Marine, geoscience, engineering students get hands-on experience aboard CSIRO ship

Students from 16 Australian universities set sail from Hobart on Saturday for a unique scientific adventure aimed at developing the country’s next generation of marine experts. The 10-day circumnavigation of Tasmania aboard the CSIRO’s flagship research vessel Investigator will offer participants invaluable at-sea experience through an innovative program named CAPSTAN. The educational initiative is supported by a network of leading Australian research and industry partners to address gaps in how applied marine science education is delivered across Australia. CAPSTAN director Dr Pier van der Merwe, from the University of Tasmania’s Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, said the voyage would allow students to contribute to real-world research programs, and even assist in the search for a historic shipwreck off Tasmania’s North-West Coast. The 30-strong group – whose academic backgrounds include biological oceanography, geoscience and engineering – will undertake hands-on training with the Investigator’s equipment and systems, and have the opportunity to observe marine ecosystems with their own eyes. “They can feel cold wind on their face and relate that to sea surface temperature data streaming into the ship, or experience the sun rise over the horizon and watch photosynthetically active radiation sensors detect that,” Dr van der Merwe said. “Being at sea is where it all makes sense for marine science students.” Voyage manager Dr Ben Arthur from CSIRO said the 30-strong group of students and trainers would be involved in collecting data and samples that supported research projects that were addressing real-world challenges. “The training program is designed to be like the multidisciplinary research we deliver during each of our science voyages so that students get a wide exposure to science operations at sea,” Dr Arthur said. Related stories: Clean energy TAFE Centre of Excellence to be built in Tas | EXCLUSIVE: UTAS to disestablish research centre, College of Arts and Law | Unis to build AUKUS workforce “They’ll get a bit of everything and even receive training in some traditional maritime skills such as knot-tying.” With women making up two thirds of students on the voyage, Kim Schwindke said she was most looking forward to working within a collaborative learning environment involving trainers, technicians, crew, and other students. “With everyone on the voyage coming from such diverse backgrounds, and with the extensive experience from those on board, it feels like a huge opportunity to bring together different disciplines and perspectives, and build relationships and shared knowledge,” Ms Schwindke said. “It really feels like that will be so powerful in shaping the future of our oceans.” The upcoming voyage represents the first in the CAPSTAN program following the completion of a pilot program from 2017 to 2020. Voyage Chief Scientist Dr Georgia Nester described the 10-day trip as a rare opportunity to mentor and train future marine scientists in an immersive research environment. “It goes beyond learning techniques – students are fully immersed in marine science, from designing research questions to working with advanced scientific equipment and analysis tools,” Dr Nester said. Read more: