Marine Science Institute (San Francisco Bay)

Last updated
Marine Science Institute
Marine Science Institute SF Bay Logo.png
Marine Science Institute Logo
MottoDiscovering Our Bay
Established1970;53 years ago (1970) [1]
MissionCultivate a responsibility for the natural environment and our human communities through interdisciplinary science education.
FocusMarine Education
Chair James Crawford [2]
Executive DirectorMarilou Seiff
Budget US$1,775,000 [3]
Address500 Discovery Parkway, Redwood City, CA 94063 [4]
Location,
California
,
US
Coordinates 37°30′17″N122°13′02″W / 37.504859°N 122.217147°W / 37.504859; -122.217147
Website www.sfbaymsi.org OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

The Marine Science Institute (MSI) is a nonprofit organization focusing on marine science research and education. MSI was founded in 1970 [1] and currently is situated in Redwood City, California, adjacent to the Port of Redwood City. [4] In the San Francisco Bay Area MSI has a mission driving marine education for schoolchildren and continues to receive grants to supplement their donations. [5]

Contents

Education and research

The Marine Science Institute offers tours of the Bay in Antioch in the January and February months, and the rest of the time based out of Redwood City at their main location and research station along the banks of Redwood Creek. [6] The institute allows students at schools around the bay to observe and interact with the natural environment. [7] Marine life is often collected, measured for size, and documented to add to a database to continually monitor conditions and overall health within the bay. MSI also trains teachers in integrating technology and science into their own curriculums. [8] The Marine Science Institute also hosts an Earth Day celebration annually. [9] [10] Other events organized by MSI include coastal hikes, cleanups, tide walks, and voyages for the general public. [2]

Robert G. Brownlee

The 90-foot (27 m) by 30-foot (9.1 m) research vessel [11] built to satisfy the needs of MSI was named after Robert Brownlee whose foundation donated funds for the vessel. Construction of the steel vessel with hull depth of 11.8-foot (3.6 m), hull 474, [12] was completed by the Marco Shipyards in Seattle in 1998. [13] Original specifications for the craft had a propulsion system, that could reach 12 knots, comprising two 860-millimetre (34 in) propellers driven by a pair of 250 horsepower Cummins diesels. The vessel, which can fit up to 70 students, has facilities for several science activities including studying plankton and fish with holding tanks below deck as well as running hydrology tests. [14] Following the Cosco Busan oil spill the vessel was used to take children out showing the damage the Bay Bridge suffered firsthand as well as take comparative data on how the spill affected marine life in the area. [1]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Francisco Bay</span> Shallow estuary on the coast of California, United States

San Francisco Bay is a large tidal estuary in the U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Francisco Peninsula</span> Peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area

The San Francisco Peninsula is a peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area that separates San Francisco Bay from the Pacific Ocean. On its northern tip is the City and County of San Francisco. Its southern base is Mountain View, in Santa Clara County, south of Palo Alto and north of Sunnyvale and Los Altos. Most of the Peninsula is occupied by San Mateo County, between San Francisco and Santa Clara counties, and including the cities and towns of Atherton, Belmont, Brisbane, Burlingame, Colma, Daly City, East Palo Alto, El Granada, Foster City, Hillsborough, Half Moon Bay, La Honda, Loma Mar, Los Altos, Menlo Park, Millbrae, Pacifica, Palo Alto, Pescadero, Portola Valley, Redwood City, San Bruno, San Carlos, San Mateo, South San Francisco, and Woodside.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Mateo County, California</span> County in California, United States

San Mateo County, officially the County of San Mateo, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 764,442. Redwood City is the county seat, and the third most populated city following Daly City and San Mateo. San Mateo County is included in the San Francisco–Oakland–Berkeley, CA MSA, Silicon Valley, and is part of the San Francisco Bay Area, the nine counties bordering San Francisco Bay. It covers most of the San Francisco Peninsula. San Francisco International Airport is located in the northeastern area of the county and is approximately 7 miles (11 km) south of the city and county limits of San Francisco, even though the airport itself is assigned a San Francisco postal address. The county's built-up areas are mostly suburban, and are home to several corporate campuses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern California</span> American geographic and cultural region

