanus cruise (L to R): Noah Goodwin-Rice, Genevieve Coblentz-Strong, Abigail Kirby, Ashley Brust, and Avarie Owens

Noah Goodwin-Rice attends Newport High School, and has spent two summers working as an youth interpreter at Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area. He is also a youth volunteer at the Oregon Coast Aquarium, and a member of the Aquarium’s “Nerdi Nautili” National Ocean Sciences Bowl team.

Sampling at Sea

Posted on September 16, 2019 by Cait Goodwin

Follow the adventures of the students, educators, and researchers who are on board engaging in #STEMatSea.

By Abigail Kirby

My name is Abigail Kirby and I am writing this post while aboard OSU’s R/V Oceanus! Last Spring at the end of my junior year of high school I applied to be a part of this research cruise because I am absolutely enthralled with the ocean and everything it has hidden beneath its surface. My passion for all things marine bloomed in me at a very young age thanks to the beautiful South Slough Reserve, nestled on the Coos Bay of the Southern Oregon Coast. In the summer, I am hired on annually at the slough to help lead summer science camps as an education intern. Activities at camp often include trekking around the trails, exploring the beach, and conducting water-related experiments.

On board the ship, there are many graduate students and scientists working on separate projects and experiments. Notable among them is Dr. Leigh Torres, who is working to study the effects of human noise on gray whales by collecting samples of their defection events (poop) then analyzing these fecal samples for hormones that may indicate their stress levels. Also on board is Jessica Porquez, an OSU researcher who is studying seabird distribution and abundance, identifying individual species and recording their locations. And the esteemed Dr. Sarah Henkel (who I first had the privilege of encountering during a lecture at OIMB in July), a benthic ecologist, who conducts surveys of the ocean bottom and the animals that live there at the designated PacWave energy test site.

Leigh Torres
Jessica Porquez
Sarah Henkel

One of the best ways to test what is at the bottom of the ocean is through a method called box coring. Bolted to the stern of the Oceanus is an A-frame that is able to lift and deploy the heavy metal box that is sent to collect a sample of sediment from the seafloor. Many hands are required in deploying and retrieving the device. First, someone must turn on the A-frame and run the hydraulics while two other hands guide the box corer over the back of the boat. The device is lowered to the bottom where a trigger releases, and the jaws close, quickly enclosing the sediment inside the core. Using the power of hydraulics, it is then pulled up and retrieved using two long poles with a rope and hook set-up. Two hands hook the line over the handles and guide the box back into its resting place while the A-frame is maneuvered back to its upright position.

People bringing the box core on the ship deck

Three people looking through sediment sample

Once the sample is back in its stand, we open the double-doors on the top, and reach in with a centimeter ruler. We measure the depth of the sediment from top to bottom, and then also collect a bit of the surface in a small, marked container. The jaws are then forced open, releasing the sediment into a bucket that is placed underneath. From there it is transported to a sieve that is able to sift out the sand, leaving the organisms and solid debris behind. Using forceps, critters are put into a larger container which will be preserved to study later. This process is repeated for each core.

Some of the sea creatures found in the samples where an assortment of sand dwelling worms, proboscis and all, brittle stars and brittle star bits, small bivalves, and tiny little sea snails.

female with binoculars looks out to sea — Abbie surveys the sea from the flying bridge

Although I do love marine science, it is not necessarily what I will choose to pursue as a career, or at least not directly. My goal is to study infectious diseases, especially those of the viral kind and the “spillover” effect that allows them to jump from animal host to our own species. I’d like to be able to make conclusive connections between emerging viruses and the climate change that humans have imparted on our planet. I hope to one day study the spillover effect between humans and marine life, and then establish a direct link to our climate pollution.

Overall, this trip has been a blast and I am thankful to each and every person who helped get me here.

Abigail Kirby is senior at North Bend High School. She spends her summers working as an education intern at South Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve in Charleston, and has volunteered for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife Salmon Trout Enhancement Program (STEP) program.

