Groundwater Tour

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Its now 5 weeks into the program and I cannot believe how fast time is passing by. These 5 weeks have been very eventful, from educational field trips to dealing with the intense blizzards/snow storms. This past week, as part of our Hydrology class, we were able to go on a tour with Emily McKinnon of the Nantucket Land Council. She lead us around the island to take monthly water level measurements. Then in class we used Darcy’s law (which is an equation that describes the flow of a liquid through a porous material) to find out Nantucket’s groundwater flux, seepage velocity and travel time. With that information we also created a contour map of Nantucket groundwater. It was an amazing learning experience, and I would like to give an special thanks to Emily Mckinnon for the tour.

 

Invasive Species?

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This week, I spent some time learning what it’s like to be a shellfisher. I spent about 2 hours shucking the meat out of scallop shells. I then had to clean and dry the shells for lab testing, only to be advised after completing my Herculean task that I would further have to clean the shells (as well as all the other samples I collect) again at the lab. Apparently this was a preliminary cleaning. Through my labor I learned something of great interest. I found a total of three small crabs inside the scallops. At first this scared me, until I realized that these crabs were dead and their pincers weren’t large enough to inflict any damage. Thanks, evolution! Anyway, I now feel the need to investigate the possible symbiosis between scallops and crabs, if one exists. Maybe these crabs had crawled into the shells after they had been dredged. The possibilities are endless!

Wannacomet Water Company’s Newest Water Tower

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On one of our field trips this week, Mark Willett an engineer for the Wannacomet Water Company, took us on a tour of Nantucket’s newest water tower, which holds 2 million gallons of fresh water that is tapped from Nantucket’s very own pristine aquifer.  Ones of the issues that the island is having is maintaining the aquifer free of pollutants from runoff and septic tank intrusions, so Mark and his team are trying to constantly to monitor the quality of the water.  Another issue that takes place on the island is the influx of tourist during the summer months, which has a huge impact on the water table, and its ability to get recharged.  The aquifers sole source of recharge is rainfall, and the large flock of tourist during the summer months takes a huge toll on the water level of this aquifer.  It was interesting to see inside this tower, i always thought it was full of water on the inside, yet we found out that the cylindrical portion of the tower is hollow, and the electronics and actual pipes are accessible, and Mark even treated us to a fresh cup of water directly pumped from the aquifer…………crisp and clean!!!!!

Here are some pics that I took, various people featured are Timchi Khamdi, Sarah Jacobs, Sophia Bass-Warner, Amelianoaire Atwood, Dr. Frankic, Dr. Douglas, and Jeremy Raynor……….hope y’all enjoy!

5 Weeks & Counting; Onward

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So far, so good! 5 weeks in and the island of Nantucket is abuzz with scientific inquiry and investigation. Us students have begun to delve deeper into our independent study projects, meaning: reading pages of text from myriad sources spanning several disciplines, meeting with local members of the community and visiting experts, and getting down and dirty in the salt marshes, on the seas, and… the dance floor at the Rose & Crown ! Personally, as the one-man communications department at LivingLab Nantucket the limits of possibility have never been so wide open. Nantucket Chronicle, a widely-read digest that functions as a nexus of community discussion, has opened a page for LivingLab where we can share the progress of journey during our time here on Nantucket. There isn’t much yet, but check back soon (and often) for more LivingLab updates [http://www.nantucketchronicle.com/nantucket-soundings/2013/livinglab-nantucket-2013]. There is definitely more to come of this.

In other news, we are rounding the corner of our Hydrology class. A traditional Environmental Science, studying the movement and distribution of water around the globe – and locally – has never seemed so poignant. With Nantucket as a subject, and resources like Mark Willett from Wannacomet Water Company, we have been able to learn and observe how the distribution of water is related to the geologic history of the island and how modern methods of water extraction can impact the essential resource of groundwater. Hydrology has proven itself to be extremely informative, and Ellen is doing a great job of sharing her passion for the subject with us.

