Promotion of the ocean

SOME GO TO sea to catch fish. Others, including secondary school and university students, are taking to the high seas to net information.

Almost 400 students claimed a berth on board the Marine Institute's research vessel, the Celtic Voyager, during 2008, sailing out on training sessions that showed them exactly how marine research is done.

The 96 transition-year students who participated in the institute's "Science@Sea" initiative last year enjoyed a half-day sampler on the work being done on the Celtic Voyager. The third-level students went to sea for two days to become directly involved in research, explains the institute's Dr Pauhla McGrane.

Dr McGrane is the programme co-ordinator for the institute's Integrated Marine Exploration Programme (IMEP), under which the Science@Sea scheme operates. Established in 2007, the IMEP has a €1.15 million budget available to support students who must compete for a place on board the Celtic Voyager.

The scheme is not a replacement for on-shore marine science programmes run by the universities, she says. Rather, it provides real hands-on experience for third-level students who, during their cruise, set up their own research surveys. “It allows us to go out and support marine research at sea,” she says. “We have thrown the doors wide open. We have enabled researchers to come in and conduct their own training. It is about increasing the amount of data we can mine from the seas and take back to the land.”

Students must apply for a berth and there are many more applications than can be accommodated, she explains. “You get the students who have a huge interest in marine science.”

This is no leisurely cruise however. Once on board the third-level students are put through their paces, learning how to conduct research in areas such as oceanography, benthic (sedimentary) ecology, marine geophysics and fisheries science.

They take turns on watches but also form teams that must structure and undertake specific surveys during the two-day journey.

An important part of the Science@Sea programme is the team of experts who accompany the students, explains Dr McGrane. This field team is vital to the success of the training sessions, providing all the practical experience needed to ensure the students gain as much as possible from the opportunity.

Dr McGrane believes there are many benefits arising from the Marine Institute programme, which is funded via the Government’s national Strategy for Science Technology and Innovation. It improves Ireland’s capacity to do marine research by providing university-based students with real experience. The training is in fact recognised by the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST), the international learned society for marine professionals.

It improves researcher access to vessels capable of conducting marine research and the programme also supports specific courses and multidisciplinary programmes in support of university education, Dr McGrane adds.

Science@Sea Theoretical learning becomes practical experience

Katie Boyle (pictured) gained a great deal from the Science@Sea programme, not least confirmation that marine science “was something I could enjoy as a career”.

A third-year marine science student at NUI Galway, she embarked on the Celtic Voyageron March 13th for a two-day research cruise.

"We went through all the different aspects of what could be done on the Celtic Voyagerincluding marine geophysics, oceanography, fisheries biology and benthic biology," she says. The trip helped her to move from the theoretical to the practical. "We learned a lot about it in the classroom but you never get to see it. It was really useful," she says. "Even now in the classroom I now know things that I probably wouldn't have known before the trip."

Seeing the reality of what ship-based research was all about helped her to make up her mind about marine science. It was a subject that she liked but Boyle was unsure whether it could give her an interesting career. She now believes she made the right choice.

“The people I met and the crew were really fun. I really enjoyed it.”