NECWA News Blog

Ocean Exploration Cruise Sunday, June 3, 2018 7 am to 1 pm Onboard the Privateer IV with 7 Seas Whale Watch 7 Rogers Street, Gloucester ====================================================================== Date of this Posting: Saturday, June 2, 2018 Status of Trip on June 3: A GO ! Hi: I was just offshore today and winds were calmer than predicted with almost no seas offshore. Our trip tomorrow at 7 am continues to be a go. I assume winds will increase over the course of the night and early morning, so we expect to sneak this trip in before it gets nasty offshore. The marine forecast for Monday through Thursday is not good so this may be the last trip offshore for a few days.  Please be down at the 7 Seas Whale Watch dock at 6:30 am and we will board as soon as we can. Bring food, drinks, and dress appropriately. Keep your belongings to a  minimum  so everyone will have space. NECWA will bring some merchandise onboard to help raise funds for our projec...

Anna Du, a 6th grade student at the Andover School of Massachusetts, won First Prize at the Regional IV Middle School Science & Engineering Fair. Read about her amazing science project below.  Developing a Smart Infrared-Based ROV to Identify Microplastics in the Marine Environment. The world is facing a threatening problem of microplastics in the ocean. Microplastics, which are plastics the size of 10 um to 5 mm are accumulating everywhere, and its effect on the environment is disastrous. As of 2017, 8 million metric tons have been dumped into the ocean. Not only do the animals in the ocean get affected, humans do as well through a few different means. We can eat fish directly, or eat farm animals that depend on seafood byproducts, or we can eat vegetables that used the animal’s manure as fertilizer. It's very difficult to separate   microplastics from microorganisms and other particles in the ocean; using density, filtration, and chemical techniques have ...

Our Fluke Canvas Bag makes a great summer beach tote and can also be used at the grocery store for shopping or for traveling. Made of 100% Earth-friendly cotton  and Mr. Koda approved.  Design includes 10 humpback whales flukes with the name of the individual below. Each humpback whale is studied by researchers in the Gulf of Maine and this information is helping us better understand and protect this protected species. Our newest high school intern, Maddie, modeling her bag.  This is a one-of-a-kind item only available on through NECWA. To purchase your tote today, go to the NECWA Store using the link to the right of this posting.

Paige at Buzzards Bay Recreation Area Photo Credit: John Pribilla On April 21, 2018, as part of my internship at the Cape Cod Canal with the US Army Corp. of Engineers, I had the opportunity to volunteer for their Earth Day celebration. This annual celebration was hosted by the US Army Corps of Engineers, organized by AmeriCorps Cape Cod, and was held at the Buzzards Bay Recreation Area. I assisted with the set-up for the event, and while I was working, I had the time to review a few of the organization’s earth-friendly themed displays. The one display that caught my attention the most was what happens to discarded litter over time. The poster demonstrated the length of time it took for various types of trash to decompose in the natural environment. I was surprised at how long it takes to break down common items to their base elements, such as monofilament line, Styrofoam cups, tin cans, six pack can holders, drinking straws, and plastic bags. Marine Debris from the Cape C...

Photo credit: NECWA No North Atlantic right whale calves were born in 2018. At least none were seen in the southeast waters off South Carolina, Florida and Georgia, the only known calving grounds for this species. In 2017, only five calves were born, down from counts of 15 to more than 35 between 2001 and 2011. Maybe the right whale moms weren’t healthy enough or well-nourished enough to give birth to and nurse a calf, saving their energy for a year when they and the calves would be more likely to survive. Maybe the stress and physical wear from entanglements in fishing line has increased the time right whale mothers need to wait after raising one baby to have another. Maybe we didn’t see them. Whatever the case, this is bad for the right whale’s future. Since 1986, when researchers began counting the number of calves each year, there has never been a year with no calves. To read more about right whales, click HERE for a short review by Dr. Scott Krauss from the Anderson Ca...