Description

The Seacoast Science Center will celebrate World's Ocean Day (WOD) on Sunday, June 8. An internationally recognized day to honor the world's ocean and celebrate all it provides, the Center's WOD celebration provides a great opportunity for families to have an exciting shared learning experience focused on the important role ocean health plays in our everyday life. You can learn all about the Center's new drifter at 11 a.m. In partnership with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution scientists and NOAA?s Northeast Fisheries Science Center, the Center will deploy its own ocean-going drifter. Like a high-tech "message-in-a-bottle", the drifter will ride ocean currents and use a satellite beacon and Global Positioning System receiver to report its location in real-time. Participants will help assemble the drifter, prepare it for deployment, and learn how to keep tabs on the drifter and its data transmissions. At noon, have a Close Encounter and get hands on with a moon snail, little skate, and chain cat shark! Bring your rain boots and join the outdoor tide pooling program at 1:30 p.m. Center naturalists will teach about intertidal ecology as they lead guided exploration in the tide pools just outside the Center's doors. At 3:30 p.m., learn all about the iconic North American lobster and discover the story behind the Center's blue, calico, and four clawed lobsters. SSC President Wendy Lull will present an informative 45-minute film, Ocean Frontiers II, at 2:30 p.m. The film features New England residents who come together to discuss sustaining ocean resources, promoting ocean health, and sustaining their livelihoods. Lull will lead a discussion after the film. In addition to special WOD programs, the Center is launching three new interactive exhibits geared toward primary age kids to help deepen an understanding of marine science. Build-a-Fish is an interactive station that allows children to explore the basics of fish anatomy and adaptation with a variety of fish anatomy pieces. The Bioluminescence Box replicates bioluminescent algae through an interactive viewing experience. Float a Boat allows children to experience and learn the principals of buoyancy.