Northern California is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. Spanning the state's northernmost 48 counties, its main population centers include the San Francisco Bay Area, the Greater Sacramento area, the Redding, California, area south of the Cascade Range, and the Metropolitan Fresno area. Northern California also contains redwood forests, along with most of the Sierra Nevada, including Yosemite Valley and part of Lake Tahoe, Mount Shasta, and most of the Central Valley, one of the world's most productive agricultural regions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Port of Oakland</span> Container ship facility in Oakland, California

The Port of Oakland is a major container ship facility located in Oakland, California, in the San Francisco Bay. It was the first major port on the Pacific Coast of the United States to build terminals for container ships. As of 2019 it was the sixth busiest container port in the United States, behind Long Beach, Los Angeles, Newark, Port of Seattle-Tacoma, and Savannah,. Development of an intermodal container handling system in 2002 after over a decade of planning and construction positions the Port of Oakland for further expansion of the West Coast freight market share. In 2019 it ranked 8th in the United States in the category of containers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Mateo Arboretum</span>

The San Mateo Arboretum is an arboretum in San Mateo, California containing old stands of pine, oak, cedar, and redwood planted over 100 years ago on the William Kohl property by John McLaren. The Arboretum is located in San Mateo's Central Park, which also houses the San Mateo Arboretum Society near the Kohl Pump House area of the park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bair Island</span> Swamp in Redwood City, San Mateo County, United States

Bair Island is a marsh area in Redwood City, California, covering 3,000 acres (1,200 ha), and includes three islands: Inner, Middle and Outer islands. Bair Island is part of the larger Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. It is surrounded by the Steinberger slough to the northwest and Redwood Creek to the southeast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Golden Gate Biosphere Network</span>

The Golden Gate Biosphere Network is a voluntary coalition of federal, state, and local government agencies, nonprofit organizations, universities, and private partners within the Golden Gate Biosphere region. The Network works towards protecting the biosphere region's biodiversity and conserving its natural resources to maintain the quality of life for people within the region. The Network has been part of the UNESCO Man and Biosphere Programme since 1988 and is part of the US Biosphere Network and EuroMAB. It is recognized by UNESCO due to the significant biodiversity of the region, as well as the Network's efforts to demonstrate and promote a balanced relationship between humans and the biosphere.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Francisco fog</span> Common weather phenomenon in San Francisco

Fog is a common weather phenomenon in the San Francisco Bay Area as well as along the entire coastline of California extending south to the northwest coast of the Baja California Peninsula. The frequency of fog and low-lying stratus clouds is due to a combination of factors particular to the region that are especially prevalent in the summer. Another type of fog, tule fog, can occur during the winter. There are occasions when both types can occur simultaneously in the Bay Area. The prevalence of fog in the San Francisco Bay Area has decreased, and this trend is typically attributed to climate change.

Robert Gregg Brownlee was an American chemist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine World/Africa USA</span> Zoo in California, United States

Marine World/Africa USA was an animal theme park located in the Redwood Shores area of Redwood City, California. The park was named Marine World when it first opened in 1968, before merging with a land-animal park called Africa USA in 1972. In 1986, the park relocated to Vallejo, California and is now known as Six Flags Discovery Kingdom.

San Francisco Baykeeper is a nonprofit environmental advocacy organization that works to protect, preserve, and enhance the health of the ecosystems and communities that depend upon the San Francisco Bay. Since 1989, Baykeeper has stood guard over the waters of the San Francisco Bay-Delta Estuary and its watershed. These waters, in addition to their recreational value and biological productivity, also provide drinking water for more than 23 million people and serve as the cornerstone of California's economy. Beginning in the high reaches of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Mountains, the Bay-Delta watershed encompasses the entire Bay Area and the Great Central Valley of California. This vast watershed includes virtually all of the state's remaining coastal wetlands and provides rare and fragile habitat for marine mammals, migrating birds, and California's few remaining endangered salmon runs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Port of Redwood City</span> Port in the San Francisco Bay

