The Marine Science Institute (ICM-CSIC) opens its laboratories to Catalan students to build an oceanographic buoy. The activity is part of the project "MARduino: my buoy, our data and the sea", co-financed by the FECYT (Fundación Española para la Ciencia Y la Tecnología) and led by Carine Simon from the Biooptic group of the Marine Science Institute.
The Marine Science Institute (ICM-CSIC) opens its laboratories to Catalan students to build an oceanographic buoy. The activity is part of the project "MARduino: my buoy, our data and the sea", co-financed by the FECYT (Fundación Española para la Ciencia Y la Tecnología) and led by Carine Simon from the Biooptic group of the Marine Science Institute.
From today, the 2nd of June and during 3 more sessions (3,10 and 11 of June), students of High School (bachillerato) will realise these workshops at the ICM where they will learn how to build an oceanographic buoy with the DIY (Do-It-Yourself) philosophy and with home and very low cost components. These buoys will allow to measure the transparency of the sea water, a parameter indicating its quality.
The MARduino project will also be part of the Barcelona Science Festival (Fiesta de la Ciencia) of this year, where a family workshop and an installation of the buoys made by the pupils will be organised. The installations will be near the swimming area of the Cultural Forum.
The concept of these buoys was created in the framework of the European program CITCLOPS (www.citclops.eu) in which the ICM participate with 11 other partners from 5 different countries and which is led by Jaume Piera, researcher of the Physical and Technological Oceanography Department, in the ICM.
The concept of these buoys was created in the framework of the European program CITCLOPS (www.citclops.eu) in which the ICM participate with 11 other partners from 5 different countries and which is led by Jaume Piera, researcher of the Physical and Technological Oceanography Department, in the ICM.
CITCLOPS also developed other low-cost sensors to measure optical properties of the sea water, such as colour or fluorescence. These parameters are indicators of the impacts of residual water, dissolved organic matter, load of sediments or biological activity. They help scientists and managers to define emergency plans or take measures such as closing a bay in case of red tide.
Marduino has a facebook page where the whole process can be followed: https://www.facebook.com/marduinoproject