An amphipod that couldn’t escape our nets.

Figure 1: This screenshot shows the controlling page for running model animations. The boxes indicate areas for which zoomed in animations are available. The images at right are individual frames from temperature and salinity animations.

Creating Partnerships Between Researchers, Teachers and Students: Comparing Model Output to Data Collected by Field Trips on Puget Sound.

Christian P. Sarason1, Frederick R. (Fritz) Stahr1, and Mitsuhiro Kawase2; 1Ocean Inquiry Project, P.O. Box 23189, Seattle, WA 98102; 2School of Oceanography, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195

email: info@oceaninquiry.org

Puget Sound is a complicated estuary and an excellent place to learn about oceanographic concepts. Since 1999, Ocean Inquiry Project (OIP) has involved introductory level students in field-based research experiences on Puget Sound. OIP participants are primarily community college oceanography students, who sample a number of monitoring stations using a CTD, plankton nets, secchi disk, etc. Recently, OIP created a web-based system for exploring a numerical model of Puget Sound (POM model by M. Kawase, Univ. of Washington) as part of a partnership program called the Puget Sound Marine Environmental Modeling (PSMEM) group. During the Spring of 2003, OIP used a variety of computer simulations in concert with field-based oceanographic activities. Figures 1 and 2 show a comparison of model runs for OIP cruise 39, a field trip run with University of Washington, Tacoma, oceanography students. For an excellent summary of their field efforts, see: http://courses.washington.edu/uwtoce03/.

When fully implemented, our computer-based and field-based curricula will be evaluated to see which approach, or combination, helps students learn best about Puget Sound and oceanography; our first study designed to test this question is slated to begin in Fall Quarter of 2003.

Introduction

Ocean Inquiry Project Concept

Learning throughInquiry

Field Experiences

Stimulating Science ExperiencesPositive Science

Experiences

Interaction with

ScientistsHands-on Learning

Multi-disciplinary Learning

Experiences

RESEARCH COMMUNITY NEEDS

Outreach and Public Education

Increased sampling resolution in time

and space

Validation of

Models

Water QualityMonitoring

Teaching

Opportunities for

Graduate Students

Watch for

Invasive Species

Secchi Depth Measurements

EDUCATION COMMUNITY NEEDS

Catalyst:OIP

Stir Well

EVERYBODY WINS!!

Public Interest in Research

Fun &

excitement

about Scientific

Discoveries

Effective Observations

Sense of Ownership of Puget Sound

Increases Likelihood of Good Stewardship

Knowledge of Scientific Process

Connections between

Students and ResearchersIncreased Sampling Rates

Students get a close-up view of some benthic animals.

Ocean Inquiry Project is a 501(c)(3) organization and all donations are tax deductible. We are seeking project funds, ship time, instrumentation, and a vessel. For more information about our programs please see our web site at: http://www.oceaninquiry.org/This work is supported by NOPP grant number N00014-02-1-0502. Many thanks to Cheryl Greengrove and her students at UW, Tacoma for their excellent work.

Future Directions

FLOOD SLACK EBB

Development Guidelines for Model Exploration InterfaceThe interface should:

Be easy and intuitive to use.

Allow user-driven inquiry.

Illustrate time-dependent phenomena at multiple temporal scales via animations.

Allow comparison of model data to in-situ data collected in the field.

Animation Frames

Model and Data integration through

Environmental Informatics Bloodstream

XML tagged environmental data

OIP students collect data in the field; send to bloodstream PSMEM models assimilate data

into next model run

PSMEM models send model ouput to bloodstream

OIP students view latest model results;

adjust sampling plans for the future accordingly

source

source

sink

sink

sink

CTD cast

CTD cast

Model

run

Mod

el

run

Historical

data

Hist

oric

alda

ta

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

27.0 28.0 29.0 30.0 31.0

Station 1

Station 2

Station 3

modelstation 1

modelstation 2

modelstation 3

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

8 9 10 11 12 13

Station 1

Station 2

Station 3

modelstation 1

modelstation 2

modelstation 3

Model vs. Field DataFigure 2: Plots of temperature and salinity vs. depth for both field data collected with OIP’s CTD and model data for the same day. Stations 1 to 3 form an east west line across the mouth of Commencement Bay (see Figure 1.) Station 1 is located on the western edge of Commencement Bay; station 3 is on the east side.

Model data was created by averaging temperature and salinity values at each depth for the entire day corresponding to the field data (May 9, 2003). The error bars shown are 1 standard deviation for this time period, and as expected are largest near the surface. Error bars for the salinity model data are roughly the size of the point plotted. Field data was collected and worked up by University of Washington, Tacoma, Oceanography students on OIP Cruise 39.

Discrepancies between model and field data are most likely a result of the boundary condition applied at the mouth of Puget Sound; year 2000 data was used, which may not be historically representative.

Field Stations

Teachers can viewlatest model runs

in class before getting into the field.

Temperature (°C)

Salinity (psu)