So what happens if your drop your favorite anchor overboard? Why does everything look kind of funny underwater? And why do SCUBA divers wear something that looks suspiciously like a set of bagpipes? All these questions and more are answered by our BioNauts!
The Explorer program is a week long course offered by the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences, aimed at introducing young adults to the marine environment through field trips, classroom activities and SCUBA diving.
The Warwick was a 16th century English Merchantman which sank in Castle Harbour, Bermuda in 1619
On October 20th, 1619, en route to Jamestown Virginia, the merchant ship “Warwick” belonging to Sir Robert Rich, the Earl of Warwick made a scheduled stop in Bermuda. The Warwick’s arrival was an important event for the island. On that voyage, the ship was charged with delivering Captain Nathaniel Butler, the new Governor of the nascent colony. Apart from delivering Butler, the Warwick was to carry supplies and settlers to the struggling colony at Jamestown, Virginia, and collect colonial products, mostly tobacco, for return to England.
While the Warwick was in port, a devastating hurricane wreaked havoc on the islands of Bermuda. Amongst the victims of the tempest, was the Warwick which sank at its anchorage in Castle Harbour. (P. Bojakowski)
“The Warwick entering Castle Harbour”. Painting by Stephen Card circa 1980 ( Private Bermudian collection)
The Warwick is located in the shallow, protected waters of Castle Harbour. A good portion of the starboard side of the ship is still preserved from near the keel to an upper deck and has never been fully excavated, recorded, or analyzed until now.
A shipwreck afforded settlers an opportunity to better their lives with salvaged goods. And most Bermuda settlers were involved in wrecking-no matter what their station in life. Even Nathaniel Butler (Governor of Bermuda 1619–1622) got into the act.Butler began his career in Bermuda, ironically, with a shipwreck. In 1619, the Bermuda Company sent him to the island aboard the Warwick. The ship, owned by the Earl of Warwick, went down in Castle Harbour. –
Teddy Tucker
Water Moves: The Egg!“Watch what happens when we crack open a raw egg 60 feet (20 meters) below the surface! For more information about why the egg behaves like it does, as well as further videos in the series, visit us at www.bios.edu“
There are many ways to make biodiesel but one of the more interesting and worth exploring is how to make it using ordinary algae from the sea.
Bermuda’s Sargasso Sea marine algae could revolutionize the fuel of the future. Scientists are a step closer to uncovering the most productive algae in Bermuda to make Biodiesel.
Dr.Michael Lomas, a researcher for the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences, is trying to make it a viable reality and has made considerable progress towards the development of a program in alternative energy based on Algal Biodiesel.
This Bermuda Environmental Alliance Production with expertise from the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences proposing alternative energy sources has also been part of the “Daily Planet” segment on Discovery Channel Canada.”
Greenrock is working with other environmental groups as part of the Bermuda Alliance for the Sargasso Sea (BASS) with the goal of establishing part of the Sargasso Sea as the world’s first international marine reserve …
Stuart Hayward introduces the 2008 BIOS Explorer series “On the Rock”. Drs. Andreas Andersson and Samantha de Putron discuss the concepts of ocean acidification, including the importance of carbonate ions and dissolution to coral growth. Meanwhile the BioNauts pump exhaust fumes into seawater to see what happens to its acidity (pH).
2008: On the Rock (Part 2)
With the help of coral researcher Kate Degnan, the BioNauts undertake an experiment to investigate the effects of ocean acidification on the growth rate of live coral. They also conduct a fish bite count while snorkelling on a local reef in order see just how much damage parrot fish do to the coral while feeding. Drs. Andersson and de Putron explain how corals reproduce, are ‘recruited’ onto a reef as juveniles and how this formative stage in the life cycle is crucial for the continued health of Bermuda’s reef ecosystem.
2008: On the Rock (Part 3)
BIOS Education Officer JP Skinner explains how Bermuda’s unique cave system has formed over millions of years and in doing so, chronicled changes in sea level as the caves have slowly flooded. Bermudian cave diver Bruce Williams talks to the BioNauts about the wonders (and dangers) of diving the Walsingham caves and the need to protect them for future generations. The BioNauts survey the local coastline for potential new caves systems and take water samples to monitor the levels of pollution.
