Adventure awaits visitors to the University of Delaware's Coast Day festival, Sunday, October 1, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., at the Hugh R. Sharp Campus in Lewes! Now in its 24th year, Coast Day celebrates ocean resources and showcases the University's marine research efforts. The award-winning event is organized by the UD Sea Grant College Program and the Graduate College of Marine Studies.
"This year, our theme is 'Chart Your Course for an Ocean Adventure,' and we've developed dozens of activities to increase awareness, understanding, and appreciation of the ocean and its importance to our lives," says Dr. Carolyn Thoroughgood, dean of the college and Sea Grant director. "From making our weather, to providing food, jobs, transportation, recreation, and medicine -- the ocean is a resource critical to all of us."
A highlight of Coast Day 2000 will be a ceremony marking the 30th anniversary of both the College of Marine Studies and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Visitors can also explore a special exhibit on UD marine research being conducted in "extreme" environments, attend a lecture series on the status of the Inland Bays, and have fun answering questions in the quiz game "Who Wants to be a Millionaire Oceanographer?"
The special exhibit "Going to Extremes," in 104 Cannon Lab, will feature UD marine research in two of the most demanding habitats on earth: the deep sea near super-hot hydrothermal vents, and the icy waters surrounding Antarctica. The work of Drs. Craig Cary and George Luther and their research teams will be featured in the "hot" realm, along with a walk-through mockup of the famous submarine Alvin. Dr. Adam Marsh will introduce visitors to the vast life under the Antarctic ice through striking displays and hands-on exhibits.
At 11:20 a.m., a special lecture series -- "Inland Bays Water Quality: Science and Solutions" -- will begin at the Virden Center. Dr. William Ullman, College of Marine Studies, will present "Sources and Transport of Nutrients to the Inland Bays," and Dr. Kent Price, College of Marine Studies, will speak on "Nutrient Enrichment in the Inland Bays: Impacts on Fish and Shellfish." Ed Lewandowski, Center of the Inland Bays, will present "Center for the Inland Bays Research and Demonstration Program." The series will conclude with Nicholas DiPasquale, DNREC Secretary, presenting the "Current State of Inland Bays Watershed Management Programs." The audience will have the opportunity to ask questions during a panel discussion at the conclusion of the series.
Two additional lectures, featuring UD marine scientists, will be presented in Room 202, Cannon Lab. At 1 p.m., Dr. Mohsen Badiey will present "The Sounds of Science: The Delaware Bay High-Frequency Acoustics Experiment." Maggie Anguelova will speak on "Oceanic Bubbles and Climate" at 2:30 p.m. Immediately preceding Badiey's lecture and following Anguelova's, a special exhibit on Badiey's high-frequency acoustics experiment will be displayed.
Everybody will have the opportunity to be a contestant on the quiz show "Who Wants to be a Millionaire Oceanographer?" Guest host Karen Savidge, a UD marine researcher, will ask questions about the ocean, and the winners will receive prizes. This fun and educational program will be held four times, in half-hour intervals, starting at 1 p.m. in the Schooner Room of the Virden Center.
Visitors who want to have their well-water tested for nitrates may bring their water sample to UD scientist Joe Scudlark, in 125B Cannon Lab, for analysis. The sample should be collected in a small, clean bottle from the cold-water faucet -- if possible, from a location closest to the wellhead, such as an outside garden spigot. For results to be accurate, the sample should be refrigerated at home and transported on ice during the trip to Coast Day.
Seafood is always on the menu at Coast Day. At 11 a.m., eight finalists in the crab cake cook-off will begin their quest to make "Delaware's Best Crab Cakes." Judging will begin at noon, and the winner will be announced at 1 p.m. Back by popular demand is the annual Seafood Chowder Challenge -- a friendly competition between the First State Chefs' Association and the Delmarva Chefs and Cooks Association. Coast Day visitors will be invited to taste the two chowders and vote for their favorite. The "People's Choice Award" will be presented at 3:15 p.m.
For hungry visitors, a variety of fresh-cooked seafood -- from buffalo shrimp to seafood pizza -- will be offered for sale by local vendors. Seafood seminars featuring salmon to seafood wraps will be held in the Virden Center throughout the day.
In the harbor, the following vessels will be open for tours: NOAA's 56-foot survey ship Bay Hydrographer, the Delaware Bay and River Cooperative's 166-foot DELRIVER oil skimmer, New Jersey's tall ship A. J. Meerwald, and a Coast Guard vessel. The Coast Guard will demonstrate an air/sea rescue at 2:30 p.m.
At the boat show sponsored by the Delaware Marine Trades Association, children who sign a safe boating pledge will receive a free life jacket. The giveaway will begin at 11 a.m. and continue until supplies last.
