Secchi Project

[mausgras]

Have you ever been staring into the water and wondering what to do on those slow becalmed days on that long ocean crossing or short coastal cruise?

I thought then that fellow cruising forum members might be interested in helping researchers from Plymouth university Marine institute in the UK see what's happening to the oceans phytoplankton.

Algae in the oceans play an incredibly important role in the global ecosystem and it is important for scientists to understand the dynamics of the system, especially how it relates to global warming.

The yachting fraternity can help by making some simple observations and recording the data with a smartphone or tablet app. The information then gets uploaded next time you connect to the Internet.

Anyway, you can read more about this citizen science initiative on
blogs.smithsonianmag.com/science/2013/03/vanishing-marine-algae-can-be-monitored-from-a-boat-with-your-smartphone/

[boatman61]

Excellent idea... might even find out what exactly the little things are that have facinated me on days like these peering into the shaded depths.. animated multi coloured little balls.. what resemble minature stick insects, spiders.. that was crossing the Sargasso..
Whether I remember is another matter..