Melissa Baffa, a development officer with the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, has been selected to return as a 2018 Lead Science Communication Fellow, sailing aboard Exploration Vessel (E/V) Nautilus during its 2018 expedition.

Baffa will join the Corps of Exploration aboard E/V Nautilus in late October as they explore the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.
 
Twenty-one educators and 18 students from North America were selected from a competitive pool of applicants by the Ocean Exploration Trust (OET) to participate at sea during the 2018 Nautilus Exploration Program expedition.

OET, a nonprofit founded by Dr. Robert Ballard in 2008, has the mission to explore the ocean, seeking out discoveries in the fields of geology, biology, maritime history, archaeology, physics and chemistry while pushing the boundaries of STEAM education and technological innovation.

The selected educators and students come from schools, universities, science centers, and nonprofit organizations in 18 states in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Canada and Mexico.

They will join the Nautilus Corps of Exploration during seagoing expeditions June through November in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, exploring from British Columbia, Canada, along the U.S. West Coast, and west to the Hawaiian Islands.
 
“Participating in the Science Communication Fellowship Program has been life-changing for me,” Baffa said.

“This opportunity fulfills a lifelong dream of exploring the ocean and contributing to scientific research, and I’ve been delighted to share the experience,” she said.

“From young school children to seniors, our community members are overwhelmingly enthusiastic and curious about the deep sea: what it looks like, what lives down there, and how we go about uncovering the mysteries of this dark and forbidding place,” she said.

This will be Baffa’s third voyage aboard the E/V Nautilus; her first expedition explored hydrothermal vents near the Galápagos Islands in 2015, and her second explored the ridges and basins off the coast of Southern California in 2016.

“We’ll explore volcanic ridges just southeast of Davidson Seamount, about halfway between Monterey and San Simeon,” she said.

“Nearby ridges have incredible deep-sea communities of corals and sponges, fantastic enough to be featured on BBC’s Planet Earth series. I am excited to see what we discover.”

As members of the Corps of Exploration, educators and students stand watch alongside scientists and engineers, as well as participate in live interactions with shore-based audiences via Nautilus Live, a 24-hour web portal linking field expeditions to future explorers on shore via telepresence technology at www.nautiluslive.org and via social media.
 
OET promotes STEAM education around the world using the excitement of exploration and innovation to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers.

“One of the major goals of our Nautilus Exploration Program is to inspire the next generation of explorers in STEAM fields,” said Allison Fundis, OET’s vice president of Marine Operations and Programs.

“We are very excited to provide educators and students with the direct experience of ocean exploration, while allowing them the opportunity to share that experience with their peers around the world,” she said.

Science Communication Fellows in 2018 are responsible for engaging students and the public in the wonders of ocean exploration, sharing discoveries from the mission, as well as aspects of daily life aboard a working exploration vessel.

Fellows receive four days of intensive training at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography, and spend two to three weeks aboard E/V Nautilus between June and November, as it explores the Eastern Pacific Ocean.

An equally important aspect of the program includes Fellows bringing the expedition and excitement of ocean exploration back to their home communities after returning from sea.

This often occurs by incorporating their experience into classroom lesson plans, community presentation events, and informal educational opportunities.

Luke Swetland, museum CEO/president said he encouraged Baffa to apply again for the program.

“The Museum family is delighted that Melissa has this important opportunity to work with Dr. Ballard aboard the E/V Nautilus,” he said.

“She will bring with her the museum’s decades-long legacy of studying the health and diversity of the Santa Barbara Channel to the research team on board — what a tremendous collaboration for marine sciences,” he said.

Baffa will participate in live audio commentary and question-and-answer sessions through the Nautilus Live website while aboard the ship; she will also engage in events and activities upon her return.

The public, scientists, educators and students can join Baffa’s adventure while she is at sea via streaming video on www.nautiluslive.org, a 24-hour portal bringing expeditions from the field to onshore audiences via telepresence technology.

The public can also follow the expedition on social media ౼ on Twitter as @EVNautilus and on Facebook and Instagram as @NautilusLive ౼ and through live interactions at partner museums, aquaria, and science centers around the world.

Visitors to the museum’s Sea Center on Stearns Wharf can participate in live ship-to-shore interactions with Baffa on Oct. 27 when they attend the Sea Center’s Tales and Scales Halloween or Kids’ Club events.

Interactions are scheduled for 9:30 a.m. (for Kids’ Club members), and 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. (as a part of the Tales and Scales event).

Audience members will be able to ask Baffa questions and view footage of some of the creepiest deep-sea creatures spotted during Nautilus expeditions.
 
For more, follow the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History’s blog at www.sbnature.org/blog. For more about the Ocean Exploration Trust, visit www.nautiluslive.org.

— Briana Sapp Tivey for Museum of Natural History.