The East Coast by Sea and Land: Ocean Gliders & Beetles in the Pine Barrens

Guests: Oscar Schofield, Scott Glenn, and Bob Williams

A new technology is changing oceanography and the nature of ocean research: gliders. These small unmanned vessels can be sent on lengthy missions under the sea and have enabled scientists to collective amounts of data that were once unimaginable. As a result, they have started to explore a variety of new research questions. In fact, scientists across the East Coast, coordinated by the Mid-Atlantic Regional Association Coastal Ocean Observing System (MARACOOS), just wrapped up Gliderpalooza 2013: a major experiment in which numerous organizations deployed gliders from Canada to Georgia to collect a wide array of data on fisheries to ocean conditions. In this hour of Radio Times, we’ll hear from OSCAR SCHOFIELD and SCOTT GLENN, co-directors of the Coastal Ocean Observation Lab at Rutgers University, on the technology, Gliderpalooza, and what the ocean gliders mean for the future of ocean research. Then, we’ll turn to BOB WILLIAMS, professional forester, on the beetles that have been causing trouble in the Pine Barrens in southern New Jersey.