Challenging Habitat
Killiney Beach

Sunny Days in Ireland

Once more, I joined the sail training tall ship Pelican of London for STEM at SEA education voyages with Sail Training Ireland youngsters on board. We have a little more time than usual in Dublin and we make… Read More

Aqqa Rosing-Asvid - Visit Greenland, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

STEAM Education Link XI

Now here is a thought: Fishy breath, trampling and carnage are good things (in the right context).

Agreement is Hope

A new treaty to protect the oceans has been agreed upon by the United Nations after more than a decade of negations and a marathon of talks in the last few days. If ratification can be achieved, the… Read More

View over the bowsprit of Pelican of London.

The (Hidden) Cost of Travel

I recently travelled in the Caribbean for Seas Your Future and here is my attempt to figure out my additional carbon footprint of this trip.

The atmosphere - ocean interface, where gas exchange takes place to establish and maintain equilibrium. (c) C Braungardt 2022

…nothing such as a free lunch…

For many decades, we’ve released too much carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and for some decades, scientists have developed and tested geoengineering solutions for the consequences of increased concentrations of greenhouse gases in our… Read More

Biodiversity – COP15

the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) state that around 50,000 wild species are used by humans through hunting, fishing, gathering, logging and harvesting, as well as observing. Around 20% of humanity rely on wild species for income and… Read More

Gannets above Bass Rock, Scotland (c) C Braungardt

Head in the Clouds!

We are celebrating the 250th birthday of Luke Howard, the man who named the clouds. Besides studying languages, pharmacy and natural sciences, he was an ‘amateur’ meteorologist. The Royal Meteorological Society is marking his contribution to the field… Read More

A giant deep-sea isopod, Bathynomus giganteus, with an antipatharian whip coral, Stichopathes sp., in the foreground, seen during the Gulf of Mexico 2017 expedition. While the isopod imaged here was spotted during exploration of a site dubbed “Okeanos Ridge,” Image courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, Gulf of Mexico 2017. "Giant Isopod" by NOAA Ocean Exploration & Research is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

STEAM Education Link VIII

The National Oceanography Centre in Southampton, UK, has a great outreach programme that includes a series of podcasts called Into the Blue.

Samples of bryozoan colonies on kelp under the microscope. (c) C Braungardt

Citizen Science along Sail Training

Coastal cruises provide many opportunities for undertaking citizen science projects that contribute valuable data to conservation organisations, such as the Marine Conservation Society and the Sea Watch Foundation.

Ice fall at glacier front

STEAM Education Link II

Today’s STEAM link relates to an all-too-familiar phrase in the context of climate change: “…faster than…”

Antarctic Quest 21 Expedition Team on a break

Carbon Footprint for Antarctic Expedition Revisited

I have concluded the carbon footprint estimation for the Antarctic Quest 21 expedition and am happy to announce that the second stage of offsetting a total of 50 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent has also been completed. Download… Read More

Key ring featuring stainless steel tag reading "We are one crew. This is our watch." and sling made from inshore lifeboat material cut-off.

This is Our Watch

A couple of days ago I had the privilege to be hosted by the RNLI in Newlyn, Cornwall, for a visit at the new and the old Penlee Lifeboat stations. We were shown around their Severn Class all… Read More