On March
15-19th I had the opportunity to attend “U.S. Hydro 2015”,
a multi-disciplinary hydrographic conference. I was one of 24 fortunate
students who were selected to take part in the conference as a part of the
student outreach program. The students were from all over the country and their
interests varied from archaeology to electrical engineering. The student’s
experience with hydrographic surveying varied as well. The surveying and
robotic experience I gained as an intern of the CSHEL lab really prepared me
for many talks and workshops I was able to attend during the conference.
However, for some students, this conference was their first experience with
hydrographic surveying. Regardless of the student’s previous
experiences in this field, the outreach program at the conference provided many
opportunities that transformed the student group from generally inquisitive
students, to students with a personal drive to pursue a career in the field of
hydrographic mapping.
One of the first major turning points for the group was during
our trip out on the NOAA survey vessel Bay Hydro II. While the introductory
presentations that were presented by former Center for Coastal and Ocean
Mapping students on day one were informative, the information really clicked
for the many students when they got to see a survey in action. For myself, it
was a great opportunity to see how a full-time survey vessel is outfitted and
to see the multi-beam and side-scan sonar images waterfall simultaneously
across multiple computer screens. At the University of Delaware, we are
fortunate to have a fleet of research vessels that are multi-platform and
multidisciplinary such as the R/V Joanne Daiber, but because it is used for a
wide variety of scientific endeavors, we do not have the luxury of a permanent
surveying set-up, so it was interesting to see how the process could be
streamlined. It was a unique opportunity that I believe inspired a lot of the
students in the program.
The student outreach program was an amazing opportunity that put
students in direct communication with members at the top of the field. From
private industry such as Dave Millar from Fugro Pelagos, to government agencies
such as Captain Brian Connon from the United States Navy, students were
encouraged to ask candid questions in order to fully understand what it takes
to succeed in the field of hydrographic mapping and they were very willing to
offer up useful advice, as well as many unique sea stories.
Beyond meeting some of the top leaders in the industry we were
also able to sit in on talks that are at the cutting edge of the field.
Students were given the introductory lesson on hydrographic mapping, but it was
also great to see what was currently being done and where the field was going
in the future. There was even a talk by Karen Hart from Caris about increasing
collaboration between the fields of oceanography and hydrographic mapping. This
was particularly poignant to me because the Robotic Discoveries Lab utilizes
the same data acquisition techniques, but instead of making nautical charts,
the lab uses the data collected to investigate our oceans. So, it was great to
see another researcher compare and contrast the two fields and hopefully it
will increase the collaboration between oceanography and hydrographic mapping
and thus, lead to better science and nautical charts.
In conclusion, the student outreach program was an amazing
experience that every student remotely interested in the field should apply to
because it is a great opportunity to see all the different facets of the
industry. Personally, it strengthened my resolve to learn everything I can
about the field and hopefully, pursue a long career in the field of
hydrographic mapping." -Ken Haulsee
