The Michigan Maritime Museum in South Haven is offering a rare chance to step into the role of a Great Lakes scientist with some expedition cruises coming up this month.
The museum’s Ashley Deming tells us this will be a limited-engagement event in partnership with the Annis Water Resources Institute, giving everyone a chance to climb aboard the W.G. Jackson, a working research vessel, to join researchers collecting Lake Michigan data.
“Any passenger that’s able to get aboard these cruises that we’re doing is going to join real scientists in collecting water samples,” Deming said. “So you’re citizen scientists learning about ecology of Lake Michigan and the Black River, a little bit about the history, and a little bit of human impact and history that affects our ecosystem. So it’s a great opportunity to be able to do some real science with some real Great Lake scientists.”
Deming says the Annis Water Resources Institute offers the cruises to help educate the public about ways the Great Lakes are protected.
There will be cruises on June 26, 27, and 28, each with room for 33 guests. Each cruise will include hands-on experiments, water sampling at a Lake Michigan research station, education with AWRI scientists, and a behind-the-scenes look at Great Lakes conservation.
