Oregon Coast's Newport Features Hatfield Science Day Saturday

Published 04/06/2017 at 4:03 AM PDT - Update 04/06/2017 at 4:23 AM PDT
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff

(Newport, Oregon) – Science and all the fun of it – and that tingly rush when you get amazed by it – are all on the display at the Hatfield Marine Science in Newport this Saturday. April 8 is the date of this central Oregon coast attraction's annual Marine Science Day, where visitors can get behind-the-scenes peeks at its laboratories, interact with student scientists and find out more about the marine research that goes on at the much-revered facility.

Marine Science Day is free, going from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. There will be interactive, hands-on exhibits and you can talk to research from OSU and other federal and state agencies.

This time around, the theme is “Celebrating Student Research,” where those immersed in learning at the center become the teachers and researchers. This new crop of scientists will be presenting exhibits on ocean noise, seagrass ecology, fisheries, marine mammals, ocean acidification, and oyster aquaculture. The always mind-bending research being done here on undersea volcanic vents will also be looked at. You'll get to dig deeper into research diving with the OSU Dive Team, check out tiny plankton through a microscope, and tour a genetics lab looking into the genome of various creatures. Also, NOAA Corps is celebrating its 100th year and there will be exhibits on this milestone.

A broad range of special activities for children is on tap through Oregon Sea Grant and Oregon Coast Aquarium. The Oregon Coast STEM Hub and representatives from OSU and Oregon Coast Community College will also be available to engage K-12 students interested in pursuing marine studies.

Some of the special events include:

A public feeding of the octopus Opal in the Visitors Center will be at 1 p.m.

A lecture at 2:30 p.m. by José R. Marín Jarrín, Charles Darwin Foundation, Galápagos, Ecuador, on “From Hatfield to the Charles Darwin Foundation: the importance of student research experiences.”

The opening celebration happens at 10:30 a.m. for the Experimental Seawater Facility, funded by the National Science Foundation.

Above: undersea volcanic vents off the coast photographed by the Hatfield.

Also featured: you can learn more about OSU's Marine Studies Initiative and its heady, lofty goals, as it looks to have a whopping 500 students living on the facility grounds by 2025.

Bob Cowen, director of the Hatfield Marine Science Center, said this is a perfect time to hold an open house of this famed Oregon coast attraction, as new research and teaching buildings are in the works as well as fundraising efforts to get them underway.

“Marine Science Day offers a great opportunity to understand why we are so excited about OSU’s Marine Studies Initiative,” he said. “It is also a chance to learn about our scientists – who we are, what we do, and how we, as university, state and federal partners, work together and with communities to better understand and solve our marine and coastal challenges.”

The Hatfield is located in the South Beach district of Newport, southeast of the Highway 101 bridge over Yaquina Bay. More information on the event is available online at http://hmsc.oregonstate.edu/marinescienceday - Newport Hotels for this event - Where to eat - Map and Virtual Tour

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