2008: On the Rock (Part 4)
The BioNauts revisit the 2006 coastal restoration site at Cooper’s Island to check up on its progress, before heading off to a new site to begin the process all over again! Then Patrick Talbot from the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo helps the BioNauts construct three Longtail nesting “igloos” to protect the breeding population during hurricane season.
2008: On the Rock (Part 5)
Deep sea explorer Nick Hutchings explains how Bermuda came to be the island we recognise today, from it’s humble beginnings as a bump at the bottom of the ocean to it’s close encounter with a meteor 33 million years ago! The BioNauts perform a depth sounding, just like the original Challenger expedition in the 1800’s and compare it to a modern technique currently being used to map the deep ocean around Bermuda. Finally, the BioNauts watch as BIOS’ remotely operated vehicle surveys the Bermuda sea mount at a depth of 363 metres.
Part one. BIOS Education Officer JP Skinner explains how and why Bermuda’s flora and fauna have changed since humans first arrived in 1609 and introduces the BioNauts to the concepts of ‘endemic’, ‘native’, ‘introduced’ and ‘invasive’ species.
Part two. The BioNauts make use of the ‘roving diver technique’ to investigate coral diversity at three underwater sites; a recent ship grounding, a several hundred year old wreck and a pristine coral reef. Then it’s off to Nonsuch Island see what Bermuda looked like 400 years ago!
Part three . The BioNauts compare the species diversity at Nonsuch Island to that of the Cooper’s Island Nature Reserve and then, with the help of Alexander ‘Dready’ Hunter, begin the next phase of coastal restoration at the Nature Reserve. After that research scientist Jaret Bilewich leads the BioNauts on an expedition to survey the habitat range of a species of coral found in only one place in Bermuda.
Part four. Chris Flook from the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo and coordinator of the Bermuda Lionfish Project explains the threat posed by the indo-pacific lionfish to Bermuda’s reef system. The BioNauts learn how the lionfish probably reached Bermuda, what’s being done to study it, control it and even eat it!
Part one: The BioNauts are introduced to scientists who study and monitor three of Bermuda’s marine habitats: our seagrass meadows (with Kim Holzer), our coral reefs (with Dr. Alex Venn) and the deep ocean that surrounds the island (with Vivienne Lockhead).
Part two: The BioNauts set up a feeding experiment with the help of researcher Kali Douglas. Together, they deploy seagrass fronds in three different locations around the island (a seagrass meadow, a mangrove swamp and a coral reef) and return 24 hours later to collect them. What, if anything, will have eaten the seagrass?
Part three. The BioNauts take time out to go octopus hunting with Dr. James Wood — at night! The next day it’s back to work as the BioNauts go scuba diving with Dr. Alex Venn as part of the coral reef monitoring programme and learn how to control a remotely operated vehicle!
Part four. The BioNauts set sail upon the R/V HSBC Atlantic Explorer! With the help of marine technician Jonathon Whitefield they deploy a deep sea plankton tow to 800 metres (2,600 feet) and learn how the CTD rosette samples the water column on it’s way to the bottom of the ocean. Back on dry land the BioNauts begin work on the 100 year-long forest restoration project at Cooper’s Island Nature Reserve.
Part five. The BioNauts take another break to study a raft of Sargussum seaweed that has washed up at the BIOS dock. Then it’s onto the results of their experiments; what ate the seagrass and why? Why is it important to study our coral reefs? What can monitoring the deep ocean around Bermuda tell scientists about the global climate?
1. Module one. The BioNauts investigate the potential for using renewable energy sources in Bermuda, including solar power to cook food, boil water and generate electricity, as well as turning our waste oil into biodiesel.
2. Module two. The BioNauts learn about the Carbon cycle and, through a ‘Rot Pot’ experiment, the part it plays in ‘recycling’ organic waste into compost.
3. Module three. The BioNauts investigate the problem of oceanic plastic waste; where it comes from, what happens when it washes up on our beaches and what it does to marine life and ultimately, to humans. Featuring contributions from Mark Outerbridge of the Bermuda Turtle Project and Andrew Peters of the BIOS Environmental Quality Program
4. Module four. The BioNauts study the black rockfish, Bermuda’s largest grouper and apex predator of the island’s coral reef system. With the help of Tammy Trott from the Marine Resources Division of the Bermuda Department of Environmental Protection, the BioNauts attempt to track down the rockfish as they migrate to and from their deep water spawning sites.
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