The Port of Redwood City is a marine freight terminal on the western side of the southern San Francisco Bay, on the West Coast of the United States. This marine terminal is situated within the city of Redwood City, California. The port was developed from a natural deepwater channel discovered in the year 1850, at the mouth of Redwood Creek. From the early use as a log float port, commercial use expanded to a variety of industrial commodities; moreover, it is considered the birthplace of shipbuilding on the North American west coast. As of 2004 the annual freight shipments have reached about two million metric tons. The Port of Redwood City provides berths for dry bulk, liquid bulk, and project cargoes, along with certain recreational opportunities and public access to San Francisco Bay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Redwood Creek (San Mateo County)</span> River in California, United States

Redwood Creek is a 9.5-mile-long (15.3 km) perennial stream located in San Mateo County, California, United States which discharges into South San Francisco Bay. The Port of Redwood City, the largest deepwater port in South San Francisco Bay, is situated on the east bank of Redwood Creek near its mouth, where the creek becomes a natural deepwater channel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sequoia High School (Redwood City, California)</span> School in Redwood City, California, USA

Sequoia High School is a high school in downtown Redwood City, California, United States. Today, it is one of the few schools to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme within the San Francisco Bay Area.

<i>Cosco Busan</i> oil spill 2007 oil spill in the San Francisco Bay

The Cosco Busan oil spill occurred at 08:30 UTC-8 on 7 November 2007 between San Francisco and Oakland, California, in which 53,569 US gal (202,780 L) of IFO-380 heavy fuel oil, sometimes referred to as "bunker fuel", spilled into San Francisco Bay after the container ship Cosco Busan, operated by Fleet Management Limited struck Delta Tower of the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge in thick fog.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craig Bone</span> United States Coast Guard admiral

Rear Admiral (ret.) Craig E. Bone is a former government executive under President George W. Bush, playing a key role in the forwarding of maritime domain awareness works, inter alia the container security initiative and implementation of the Maritime Transportation Security Act, as part of the wider Global Maritime Intelligence Integration Plan of this administration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Mateo County History Museum</span>

The San Mateo County History Museum is located in downtown Redwood City, California. Housed inside the former courthouse built in 1910 for the San Mateo County Superior Court, the museum showcases the rich history of San Mateo County and the surrounding area. Operations and funding for the museum are by the San Mateo County Historical Association (SMCHA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greco Island</span>

Greco Island is a wetland island in Redwood City, California. Greco Island is part of the larger Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Westpoint Slough follows the South side of the island while Redwood Creek is along the West. The San Francisco Bay bounds the North and East sides of the island.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Tucker, Jill (17 November 2007). "Marine Science Institute gives youths up-close look at oil spill". SFGate. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  2. 1 2 Murzi-Moyce, Tiff (2016). "BayLines" . Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  3. "Annual Report 2015" (PDF). Marine Science Institute. 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2016.
  4. 1 2 "Directions". Marine Science Institute. Retrieved 1 December 2016.
  5. Californial Coastal Conservancy (24 March 2016). "Explore The Coast Grants Program". p. 11. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  6. Johnson, Jason B. (2 April 2004). "Voyage of Delta discoveries". SFGate. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  7. Walsh, Austin (19 March 2016). "Tech aims to sponsor field trips: Redwood City students get trip through new program". San Mateo Daily Journal. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  8. Yamamoto, Nancy (30 July 2012). "Science Lab in San Mateo County – Classroom by the Bay". KQED. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  9. "Port sponsors family-friendly events: Sailing, STEM festival and Earth Day event mark busy Saturday". San Mateo Daily News. 15 April 2016. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  10. "Earth Day Events in the Bay Area". San Jose Mercury News. 19 April 2012. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  11. Bartlett, Jean (20 November 2012). "Making science fun — Skyline teacher emphasizes the cultivation of wonder". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  12. "USCG Doc. No.: 1065176". USCG Vessel Documentation Center. 16 March 2016. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  13. Ship & Boat International. Pax Marine Press AB. 1998. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  14. Lowrey, Angela. "Research Vessel Robert G. Brownlee". Delta Diablo. Retrieved 2 December 2016.