The University of Connecticut’s 90 ft oceanographic research vessel R/V Connecticut has new life, with increased capability, thanks to a midlife refit.

The research vessel supports UConn’s Department of Marine Sciences, which is located on the university’s coastal campus at Avery Point, on the shores of Long Island Sound. Within the Department, faculty, staff, and students carry out cutting-edge research using observations and numerical models to conduct cross-disciplinary investigations in biological, chemical, physical and geological oceanography and marine meteorology.

Originally built at a length of 76 feet in 1998, the R/V Connecticut was in need of additional staterooms and lab space to meet the Department of Marine Sciences’ needs.

See http://www.marinelog.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=28194:uconn-research-vessel-gets-new-life-with-refit&Itemid=231

 

Ann Bucklin (Department of Marine Sciences, University of Connecticut)
Dan Distel (Ocean Genome Legacy, Northeastern University)

Expedition ANTARCTIC BLANC (www.AntarcticBlanc.com) sets sail on 12th February 2018 on a 66-foot yacht in Puerto Williams (Chile). The destination is the the Western Antarctic Peninsula region, one of the fastest-warming places on Earth.

Zooplankton samples will be collected for genetic analysis by metabarcoding (DNA sequencing of unsorted samples for a “DNA barcode” gene region). DNA from each sample will be archived at the Ocean Genome Legacy Center (https://www.northeastern.edu/ogl/).

 

Metabarcoding allows rapid assessment of the zooplankton assemblage and pelagic food web, and better understanding of ecosystem responses to climate change.

See http://antarcticblanc.com/environmental-research/an-ecosystems-response-to-climate-change-metabarcoding-of-zooplankton

 

This past November, a group of graduate students from the Department of Marine Sciences attended the 24th Biennial Conference of the Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation (CERF) in Providence, RI. Many prepared either poster or oral presentations for sharing throughout the week, ranging from topics of citizen science to salt marshes. Professors also attended, presented, and convened sessions including: Jaime Vaudrey as the Chair of the Scientific Program Committee, James O’Donnell, Michael Whitney, Hannes Baumann. The full scientific program of the conference can be found here.

Group of graduate students who attended CERF 2017. (Pictured left to right: Molly James, Michelle Fogarty, Julie Pringle, Maryam Mirhakak, Amin Ilia, Jacob Snyder, James deMayo, Vena Haynes, Steven Deignan-Schmidt, and Yan Jia. Not pictured: Gunnar Hansen.)

In February, more students and professors will attend the 2018 Ocean Sciences Meeting in Portland, OR.