Passion and Excitement

Posted on September 15, 2019 by Cait Goodwin

Follow the adventures of the students, educators, and researchers who are on board engaging in #STEMatSea.

By Genevieve Coblentz-Strong

My name is Genevieve and I am a senior in the Early College High School program. I have always had a strong interest in the ocean, and I have wanted to pursue a career in oceanography since seventh grade.

I chose to apply to this R/V Oceanus research cruise for the opportunity to work with scientists doing various research projects and to get the opportunity to meet fellow high school and undergrad students who share my passion and excitement for the ocean. I have not been disappointed! All the students on board have gotten hands-on experience deploying the CTD, box core, and the plankton net, while also learning how to spot and identify marine mammals and sea birds. I can’t imagine a better way to teach students about the ocean and what it takes to be a researcher.

Three people prepare the CTD instrument on deck — Preparing the CTD

Yesterday, we spent the entire morning cruising on the Oceanus looking for whales. Finally, in the early afternoon, we spotted some blows on the horizon. As we got closer, more and more whales started appearing and they were identified as humpbacks. The swell was big, but we braved the waves to go take ID photos of the humpbacks. We boarded a small boat aptly named the Red Rocket. After a few minutes of searching, we came up upon a group of three humpbacks. It was so cool to see the whales up close and I really got an appreciation for how big they are. All three humpbacks fluked at the same time, so we were able to get great ID photos! It was an amazing experience to be able to work with researchers and see the whales that close to the boat. The chief scientist on board has a permit that allows the Oceanus and Red Rocket to approach the whales. It is illegal to approach the whales if you don’t have a permit.

Four people in the red rigid hull inflatable boat — The chief scientist on board has a permit that allows the Oceanus and Red Rocket to approach the whales. It is illegal to approach the whales if you don’t have a permit.

Today, we saw lots of mola mola sunfish, egg yolk jellies, and shearwater birds. Some of the science party was sitting downstairs resting when a text came through from the flying bridge, the viewing deck where we watch for marine mammals and seabirds; orcas had been spotted! Everyone dropped what they were doing and rushed to the flying bridge. There, four orcas swam by the boat and put on a quick show for us before they were on their way again. Before they left, they swam right under the Oceanus and we could see them under the water! It was very exciting! Right before dinner, we spotted our first whales of the day (orcas are dolphins), a humpback mother and calf pair! I can’t get over how incredible these animals are! We waited for the mother and calf to surface a few more times before we headed off in search of more whales.

Orcas, or “killer whales”, are the largest member of the dolphin family.

Mola mola
Albatross

I have learned so much in the past few days! This research cruise has allowed me to explore part of what it takes to be a research scientist and I look forward to the possibility that I could someday work with these scientists and fellow high school students again.

Genevieve Coblentz-Strong attends Sunset High School and Portland Community College. Genevieve is also a youth volunteer at the Oregon Coast Aquarium, and is captain of the Aquarium’s “Nerdi Nautili” National Ocean Sciences Bowl team.

A Jam-Packed First Day

Posted on September 14, 2019 by Cait Goodwin

Follow the adventures of the students, educators, and researchers who are on board engaging in #STEMatSea.

By Ashley Brust

My name is Ashley and I am an undergrad who is a part of the science party here on the Oceanus. I am a sophomore at Oregon Coast Community College and currently enrolled in the Aquarium Science Program. My passion for marine science first began when I was little and attended Hatfield Marine Science Center Day Camps. I attended every year until I “aged out.” Now I am doing everything I can to pursue my passion, which includes this research cruise. Fortunately, I was chosen to be a member of the science party on this vessel and am learning all types of new things, such as surveying whales, sea birds, taking box core samples, and collecting/identifying plankton.

We get to work with experts and do a lot of hands on work, which is totally awesome. Today we began with a really yummy breakfast, went over some safety rules, and ran some drills. This ultimately resulted in us trying on large red survival suits and using a fire hose. Next we found ourselves at the stern of the boat collecting box core samples (grabbing sand off the ocean floor) and digging out organisms that reside in the sediment.

three people bring the box core sample on board the ship — Ashley (L) helps bring up the box core sample.

people sorting through a sediment sample — examining the sediment sample

Before we knew it, we were up on the “flying bridge” with binoculars in our hands surveying the vast ocean for any signs of whales. There were so many humpback whales breaching, coming up and breathing, and showing off their flukes for us. This was great because the scientists’ goal was to capture pictures of the unique underside of the whales’ flukes.