An abbreviated schedule follows. For a complete schedule, pick up a program when you arrive at Coast Day or download it at www.ocean.udel.edu. Admission is free; parking is $2. For more information, contact the UD Marine Communications Office at (302) 831-8083.
COAST DAY 2000--ABBREVIATED SCHEDULE OF ACTIVITIES
HIGHLIGHTS
Ceremony: Happy 30th Anniversary, UD College of Marine Studies and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration! (11:30 a.m.) Celebrate research and education on behalf of the ocean and all who depend on it. Front Porch, Cannon Lab.
Special Exhibit: Going to Extremes! (open all day) Join UD marine scientists in exploring two of the most demanding habitats on the planet: super-hot hydrothermal vents in the deep sea, and the icy waters around Antarctica. 104 Cannon Lab.
Children's Activity: Build a Blue Whale (1, 2, 3, 4 p.m.) Kids will have a great time assembling a 100-foot blue whale. Main parking lot.
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire Oceanographer? (1 4 p.m.) The host will ask contestants questions about the ocean, and the winners will earn prizes. Virden Center, Schooner Rm.
Coast Day Crab Cake Cook-Off (11 a.m. 1 p.m.) See eight contestants compete for the title of "Delaware's Best Crab Cakes." Tent near Seafood Pavilion.
The Great Seafood Chowder Challenge (Noon 2:45 p.m.) Taste the chowders by the First State Chefs' Association and the Delmarva Chefs and Cooks Association and cast your vote for the "People's Choice Award." Tent near Seafood Pavilion.
Ship Tours & Related Activities
Tour the following vessels in the harbor:
* U.S. Coast Guard vessel
* 56-foot NOAA ship Bay Hydrographer
* 110-foot tall ship A. J. Meerwald
* 166-foot DELRIVER oil skimmer
Air-Sea Rescue Demo. -- 2:30 p.m., Harbor
Delaware Marine Trades Association Boat Show and Children's Life Jacket Giveaway (while supplies last) Near Seafood Pavilion (starts at 11 a.m.)
Research Demonstrations/Hands-On Activities
Ask the Oceanographer
Great Crab Race
Making Waves
Blue Crab Feeding
Test Your Drinking Water for Nitrates
Jellyfish
Halophyte Lab Tours
Down Under: Life on the Bottom
Old Salts in the Sea: Longevity of Various Marine Organisms
Oxygen for Everyone
El Niño
CISNet: Collaborative Research in the Inland Bays
Impact of Groundwater Input to Delaware Bay
Fisheries Research
Ocean Internal Wave Data Base
Ocean History and Climate Change
Remote Sensing of the Seafloor
Using Radar to Measure Ocean Currents Near the Coast
Ocean Mixing
Marine Critter Touch Tanks
Marine Lectures
Inland Bays Water Quality: Science and Solutions
(Lectures and Panel Discussion)
Virden Center, Harbor Room
11:20 a.m. -- Introduction by Joe Farrell, UD Sea Grant
11:30 a.m. -- Sources and Transport of Nutrients
by Bill Ullman, UD College of Marine Studies
11: 45 a.m. -- Nutrient Enrichment: Impacts on Fish and Shellfish
by Kent Price, UD College of Marine Studies
Noon -- Center for the Inland Bays Research and
Demonstration Program by Ed Lewandowski,
Center for the Inland Bays
12:15 p.m. -- Current State of Inland Bays Watershed
Management Programs by Nicholas DiPasquale,
DNREC Secretary
12:30 p.m. -- Questions from Audience
Virden Center, Schooner Room
11:30 a.m. -- Whales and Sea Turtles of the Mid-Atlantic
by the MERR Institute, Lewes, DE
202 Cannon Lab
1:00 p.m. -- The Sounds of Science: An Overview of the
Delaware Bay High-Frequency Acoustics Experiment
by Mohsen Badiey, UD College of Marine Studies
2:30 p.m. -- Oceanic Bubbles and Climate
by Maggie Anguelova, UD College of Marine Studies
Seafood Seminars
Virden Center, Pilot Room
11:45 a.m. -- Quick and Easy Salmon Dishes
by Edward Hennessey, Delaware Tech., Stanton, DE
1 p.m. -- Classic Clams by Guy Simmons, Mid-Atlantic Foods, Pocomoke, MD
2:15 p.m. -- Flounder and Bluefish and Crabs, Oh My! What Consumers Need to Know about Seafood Safety by Doris Hicks, UD Sea Grant Marine Advisory Service
3:30 p.m. -- Seafood Wraps by Bob Davis, Lighthouse Restaurant, Bishopville, MD
Ongoing Activities: Exhibits, films, children's activities, seafood (seafood pizza, seafood fajitas, Buffalo shrimp, fish 'n' chips, crab cakes, crab chowder, crab bisque, live lobsters), other food, nautical crafts show, music ("Big Hat, No Cattle"), porthole prize drawings, and more!