Funded by the Julia R. Brown Education and Research Fund, MAS Marine Biodiversity & Conservation (MBC) student Shailey Heller participated in the One Ocean Field Course—a hands‑on, interdisciplinary climate‑action program organized with the University of Bergen and sailed on the historic tall ship Statsraad Lehmkuhl. The course is part of the year‑long One Ocean Expedition, which traverses the Atlantic, Mediterranean, Arctic, Pacific and Caribbean seas, stopping at more than 20 ports across three continents. During the 21‑day journey from Ponta Delgada (Azores) to Nuuk (Greenland), Shailey’s group investigated the historic Challenger ocean temperature dataset, comparing rope‑deployed measurements with modern CTD profiles. In this post, Shailey describes her shipboard experience and how it deepened her ocean science expertise, forged lasting global collaborations, and reinforced her commitment to interdisciplinary climate solutions.
The purpose of this climate action course was to gather international masters and PhD students from different disciplines to discuss climate change while sailing across the Atlantic. The twenty-one day voyage from the Azores to Greenland brought together forty-one students from Norway, America, Portugal, the Azores, Germany, Denmark, and other countries. Together, we conducted ocean science, discussed complicated political issues, and learned to sail a Norwegian tall ship, Statsraad Lehmkuhl.
We were split into six different project groups. My group was the Historical Ocean Data Project. Our focus was on discovering the error in the Challenger data set, an oceanographic data set from the 1800s that is used as a historical baseline for detecting changing ocean temperatures at depth. Our purpose was to recreate these measurements using almost the exact same method as the ship, a hemp rope with a temperature and depth (TD) device. Then, we would compare these measurements to the conductivity, temperature, and depth (CTD) measurements to assess the error in their methodology.
This project presented its own set of challenges with currents, drift, and other factors. In the end, we were able to make six sampling stops collecting water mass data from subtropical to polar water. The data showed that the Challenger data set is relatively accurate despite their minimalist approach. Next, we plan to compare more of the Challenger data set to Argo float data to create a more robust report that we will turn in at the end of August.
This experience was extremely impactful for me. I got to work with water masses and CTD profiles deepening my understanding of our changing ocean. However, the most impactful aspect of the course was all of the connections I made with my fellow students and professors. I made lifelong friends and colleagues with people from around the world. Our differing backgrounds and experiences reiterate the importance of having diverse perspectives collaborating on complex environmental issues. Every person had a unique insight into addressing climate change with policy, science, and people proving that solutions need to be interdisciplinary to be successful.
The most striking thing I learned was when we took a temperature depth profile of the Labrador Sea Water (LSW). This water mass was almost completely uniform throughout the entire profile because it is a formation water mass that is well mixed. This water mass is important because it has low salinity and high oxygen content. Through convention currents it helps ventilate the deep ocean while influencing global climate patterns.
Thank you again for this opportunity! I truly feel that I have been impacted on a deeper level than I can express with words. The friends and experiences from this program will follow me throughout the rest of my life giving me hope in the future. I believe that we can fix climate change, and I met forty-one other students that feel the same. I plan to continue to seek interdisciplinary solutions for climate change for the rest of my career thanks to this course.
Blog content and images provided by Shailey Heller – thank you!