We left that station for a moment to fuel up our bodies with some delicious lunch and made our way back up to the whales when we finished. Another task we helped with was surveying/identifying sea birds which was really fascinating to learn the methodology. I originally thought you would identify the birds based off their plumage, but it turns out their flight pattern helps most, along with some other physical features such as bill length.

The most exciting adventure today was the students got to pursue whales in a smaller inflatable boat. The whales were so close to us it was truly magnificent and something I will never forget. The purpose behind this was to, again, try and snap photos of their flukes to identify individual whales.

six people and a bongo net — Leigh Torres (R) and Dawn Barlow (L) from the OSU GEMM Lab orient students to the bongo net.

students deploy bongo nets of the side of a ship

After dinner we made way to the side of the vessel and deployed bongo nets which would allow us to gather plankton. We brought our samples back into the vessel and began to study them under the microscopes to attempt to identify them.

There were so many neat little creatures swimming around in our petri dishes, like comb jellies, copepods, shrimp larvae, amphipods, and many more. The most interesting thing I got to observe was all the microplastics we also found.

I wasn’t surprised because I knew that our oceans are contaminated with plastics, but it was just very eye opening to see how bad it truly is.

We finally ended our day by coloring Styrofoam cups with permanent markers to send down to the bottom of the ocean and shrink under the enormous pressure. Overall the first day was jam-packed with fun activities and now we are all ready to rest and do it all over again tomorrow.

Ashley Brust is a second-year student in the Aquarium Science Program at Oregon Coast Community College, and a veteran of Hatfield Marine Science Center summer day camps.

Chasing Whales

Posted on September 13, 2019 by Cait Goodwin

Follow the adventures of the students, educators, and researchers who are on board engaging in #STEMatSea.

By Ava Owens

Imagine climbing into a small, six-person boat in the middle of the ocean. The ocean is rolling you with small whitecaps licking the underside of what is deemed the ‘Red Rocket’. This isn’t a rescue, escape or recon mission, but rather a research one.

At around eleven miles off-shore, whale watching on the flying bridge was busy. Humpbacks were being spotted left and right by their fluking and breaching. Marine mammal spotting surveys were happening on the flying bridge, cataloging information such as species, numbers of animals, their distance from the boat and their activities (feeding, breaching, etc.) Something you cannot do from the flying bridge is identify individual animals, so we donned our finest waterproof gear, hardhats, a camera with a telephoto lens, GPS and a notepad to write down sightings. We carried these items over the side of the Oceanus and into the Red Rocket. What we were looking for were identifying features on a whale’s body. The pattern on a humpback whale’s flukes (the underside of their tail) is unique to itself only, just like our fingerprints are unique to each of us. This is the reason for the camera, as researchers wanted to identify and document specific animals base on these patterns.

three people in a red rigid hull inflatable boat — Launching the “Red Rocket”

The Red Rocket, once untied from the Oceanus, took off to follow some whales seen by the spotters on the flying bridge. The humpbacks we were following were about three times the size of our boat, meaning the experience was exhilarating and terrifying all at once. Once we got close enough for that crucial I.D. photo, it was off to find another whale.

Lots of our time spent in the Red Rocket was waiting to spot something. After that first initial whale I.D., the flying bridge had a lull. We used this time not just to search, but to mark the whale sighting on the GPS as well as write notes about the whales behavior, number of whales and what pictures were of that specific whale.

