The mission of SCUBAnauts International is to educate teens in the marine sciences, enabling them to make a positive impact on the environment and empowering them to become tomorrow’s leaders.

When the weather gives you lemons…

When the weather gives you lemons...you work with coral at Mote! The past three days, five SCUBAnauts from different chapters in Florida embarked on a mission to assist Audrey B. on her Masternaut project. Unfortunately, Mother Nature had a different plan for us and...

Myrtle Beach Sherman Wreck Dives

Each dive SCUBAnauts conducts has a research or education mission. Recently, some members from the Savannah Chapter took a trip up to Myrtle Beach to dive the Sherman Wreck and practice archeology techniques as well as fish identification.

A Workout to Benefit the Ocean

Getting duckbill anchors 3ft into the sand is no easy feat and typically takes Mote’s team several days to complete small numbers. Enter… SCUBAnauts like Braydan K. from the Sarasota Chapter. This was Braydan’s first mission wtih SCUBAnauts. See what he has to say about his time in Mote’s field nurseries.

Coral Trees from the Anchor Up

SCUBAnauts has been diving in Key Largo for the past week. The Nauts and I have been given the opportunity to swim in coral reefs, see some snazzy sea creatures, and work with Mote Marine Laboratory and a few of their marine biologists. On Wednesday our day started at...

Coral Restoration Begins on Land

It was honestly a great experience to see the process on how MOTE outplants coral onto the reef. It certainly is a long process but is worth every second of it. Using all the tools really showed how much of a great experience working with MOTE is. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to do something like this. It definitely was a messy process from cleaning snail poop to working with concrete. After all this land work, the nauts are definitely prepared for tomorrow in the water!

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Red Lights Only – A Coral Spawn Tale

Red Lights Only – A Coral Spawn Tale

I was assigned to look after two tanks that had two to three pieces of coral in them. After a couple of hours, a different tank that I was not watching over started to spawn while my coral never started to set. Setting is the process where the coral start to create their gamete bundles.

Coral Restoration, BINGO and Night Dives

Coral Restoration, BINGO and Night Dives

On Thursday we were in a MOTE coral nursery, restoring and helping staghorn coral. We did this by splitting into 2-3 groups and worked on coral trees made of PVC pipe. When corals are in a high density, the spread of disease is more efficient, just as it is with human...

Diving at USC Wrigley Institute

Diving at USC Wrigley Institute

SCUBAnauts spent two days diving at USC Wrigley Institute to learn about Southern California’s marine ecosystems and survey methods.

Four Dives at Casino Point

Four Dives at Casino Point

This next dive we laid down three 15-meter transect lines right through the kelp forest. Our goal was to divide into three buddy pairs and do three types of surveys each on these lines. These three surveys consisted of an invert survey, which we counted all species of invertebrates on and two meters around the transect, an algae survey…

California, Here We Come

California, Here We Come

I had never been so excited for a 7:30 flight! The other Nauts and I arrived at the airport with anticipation as our new adventure was just beginning. After a seamless transition through security and boarding, we were all on our way to Southern California! After what...

Corals Changing Oceans, Careers and Friendships

Corals Changing Oceans, Careers and Friendships

I never imagined a summer SCUBAnauts trip would completely change my life goals. In all honesty I was kind of nervous since I hadn’t met most of the other Nauts before departure day. But there’s something about scuba diving that brings people together! The group of 15...

Hips Don’t Lie – Land Lubbers Have Fun Too

Hips Don’t Lie – Land Lubbers Have Fun Too

The first week of June, ten SCUBAnauts traveled to the Florida Keys for a week of diving. This was a special trip, because none of the nauts had been on a summer mission before, and they were scheduled to undertake 24 dives in just 7 days! Each team was responsible for developing and executing a science project with some dives to support our coral restoration partners sprinkled in the middle. See what Crystal River naut Lena has to say about the first three days. It’s not just about the diving!

Capitol Hill Ocean Week Returns

Capitol Hill Ocean Week Returns

Each year, SCUBAnauts attempts to fly up to Washington D.C. to take part in Capitol Hill Oceans Week (CHOW). Unfortunately, due to the Corona Virus, the last two years for CHOW have been a virtual event. This year, however, the event was in-person. We arrived on...

Environmental Hearings and Politics

Environmental Hearings and Politics

My favorite part of the trip, however, was sitting in on a hearing of an environmental committee in congress. As an individual who is interested in a career in politics, the debate was extremely interesting. It was fascinating to see how the vastly different agendas of the Republican and Democratic parties interacted on environmental issues.