#MarineScience - Applications are now invited for the Atlantic Summer School 2014 to be held on board Irish national research vessel RV Celtic Explorer from 11-17 September.
The school is a collaboration between the Strategic Marine Alliance for Research and Training (SMART) and the Alfred Wegner Institute for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), with ship time provided by the Marine Institute, and is open to all marine-related postgraduate students (MSc and PhD) from across the island of Ireland and Germany.
The 2014 Summer School aims to build capacity in offshore marine research by providing early-stage career scientists with the knowledge and skills necessary to act as chief scientists on research surveys.
Participants will conduct a multidisciplinary investigation of cold water carbonate (CWC) ecosystems off the Belgica Mound Province, which is a Special Area of Conservation (SACs) approximately 100km southwest of Ireland.
In addition to the five days of seagoing research, the school includes pre-survey meetings via Skype, pre-cruise preparation in Cork and post-survey data analysis and reporting in Galway.
Course content will include:
- Pre-survey meetings and lectures on the study site, SACs and CWC ecosystems.
- Practical shore-based workshop designing and planning the survey.
- Deployment and operation of novel equipment and instrumentation.
- Acquisition, processing and archiving of samples.
- On-board evening survey meetings and lectures.
- Post-survey data processing, analysis and open source publishing.
- Reporting initial findings through working groups.
The collaboration is designed to forge mobility pathways for early career researchers between Ireland and Germany and serve as an excellent networking opportunity for all participants.
This is the first of a series of summer schools that will alternate between Irish and German research vessels, with the 2015 school taking place on the RV Heincke.
Training will be overseen by experts from University College Cork, NUI Galway, University of Ulster, Alfred Wegner Institute and SMART.
Online application forms must be completed and received by 5pm CET on Friday 6 June 2014.
For further information and an online application form please visit the Atlantic Summer School website or contact [email protected].
Please note that all travel and shore-based accommodation costs are the responsibility of summer school participants. Successful applicants must have or plan to secure a valid Medical Certificate approved by the state (ENG11 in Ireland) and Personal Survival Techniques (PST) certificate approved under the STCW 78/95 convention.