On one of our missions further away from the boat, a pair of humpbacks dove in a feeding behavior. They dive down and stay down for three to four minutes, feeding. We hadn’t gotten a picture of those whales yet, so we stayed in what is called a fluke print. When a whale flukes, it creates this still pattern in the water that disrupts the normal ocean waves. Chances are these two whales would resurface in the same general area, meaning the fluke print is a great place to wait and watch for the pair.

female looking out to sea with binoculars — Looking for whales from the flying bridge

These I.D. photographs are extremely important for whale researchers as they can track individual whales’ migration patterns. These surveys are a great non-invasive way to catalogue individuals as well as estimate a total number of whales seen in one area. One of our researchers aboard has a permit to get closer to marine mammals, as it is illegal to approach any marine mammal without a research permit. Even with that research permit, there are still strict rules to follow to make sure no one disrupts the whales.

My time aboard the R/V Oceanus is my first experience with marine animal related hands-on research. My usual forte is marine education, giving public speeches to bridge the divide between people and the sea. I am so thrilled to be a part of this research cruise and to have more hands-on experience that I can relate to while speaking to the public. Lots of what I am passionate about has to do with microplastics in our ocean, so coming face to face with massive filter feeders that are getting plastic with their meals has given me even more insight on how we need to change our ways for the better.

four females sitting on couches, facing forward — Students relaxing in the ship’s lounge. Left to right: Ashley Brust, Genevieve Coblentz-Strong, Avarie Owens (blog post author), and Abbie Kirby.

Ava Owens is a high school student from Waldport, Oregon. She attends Baker Web Academy and is dual-enrolled at Oregon Coast Community College. Ava is also a youth volunteer at the Oregon Coast Aquarium, and is a member of one of two Aquarium teams competing in the “Salmon Bowl”, Oregon’s regional National Ocean Sciences Bowl competition.

Bon Voyage, R/V Oceanus

Posted on September 12, 2019 by Cait Goodwin

Follow the adventures of the students, educators, and researchers who are on board engaging in #STEMatSea.

By Tracy Crews

Four high school students, one high school teacher, one community college student, and three graduate student will accompany OSU researchers on this cruise that will study seabird and marine mammal distribution off the Oregon Coast and correlate sightings with prey abundance and oceanographic data. On this trip, we hope to deploy drones to help quantify sightings and document marine mammal behavior, and to launch a smaller boat from the research vessel to collect fecal samples from whales. In addition, students will work with benthic ecologists to collect box core samples to learn about oceanographic sediments found in various locations and the organisms living within.

This cruise is not just an opportunity for researchers to collect valuable information about Oregon’s marine ecosystems and the diverse organisms that call these areas home, but an amazing opportunity for students to participate in hands-on, career connected learning. While serving as part of the science party, they get a unique glimpse into life at sea and the lives of the female researchers leading this expedition.

Mobilizing

Wednesday was a busy day for researchers, their graduate students, and the ship’s crew aboard the R/V Oceanus, as they worked together to “mobilize” for their four day STEM research cruise. Oceanographic equipment was loaded, tested, and tied down. Duffle bags full of boots, rain gear, gloves, cameras, and binoculars were hauled up the ship’s gangway and down multiple flights of ladders to small staterooms with bunk beds that would serve as our homes for the next five days. Packing for a research cruise is much more intense than packing for vacation. It’s not just the extra amount of gear required to live and work comfortably at sea, but the knowledge that once you leave the dock there is no way to replace what is missing or what might break. So we pack multiples of almost everything.

Getting Underway

On Thursday, students and other cruise participants spent the first hours of the morning going through safety drills, donning life jackets and immersion suits and learning how to use a fire hose.

Once safety drills were complete, the ship left the dock and headed out under Newport’s Yaquina Bridge to the open ocean!

Coming up next: Learning to conduct research at sea on the very first day of the cruise.

Tracy Crews manages Oregon Sea Grant’s marine education program and is responsible for coordinating the R/V Oceanus shipboard experience for students and teachers.

Coastal Students Head Out to Sea on the R/V Oceanus

Posted on September 9, 2019 by Cait Goodwin

By Tiffany Woods from Oregon Sea Grant

NEWPORT, Ore. – High school and college students and a science teacher will learn to conduct research at sea Sept. 12-15 aboard a ship operated by Oregon State University.

