Open Ship "Maria S. Merian" & OSD Citizen Science

Submitted by anna on Thu, 2013-09-26 15:52
The state-of-the-art research vessel Maria S. Merian was designed to perform research at the ice boarders of the arctic sea as well as the open sea worldwide. Named after Maria Sibylla Merian  this multidisciplinary research platform is equipped with outstanding facilities which allow the use of all modern methods of investigation of the sea-bottom, the water and the atmosphere.  
On 21./22. September 2013, the Maria S. Merian anchored in Bremen and was open to the public. Around 3000 young and old visitors enjoyed a diverse program of guided tours of the ship, activities for children, movies and lectures, exhibitions and much more. Scientists from the Center for Marine Environmental Sciences (MARUM), Environmental Physics (IUP), the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology (MPIMM), the Alfred Wegener Institute of Polar and Marine Research (AWI) and Jacobs University Bremen were present and explained how samples are taken and examined, how underwater robots work and how bacteria can survive in the ocean. 
The Micro B3 prject and the Ocean Sampling Day (OSD) were represented by Frank Oliver Glöckner, Julia Schnetzer, Michael Richter and Anna Klindworth. It was a great opportunity to introduce the OSD citizen science project and raise awareness for the importance of marine microorganisms in times of climate change. We enjoyed fruitful dialogues with many interested citizens and were stunned by childrens creative drawings of marine microbes.  
      
 
Kids drawings of marine microbes from the Open Ship Day can be found at www.my-osd.org.