Hiding under the surface of the Gulf of Mexico’s waters are numerous fragile historic shipwrecks left behind by the Pensacola area’s previous inhabitants, some hundreds of years ago. The University of West Florida and the state of Florida have identified 50 underwater sites. UWF archaeologists have investigated about 18 of those, with the most noteworthy […]
One day each week, Dane Smith, a University of West Florida graduate student pursuing a master’s degree in environmental science, loads up and heads south for the beach. But his truck isn’t carrying a surfboard: It’s filled with bottles, beakers and scientific equipment he’ll use this summer while collecting water samples from the Gulf of […]
The month of June began with crews toiling away in the Gulf of Mexico to stop the oil spill and U.S. scientists predicting an active hurricane season for 2010. While hurricane season is typically greeted with moderate levels of anxiety by residents along the Gulf Coast, this year the oil spill, with its ever-changing size […]
Microbial research at the University of West Florida in the past two decades could be a vital resource in the aftermath of continuing BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. UWF crews have been collecting water and sand samples from specific locations in the area for the past two weeks in order to establish […]
These days Fred Hileman, University of West Florida lecturer and analytical chemist, is busy conducting oil and water experiments at the university’s Center for Environmental Diagnostics and Bioremediation while he waits for real-life spill samples to come ashore in Pensacola. The April 20 BP oil spill off the coast of Louisiana in the Gulf of […]
University of West Florida faculty members from the university’s Center for Environmental Diagnostic and Bioremediation have begun local research into the potential impacts of the oil spill off the coast of Louisiana that began April 20. Dr. Richard Snyder, biology professor and director of the CEDB, said water from offshore as well as sand from […]
For University of West Florida faculty member Wade Jeffrey of the Center for Environmental Diagnostics and Bioremediation, seeing polar bears and beluga whales in their natural habitat is just one of the perks of his job. This past August, Jeffrey participated in a large oceanographic expedition to the Arctic Ocean where he joined 40 French, […]
Eleven University of West Florida students, enrolled in field ecology, will explore coral reefs off the Pacific coast, investigate mangrove habitats, study an active volcano and zip line through the rain forest canopy beginning Aug. 10. Costa Rica will become their classroom as they embark on a 10-day journey through the most ecologically diverse tropical […]
Matthew Schwartz, University of West Florida assistant professor of Environmental Studies, has an affinity for the ocean. As he should, since he recently traveled over a mile and a half below its surface. Schwartz participated in a three-week cruise aboard the research vehicle (RS), “Atlantis” which was the mother ship to the “Alvin,” a deep-sea […]