The three high schoolers boarding the Oceanus are from Newport, Waldport and North Bend. The teacher, Carisa Ketchen, is from Toledo Jr/Sr High School. They will be joined by two undergraduates from OSU and Oregon Coast Community College as well as three OSU graduate students. The graduate students – two of whom have been on research cruises before – will serve as mentors for the other students.

Participants will learn about marine-related careers, what it’s like to live and work at sea, and how to work as a team to accomplish a variety of research tasks, said Tracy Crews, who manages Oregon Sea Grant’s marine education program and is coordinating everyone’s participation in the cruise.

“We’re trying to get the next generation of researchers excited to join the ranks,” she added.

The lead researchers will be Leigh Torres, a marine mammals scientist with Oregon Sea Grant and the OSU Extension Service; Sarah Henkel a seafloor ecologist in OSU’s College of Science; and Jessica Porquez, a seabird researcher at OSU.

The cruise, which will depart from and return to Newport, is funded by the Oceangoing Research Vessel Program at OSU, Oregon Sea Grant and the Oregon Coast STEM Hub.

The students will learn to collect sediment and animals from the ocean floor at a future wave energy test site off the coast of Newport. The goal is to collect baseline data to see how conditions might change over time after the wave energy devices are operating.

Coastal students and teachers participating on the 2018 research cruise deploy a CTD.

The students will also learn to collect plankton and to deploy equipment that records oceanographic data at different depths. They will also identify and count seabirds and marine mammals off the Oregon coast, with the aim of correlating their distribution to oceanic conditions and the location of prey. Additionally, the students will learn how researchers use camera-equipped drones to film whales. Torres hopes to launch a small boat from the Oceanus to collect whale poop. The samples would later be analyzed in a lab to understand the whales’ diet and stress levels.

“Since blue whales are being seen in significant numbers, we are hoping to encounter them in addition to gray whales and humpbacks,” Crews said.

The crew will also launch an unmanned, 5 ½-foot sailboat built and decorated by students at the Career Tech High School in Lincoln City. It contains a GPS unit that will allow students to track the boat’s location. The aim is to for students to monitor forecasted wave and wind conditions and predict where the boat will go. A note inside with contact information will encourage anyone who might find the boat to correspond with the students at Career Tech.

The students on the cruise will write about their experiences on the Oregon Coast STEM Hub’s blog and on its Facebook page.

This will be the third year that faculty with Oregon Sea Grant have led cruises on the Oceanus for students and teachers. Crews and Torres led expeditions in 2016 and 2018.

This project, entitled “Diversifying the STEM Pipeline through Oceangoing Research and Near-Peer Mentoring”, is led by Tracy Crews of Oregon Sea Grant. Funding is provided by the Oceangoing Research Vessel Program at OSU, Oregon Sea Grant and the Oregon Coast STEM Hub.

Day Three on the R/V Atlantis

Posted on July 18, 2019 by Cait Goodwin

Calan Taylor is a high school teacher participating in the Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) program on board the R/V Atlantis. See other posts in this series using the navigation tools at right.

DAY THREE July 16, 2019
By Calan Taylor

Second night at sea went well. I always sleep better on boats. The coziness of the rack (that’s what a bed is called on a working ship) coupled with the rhythm of the waves rocks you like a baby in a womb. I ended yesterday with a workout at the “Gym,” which is a modified storage room in the bow of the ship. I thought I’d be alone, but was actually joined by Jami (the lab director from Hatfield), her sister (a nuclear physicist from the Sandia Lab in Albuquerque), and Ronnie (the Bosun/Deck Boss) They suggested that we all do “a light insanity workout together”. It went about how you’d expect…not light. The interesting part was doing burpees and plyometrics on the bow of a moving ship. After dinner I watched part of Good Will Hunting with some of the crew, then went for a tour of the Bridge which was impressive and expansive. The first time I’ve ever seen the bridge on a big ship. Fun fact? The 278ft ship was built in Mississippi in the mid 90’s, gets 10 gallons to the mile (not a typo), and is actually a Navy vessel (which explains the wild interior layout reminiscent of a Rube Goldberg Machine).

