NFSI Hosts Workshop following GAC-MAC 2022

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We were very pleased to welcome several of the NFSI's PIs and some of their HQP in Halifax on May 19th for a mini-workshop following the GAC-MAC conference. Researchers based in Ontario, Quebec, and Atlantic Canada were in attendance; it was nice to finally be able to connect face-to-face again. Presentations by Graeme Cairns, Katie Bosman, Pascal Audet, Alex Plourde, and Helen Lau gave attendees an introduction to NFSI's field operations, considerations for planning research cruises, data products and access, and data processing tools. Although we didn't have any OBS in Halifax for the event (all currently built ones are deployed at sea), we were able to show off all of the supporting equipment for interfacing with the instruments in the field, including our new GyroUSBL system. We had a quick tour of the COVE facility in Dartmouth, where the OBS will be stored long-term. For those who could not make it in-person, there was also a lively hybrid discussion about ideas for future research projects using the NFSI's OBS instruments.

We are already working on plans for a larger workshop in Spring 2023 spearheaded by Mladen Nedimović and Pascal Audet, which will bring together NFSI researchers and students from the NSERC iMAGE-CREATE program. This will be a multi-day workshop and is expected to include significant hands-on content, with tutorials on deploying the Aquarius OBS and using the recorded data, in addition to presentations and panel discussions. Stay tuned for more details over the coming months!