Lastly, we saw some MIT kids at Sankaty Lighthouse on Friday with Mass DCR. I wish we had been able to connect and learn about what they are doing on the island; it would be great to collaborate together! Hope to see more academic activity on island, after we pave the way first 😉

 

Squam Swamp Trip 2/21/2013

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Today the group was taken on a plant identification trip through Squam Swamp by Kelly from the Nantucket Conservation Foundation (NCF). We saw some beautiful scenery, learned about the native plants on Nantucket, and even climbed a big Beech Tree. The landscape of Nantucket is so diverse; one day we are exploring the beaches and the next day we are wandering through a forest. It’s incredible and intriguing. Here are some pictures that I took during today’s adventure.

Look up!

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Today during the Hydrology Field Trip to various USGS piezometers on the Island, I noticed some exquisite Hawks flying above. At first we encountered several Red-Tailed Hawks. Later on over a marshy area, I saw a bird with a defined white rump hovering on an updraft. Later on I identified it as a female Northern Harrier Hawk also known as the Marsh Hawk.

Just wanted to post a picture of each Hawk and suggest that while walking around Nantucket: keep binoculars near, and look up!

 

 

Largest Climate Rally Ever

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As you all may know, last Sunday thousands gathered around the white house in the biggest protest regarding climate change ever. Advocates like Bill McKibben (350.org)  and Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune where there speaking up for serious response to a serious global problem. They were arrested for “failure to disperse” as they stood their ground in a peaceful protest of the Keystone XL pipe Line, but not in vain.

 

From Michael Brune’s Blog: Sierra Club

Last night, the president stood before Congress to say this:

… if [you] won’t act soon to protect future generations, I will. I will direct my Cabinet to come up with executive actions we can take, now and in the future, to reduce pollution, prepare our communities for the consequences of climate change, and speed the transition to more sustainable sources of energy.

Snow, Snow Snow….and a little SUNSHINE!

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Brant Point Light Through The Snow

When we first arrived on the island everyone was wondering what the weather was going to be like.  The locals that we asked all said that it gets cold and windy, but it doesn’t snow all that often.  Oh really!?  We had a blizzard the first night capped off by an epic snowball fight in the middle of nowhere (we figured out we actually were when we left a a water tower on a field trip).  It seems that since that night it has snowed fairly significantly at least twice a week.  Now, I’m not saying its a bad thing, it definitely adds a different dynamic to the atmosphere over here.  Snow is preferred over rain any day.  The wind, however is something entirely different.  When it blows, it howls, and it cuts to the bone.  Today is the nicest day since we got here.  Some of us went for a walk on the beach which was very relaxing, even though it was to go take some measurements from a dead dolphin.  I think I will go back outside and enjoy it for a little while longer…..

 

 

Discovering whelks near Polpis Harbor

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On Saturday, Jesse, Rubio, and I explored a few sites for future sampling.  While surveying one site near Medouie Creek, I discovered an interesting object on the shore of Polpis Harbor.  Jesse informed me that this was a displaced egg case of a whelk.  Inside one of the broken capsules were a few of the juveniles that had failed to emerge.  Unsure if these tiny babies still had a chance at survival, I returned the case to the water.  Later at the house, still fascinated by the discovery, I was determined to identify the species of the whelk.  Based on the spiral structure of the egg case string and the thick coin shaped capsules it contained, I determined it to be Busycon carica, or a knobbed whelk.  I look forward to learning more about the species on Nantucket, and helping to preserve them as we work to understand their ecosystems.

Sunday, the Week in the Rearview

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Here we sit, late Sunday night, yet again at the tail end of a storm. Apparently we angered Aeolus and have brought unfavorable winds and weather with us. But this has not hindered our learning. This week was the start of hydrology for us, which was appropriately set back a day by last week’s storm. Friday afternoon we actually got a tour of the island from Mark Willett of the Wannacomet Water Company. He showed us water towers, and explained how they work, in addition to showing us Miacomet Pond. Army Engineers used to open up Miacomet into the ocean in an effort to “filter out” the pond when it got too dirty. The pond is no longer opened into the ocean though. Coincidentally, the ocean temperature at that location was around 41F. This was a really interesting look at the island because it was from a vantage point we haven’t really gotten before. Mark showed us how to look at the island’s water supply and think about how to use it without impacting it on an irreparable level. The shellfish team and I also had a meeting regarding the branding of the NBS this week which has been a big leap in my project. I have my work cut out for me, but it’s going to be a fun and educational challenge.