2018

I'm most exited to dive in the complex and very unique environment in Hawaii. Hawaii has a very diverse ecosystem, which many species are specific to only Hawaii and it will be interesting to see these species functioning in the environment. A specie which I am especially interested in is the Manta Rays. The rays will be extremely fun...

Today was great. We started off this morning by visiting a beach and doing a beach cleanup. Before we started the cleanup, a few volunteers talked to us about how to find Reef friendly sunscreen. There are plenty of sunscreen brands that claim to be Reef safe. However, they aren't. We explored the beach in search of trash. After...

What I am most excited for on this trip is the first dive. After hours of the online dive class, followed by two weeks of putting those skills I learned to the test, immediately trailed by two more weeks of in class learning all to properly prepare me for this first dive. Gladly I can say that all...

Today was the beginning of the first Jesuit Marine Biology trip to Hawaii. After waking up at a crisp 4:00 am, I arrived with the rest of the team, besides JJ, at 5:45 to move through security and get onto the plane at 7:30. After stopping in San Francisco, we continued our journey to Kona. Rising from my nap,...

At around 9:30 we left for another tour of the NELHA facilities. This time, we learned about their air conditioning system. In their, buildings, they create a convection current that pushes warm air into a gap in the roof, that then moves out of the building. Beneath the building, in the crawl space, they draw in cold, deep sea...

Today we woke up bright and early so that we could go on the zodiac tour. On the zodiac tour we saw so many different types of animals. First we saw pilot whales. Pilot whales are sexually dimorphic which means that they can change their gender depending on their size and other attributes. We also observed a baby pilot...

Today was a very action packed day. We first went to NELHA, which is an organization that specializes in OTEC and other technologies. Then we went to a local school based around marine life. The school is very unique because the students learn by creating projects. The projects include efficient energy proposals, which are so close to a real...

The plane touched down at KOA today around two this afternoon. We met up with our hosts, the Hansens, and we drove about thirty minutes to where we're staying. The weather was very foggy today. There was lots of vog in the sky. Once we all got settled in our rooms, I went for a swim, and then had...

I'm looking forward to spending some time on the big island this summer. Last year in Virgin Gorda, I had so much fun on my dives and snorkels that I have decided to come back for another round. This year I think I am most excited for our dive with manta rays and the black water dive. While I have...