This morning we commenced with our first transect by launching ISIIS (In Situ Ichthioplankton Imaging System) which is basically a fancy submersible with advanced imaging capabilities. The ROV is driven between depths of 100-0 meters every 20 minutes as the ship crosses the transect at 5 knots heading east to west. There are fiber optics in the core of the cable that tethers ISIS so that real time data can be communicated to the onboard lab. There are two cameras (which use shadow imaging similar to the old slide shows from my childhood) to capture 60 and 100 Frames Per Second of plankton ranging from 400 micrometers up to 50-60 mm, respectively. The shadow imaging allows the cameras to collect images across a relatively large depth of field which is important for two reasons. First, there’s a lot of empty space, and second, data on spatial relationships between organisms can be collected.

ISIIS on the ship's deck — ISIIS on deck

There are 3 stations that we rotate through at roughly 20-30 minutes. The first job is on the back deck running the winch by either paying out or hauling in cable at speeds of 20-50 cm/sec depending on instructions received from the lab. This job looks easy until you actually get behind the joystick and realize how touchy it is. The second job is called “Flying ISIIS” which sounds like something you’d do in a Drone over Yemen but actually involves monitoring speed over water of the ROV in the lab and communicating instructions to adjust winch speeds to the operator on deck. At this station you also monitor salinity/conductivity, dissolved oxygen, Fluorescence/PAR (Which are proxies for photosynthesis), density, and salinity. The final job is watching the stream of real time data and annotating “Events” which are just things that look interesting such as fish larva or other rarer organisms. Since there are literally millions of slides being collected, most analysis will be done with AI, but potentially interesting events noted and time-stamped in the journal can be revisited for closer inspection by students or citizen scientists down the road. The cool thing about this job is that you are literally flying through the ocean passing millions of critters that look like something out of The Abyss in real time.

So that’s about it for today, I have one more shift at each station starting shortly, then a workout, dinner, and back to the rack. Looking forward to reading some more and maybe watching a movie.

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Calan Taylor teaches Physics, Chemistry, and Physical Science at Bandon High School and is part of the Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) program on the R/V Atlantis cruise taking place July 13-27, 2019.

Research Experiences for Teachers

Posted on July 16, 2019 by Cait Goodwin

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to join a marine science research expedition?

For the next thirteen days the Oregon Coast STEM Hub blog will be highlighting the experience of two coastal Oregon science teachers at sea: Calan Taylor and Andy Bedingfield. Calan and Andy are part of a Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) program supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF). The goal of the program is to improve science educators’ general knowledge and research skills by exposing them to research. This RET program is sponsored by the Oregon Coast STEM Hub and the Hatfield Marine Science Center.

INTRODUCTION

The Ship

R/V Atlantis

From July 13-27, 2019, two RETs from the Oregon Coast will join researchers at sea on board the Research Vessel Atlantis. The R/V Atlantis is an oceanographic research vessel owned by the US Navy and operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution as part of the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System (UNOLS) fleet. Unique to the Atlantis is the fact that it is the only ship outfitted to launch Alvin – the first deep-sea submersible capable of taking crew down to the ocean floor.

The Teachers

Calan Taylor – Bandon, OR

Mr. Calan Taylor

Calan Taylor teaches Physics, Chemistry, and Physical Science at Bandon High School and assists with his school’s Surfrider club. He has been teaching high school science for 15 years in Oregon, first at Kalapuya High School in Eugene – where he taught Ecology and Natural Resource Management – and for the past 2 years at Bandon. He has a lifelong passion for Marine Ecology that started early, growing up living on sailboats, first in Massachusetts, and later in Port Townsend, WA. When he was ten years old his family attempted to sail around the world. Although they never made it past the Society Islands, he was able to spend over two years diving, fishing and sailing in some of the richest coral ecosystems on the planet. This included a month and a half on Palmyra Atoll.

