Outreach
Found: Giant Freshwater Deposits Hiding under the Sea
On a clear September day in 2015, after 10 years of working to get funding, my colleague Kerry Key and I stepped aboard the R/V Langseth, a research ship docked at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts. We were about to lead a 10-day expedition to map a deposit of fresh water, size unknown, hidden 100 meters (about 330 feet) under the rocky seafloor.
Back in the 1960s the U.S. Geological Survey had drilled a series of vertical boreholes off the New Jersey coast, looking for sand deposits and other resources. They unexpectedly struck fresh water, which was baffling. Years later researchers obtained water samples from the same location and analyzed the chemistry, finding to their surprise that the liquid was a mix of recent rainwater and seawater. Rainwater, 65 kilometers (40 miles) out to sea—under the seafloor?
Teaching in the Boston Area
ELECCTRO graduate student Bailey Fluegel makes outreach and teaching in the greater Boston area a priority within her studies. She is shown here demonstrating to a class how ocean-bottom seismometers measure waves from earthquakes.
In addition to this Bailey also volunteers every Friday morning at the local Cambridge high school.
Woods Hole Science Stroll
Natalie Hummel, a graduate student in the ELECCTRO lab, participated in the Woods Hole science stroll as a volunteer to show the community how seismologists monitor earthquakes. Natalie used hands-on techniques to help attendees understand how ground movement is monitored using seismometers and equipment from Ocean Bottom Seismic Instrument Center (OBSIC).
teaching outreach in local cape cod schools
ELECCTRO lab Ph.D. candidate, Jae Kim, is dedicated to incorporating teaching into his studies. Jae taught at a local elementary school to help the next generation of scientists understand how waves carry information and help us understand the Earth.
Jae focused on active learning techniques and used Slinkys to help the class visualize the movements of waves.