The crew of Laridae are very excited to be part of the Indigo V Expeditions Citizen Oceanographer research program.  The Indigo V Expedition program was founded by oceanographers and sailors in an attempt to collect high-quality oceanographic data on water quality and microbial life from very remote places in the oceans.  Large oceanographic research vessels are very expensive to bring to all corners of the oceans, so the team at Indigo V have found a way to outfit voyaging sailors with high-quality scientific tools.  The sailors collect data while they are roaming the oceans for a small fraction of the cost of running a large research vessel.  The research team at Indigo V Expeditions have been making important scientific discoveries and getting recognized widely in the scientific community.  They have published a paper on the Citizen Oceanography concept and presented at the White House!

The Siegel crew on Laridae were recently interviewed to become one of the official Citizen Oceanographer Explorers with the Indigo V team.  We look forward to working more closely with them soon!

The origins of Citizen Oceanography. (Credit: Indigo V Expeditions)

The Marine Microbiome – tiny, marine micro-planktons are the most abundant organisms in the ocean, yet they are the most understudied.  (Credit: Indigo V Expeditions)