Citizen science expeditions offer an opportunity for vessel owners to get involved in smaller-scale marine research initiatives. These expeditions do not require scientists to be aboard, but they permit vessel owners and crew to participate in ongoing research projects which depend on the participation of non-scientists within the community. One of our main projects supported by citizen scientists is the S.A.R.A.H. Initiative, a citizen science movement engaging the yachting community by providing comprehensive onboard kits to allow yacht crews and owners to conduct plankton survey-style transects to describe and quantify the presence of marine microplastics.
The S.A.R.A.H. Initiative will unite the academic world and the international yachting community in an effort to conserve our oceans and combat plastic pollution. This unique partnership between liberal arts college, Florida International University College of Arts, Education, and Science (CASE) and the International SeaKeepers Society has the ability to collect invaluable data for scientific research, leading to effective solutions.
This citizen science movement engages the yachting community by providing comprehensive onboard kits to allow yacht crews and owners to conduct plankton survey-style transects to describe and quantify the presence of marine microplastics.
Find out if you can participate in our S.A.R.A.H. Initiative by clicking the button below and contacting our team at [email protected]
SeaKeepers is teaming up with SoFar on the Spotter Device, a compact, solar-powered, surface-follower, which measures surface waves and currents. This device can be used by other entities and can help with improved ocean weather forecasting.
The broader implications are that SoFar and its Spotter technology can help vessel captains, as well as those studying weather systems and climate change with real-time ocean weather forecasting.
Find out if you can participate in our Spotter Deployment Program by clicking the button below and contacting our team at [email protected]
As part of the effort to map the world ocean by 2030, the Seabed 2030 project, along with the IHO Data Center for Digital Bathymetry (DCDB) at the National Centers for Environmental Information, Boulder, have collaborated to provide and manage small hardware data loggers that are used to collect bathymetric data from volunteer observers. The project was launched at the United Nations (UN) Ocean Conference in June 2017 and is aligned with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal #14 to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources.
This information can help identify uncharted features such as seamounts and canyons, verify charted information and help fill the spaces on charts where no data exists. Routinely measured parameters such as under keel depth and position can then be stored, uploaded, and contributed to local and global mapping initiatives. Find out if you can participate in our Seabed 2030 Program by clicking the button below and contacting our team at [email protected]