After high school Calan became a commercial fisherman and spent eight years working on salmon seiners in Southeast Alaska. His skipper had a degree in Marine Biology so he was lucky enough to learn his perspective on balancing resource management and sustainable harvests. In addition to working and living on boats, Calan spends most of his free time and money traveling to explore the surf, giving Calan first-hand experience with an array of coastal marine conservation issues.

Andy Bedingfield – Lincoln City, OR

Mr. Andy Bedingfield

Andy Bedingfield has two master’s degrees: One in chemistry, and one in education. Andy worked as a research and development chemist at the Willamette Valley Company for seven years before serving four years as the Director of Outreach, Education, and Diversity for the Center for Sustainable Materials Chemistry. Since 2014, he has taught high school science at Taft High School in Lincoln City.

What you may not know about Andy is that he was a professional freestyle whitewater kayaker from 1998-2003, winning the Whitewater Freestyle World Championships in Taupo, New Zealand in 1999 and in Sort, Spain in Squirt Boating in 2001.

Can you find Mr. Bedingfield in the kayak?

Coming up next…

Stay tuned for a post about the first day of the cruise… from a teacher’s perspective!

What is it like to be part of a science party?

Posted on October 2, 2018 by Cait Goodwin

By Tracy Crews

The R/V Oceanus is a 177-foot research vessel owned by the National Science Foundation and run by Oregon State University. She can carry a crew of 24 which consists of 11 crew members of the ship and 13 members of the science party. The science party on the recent STEM research cruise was composed of two high school students, three high school teachers, two community college students, two graduate students, and four OSU researchers. Most of these cruise participants were complete strangers to one another prior to boarding the ship.

What is it like to be part of a science party at sea?

Although we are at sea to conduct marine science, each cruise is a social science experiment in and of itself. When a group of individuals with diverse backgrounds are living and working together in a confined space, they quickly learn how to get along and what skill sets each bring to the table. During this cruise, it was amazing to see how quickly friendships formed, how everyone encouraged and supported one another, and how the team functioned like a well-oiled machine to deploy and retrieve equipment, collect data, and troubleshoot problems.

Below are a few thoughts about the relationships formed on this cruise. It was written by Oregon Coast Community College student Jason Miranda, a recent graduate of the Drone Academy at Career Tech High School in Lincoln City, and the official drone operator for this cruise.

Aboard the Oceanus is one trip I will never forget. The memories started when I first boarded the ship and met the people I would spend the next six days with. It was an awkward experience, meeting new people, but as time passed these people became close friends. We all worked, ate, and relaxed as a team.

It was an amazing experience to see all the sights I saw, like a pod of dolphins, two killer whales, countless humpbacks, and the beautiful views of downtown Portland. It would not have been the same without any of them aboard this ship. As we all started to leave I felt sad because I knew I would not be able to see many of them ever again, but I guess that’s what makes our memories together so special.

The R/V Oceanus is back in Newport, and the teachers and students who participated in the cruise are back to their normal lives on land (although at least one participant reports that it feels like the floor is still rocking). Many thanks to all who participated and to to those who made this STEM experience possible!

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Tracy Crews is the Marine Education Program Manager for Oregon Sea Grant, the Student STEM Experiences Coordinator for the Oregon Coast STEM Hub, and the Principal Investigator for the STEM research cruise which took place last week on the R/V Oceanus.

This cruise was funded by Oregon Legislative funds with additional support from Oregon Sea Grant and Oregon State University.

Oregon Coast STEM Hub

Fostering Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Futures on the Oregon Coast

Tag Archives: research

Patience, Patience, Patience

Sampling at Sea

Passion and Excitement

A Jam-Packed First Day

Chasing Whales

Bon Voyage, R/V Oceanus

By Tracy Crews

Mobilizing

Getting Underway

Coastal Students Head Out to Sea on the R/V Oceanus

Day Three on the R/V Atlantis

Calan Taylor is a high school teacher participating in the Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) program on board the R/V Atlantis. See other posts in this series using the navigation tools at right.

DAY THREE July 16, 2019
By Calan Taylor

Research Experiences for Teachers

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to join a marine science research expedition?

INTRODUCTION