Between June and August, USF’s Florida Institute of Oceanography connected students, teachers, early-career scientists and technology developers with the vessels and expertise to explore, learn and test the next generation of maritime technology.
In June, teachers pulled their first open ocean sediment grab aboard an FIO research vessel (R/V). In July, middle schoolers toured the fleet, high school students conducted research in Tampa Bay, and 18 higher education students and early-career researchers joined a multi-day expedition to the West Florida Shelf. By August, technology developers were testing instruments aboard FIO’s R/V Weatherbird II during a U.S. Navy exercise.
Those missions, and a summer of research and field programs at FIO’s Keys Marine Laboratory, are exactly what FIO is built for. FIO gives USF, Florida’s education and research communities, and industry the access and expertise to advance ocean science, applied education and national security. This summer showed what that access looks like at every stage of an ocean career, from a first look at a ship’s deck to technology bound for the fleet.
Teachers who bring the ocean back to class
On June 10, FIO hosted educators through the Florida Aquarium Teachers at Sea program aboard the R/V Weatherbird II. The teachers joined a long-term biodiversity study and handled every part of the at-sea work, rotating in teams through each piece of equipment at two stations. Each teacher returned with firsthand experience of how ocean research is conducted, and practical examples to bring into their classrooms.
It starts with a first look
In July, middle school students from Camp Bullseye toured FIO’s research vessels and met with the crew. Sponsored by the City of St. Petersburg and in partnership with the USF Office of Youth Experiences and USF St. Petersburg, the camp combined campus life with marine science, entrepreneurship and digital marketing. Campers used those experiences to pitch solutions to local marine issues. For many of them, it was their first time aboard a working research vessel.
Three days later, the Aqua Bulls program took high school students into Tampa Bay aboard the R/V Hogarth. At two stations, one in the lower bay and one in the mid-to-upper bay, students ran the same equipment that working oceanographers use. They did a Conductivity, Temperature, and Depth (CTD) cast to profile the water column, a sediment grab from the bay floor, a plankton tow, and an otter trawl. They didn’t just watch from the deck; they ran the gear.
Peerside: Building the next ocean workforce
From July 23 to 31, Peerside participants sailed aboard the R/V Hogarth to explore blue holes, mesophotic coral, and ocean plankton communities on the West Florida Shelf. Participants were also able to partake in Bay sampling, allowing them to directly compare a variety of environments during their expedition. Research projects also highlighted social science and the interpersonal dynamics of conducting science and working on a research vessel.
Peerside is FIO’s mentoring and workforce development program for ocean science and the ocean economy. Each year it pairs a cohort of participants, from community college students to postdoctoral researchers, with mentors from partner organizations and puts them to work at sea and on shore. This year’s cohort included several USF students and alumni with funding from the Schmidt Ocean Institute (SOI) and in-kind support from USF.
The cohort and their mentors worked every phase of the expedition. They tracked dynamics of the water column above a blue hole. They sampled microbial communities and explored the underlying forces of the blue hole rim. They also screened the water for Karenia brevis, the organism behind Florida red tide, which affects every coastal community from Tampa Bay to Naples. The team also assessed biodiversity at mesophotic reefs using ROV coral sampling and conducted temperature trials on ocean plankton communities.
Many ocean careers are built on skills learned at sea, such as deploying and recovering gear, working an ROV, and running round-the-clock operations at sea. A classroom can’t teach those skills and Peerside gives participants that experience early, along with a professional network that follows them after they step off the vessel.
“Although I greatly valued reading the manuals for some of the equipment beforehand, I found that I didn’t fully grasp the information until I was able to see this equipment deployed and used on the cruise. I was really sure I wanted to become a professor, but now I’m also really interested in what a marine tech does, or about the possibility of working for a federal agency or private lab. I feel like I’ve become more open to multiple paths.” — Ines Rosales, 2026 Peerside mentee and USF alumna
Beyond the fleet: Fieldwork in the Keys
The summer didn’t stop at the dock in St. Petersburg. At FIO’s Keys Marine Laboratory in Layton, FL (on Long Key), 74 visiting groups of over 280 students and researchers used boats, dormitory space, labs, and classrooms as a base for research, field courses and training. KML extended FIO’s summer reach into the Florida Keys, connecting participants with the facilities and coastal environments needed for their work.
Where industry meets the water
On August 19–20, FIO supported Event XRAY, part of the U.S. Navy’s Advanced Naval Technology Exercise, Coastal Trident 2026 (ANTX CT26), alongside the St Pete Maritime and Defense Technology Hub and FathomWerx. Organizations from across the marine technology sector tested instruments at sea aboard R/V Weatherbird II.
Technology developers need what a lab or test tank can’t provide: real ocean conditions, a working vessel and an experienced crew. FIO provides all three in St. Petersburg, next to one of the country’s fastest-growing marine technology sectors.
Where it all leads
From a student’s first vessel tour to operational testing of maritime technologies, this summer showed the range of work USF’s FIO makes possible. Its vessels, field station and maritime expertise link education, research and technology development, helping USF and its partners build the ocean workforce and advance capabilities for science and national security.
Interested in ship time, a charter, or mentoring a future Peerside cohort?
Contact us – fio@usf.edu | linktree.com/floridainstituteofoceanography
