October 08, 2019
What do marine mammals, deep sea invertebrates, and oil-degrading microbes have in common? Visitors to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History found out on October 8! The Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative sponsored a special “Expert Is In” program with the natural history museum. Visitors met scientists studying the diverse communities that live in the Gulf of Mexico and how they’re impacted by oil spills. Dr. Samantha Joye (UGA; ECOGIG Director) and Dr. Erik Cordes (Temple University; ECOGIG PI) hosted a "Creatures of the Deep" table, sharing the beauty and mysteries of deep sea corals and methane seeps that they have been studying in the Gulf of Mexico.
Dr. Erik Cordes shows a group of students how to make a deep sea tube worm. (c) ECOGIG
This drop-in program was free and well attended by the general public.