E-Comet Newsletter of the Nantucket Maria Mitchell Association |
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Dear Friends of the Nantucket Maria Mitchell Association:
The sun is always shining, even behind the grey winter landscape. Finally, the sun shines on us! I realize the impact that the sunshine has after a long winter. You are our SUN. It is our honor that you read our newsletter, give to the annual appeal, and attend our events, both virtual and in-person. Your support has a great impact on how we achieve our mission. Already this year, we have had an amazing Winter Science Speaker Series featuring former MMA interns, co-hosted the vibrant Nantucket Science Festival with the Nantucket Community School, and launched a new website. It is all thanks to you!
The MMA team is enthusiastically planning a fun-filled summer and we can't wait for you to join us. With our award-winning Discovery Camps, our inspiring Science Speaker Series, or a visit to our re-opened unique facilities, we look forward to all this summer has to offer. The sun is shining and we are ready!
Warm Regards,
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Jason Bridges
Interim Executive Director
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Winter Science Speaker Series Thank You! |
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We would like to extend a huge thank you to the presenters in our 2021 Winter Science Speaker Series! This was a very special series for the MMA because each of our speakers was a former MMA intern. Our speakers included Andrew McKenna Foster (Natural Science Intern 2004-2006, Natural Science Director 2010-2016), Sara Schoen (Aquarium Intern 2017), Tanveer Karim (NSF-REU Intern 2016), Abby Mintz (NSF-REU Intern 2019), Izzy Gaw (Aquarium Intern 2018, Aquarium Co-Manager 2019), and Rachel Bowyer (NSF-REU Intern 2017).
If you missed any of their presentations, you can view the recordings on our YouTube channel!
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2020 NSF-REU Intern Kiana Burton Wins Chambliss Astronomy Achievement Award! |
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The MMA is delighted to announce that summer 2020 National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates (NSF-REU) intern, Kiana Burton, has won the prestigious Chambliss Astronomy Achievement Student Award for her research presentation at the recent virtual meeting of the American Astronomical Society (AAS). Burton is one of fifteen winners, out of the 170 undergraduates who entered the competition. Due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, the meeting took place entirely online. Burton gave a poster presentation titled “First Millimeter Flares Detected From Epsilon Eridani With ALMA” and answered audience questions on her research.
Burton’s research focused on searching for highly energetic flares from a nearby star called Epsilon Eridani. Searching for and studying stellar flares is vital for understanding how they might impact any potential life on exoplanets in orbit around the star. Burton’s research mentor, Dr. Meredith MacGregor of the University of Colorado, Boulder, and a Maria Mitchell Observatory (MMO) NSF-REU alumna herself, said, “Energy from stars can ionize and even erode the atmosphere of a planet, turning a habitable world into a barren wasteland. Kiana has been working to understand how this happens in order to help us figure out how many worlds could be affected."
Burton, who is majoring in physics, is currently in her senior year at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In the fall, Burton will begin her graduate studies, pursuing a Ph.D. in astrophysics at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Burton was also recently awarded an Honorable Mention in the prestigious National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program.
Burton’s award marks the fifth Chambliss Award to be won by an MMO NSF-REU intern over the past six years! Read more about this exciting news in our recent press release.
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Burton and her fellow 2020 NSF-REU interns also spoke on their research this summer as part of our Science Speaker Series. Hear Burton, Devon Barros, Sarah Graber, A. Granados, Andrea Mejia, and Natalie Villanueva present their summer research projects in astrophysics in this recording of their presentations.
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7th Annual Nantucket Science Festival: That's a Wrap! |
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Every March, since 2015, the Maria Mitchell Association (MMA) has joined forces with the Nantucket Community School (NCS) to offer an annual Nantucket Science Festival loaded with hands-on activities for the entire family, a passport to science challenge, door prizes, and more. Since its inception, the event has been completely free-of-charge thanks to grant funding, sponsorship, donations, and volunteers.
In 2020, COVID-19 hit the island just a few days before the Nantucket Science Festival was scheduled to take place. Refusing to cancel the event completely, community partners all rallied together and provided DIY activities to share. All activities were listed with links to instructions on our website in both English and Spanish and participants were encouraged to post photos or videos on social media.
As 2020 came to a close, it was clear that the possibility of an in-person event in 2021 was very unlikely. So, with more time to plan, and a year of experience working virtually, the MMA and NCS were determined to make the event much more robust and engaging than just a list of activities. Instead of just a one-day event, the 2021 Nantucket Science Festival took place from March 13-20.
We are elated to announce that in total we:
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Gave out 702 kits total with 774 activities from the MMA, NCS, & Nantucket Conservation Foundation
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552 kits with 624 activities came from the MMA!
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Posted forty-three at-home and outdoor activities to our website
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including twenty activities still available from our 2020 Nantucket Science Festival
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Collaborated with seven community partners
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Hosted eight live virtual events with our collaborators, including three Virtual Open Nights
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Gave out ten different prize collections to participants
It is thanks to our participants, our sponsors, our community partners, and our supporting businesses and organizations, that this event was the amazing success it was. We can't thank you enough!
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This has been an exciting year for the Nantucket Science Festival, but the fun does not need to end here! All our activities will remain on our website for the next few weeks so you can continue experimenting, exploring, and enjoying science at home and in your own backyard.
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About the Collections
By Ginger Andrews
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It’s human nature to collect things. The urge for a trophy, totem or souvenir, in actual or symbolic form, goes deep in every culture from the dawn of human history. But it also has a dark side. Starting in the 15th century, Europeans plundered the New World. Before photography, a specimen was the only proof a thing existed.
The development of western science in the 17th century only improved the excuses. By the 19th century, Natural History collections were all the rage. Nantucket whalemen brought back many “curiosities” for the Atheneum when Maria Mitchell was librarian.
But collections are truly important to science. They were part of the nascent Maria Mitchell Association from its founding. Plant and bird specimens which had been previously collected were early gifts. Properly preserved, a specimen reduces or eliminates the need for more killing.
With Edith Andrews, the ornithology collection was vastly expanded by salvaging birds found dead from window strikes or caught by cats. Herbarium, insect, mammal, and fish specimens also grew.
The collections now include over 7,000 plant, 800 algae, 1,200 bird, 90 mammal, 150 fish, 26 reptile,10 amphibian, and over 1,600 insect specimens.
These are not just dusty relics. Since dawning environmental awareness in the 20th century, older collections have become increasingly useful to ecologists.
With new technologies such as DNA and stable isotope analysis, they represent a window into the past, a basis for comparison. It is as if they are books in a library of life we are just learning how to read. Researchers use the MMA's collections along with others. This Big-data availability far outshines anything even the largest museum could do on its own. As the collections are digitized, and are more widely available, they become ever more useful and important.
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If the program you would like to sign up for is already full, you can get on our waitlist. To be placed on the waitlist, simply go through the registration process which includes filling out the medical release/pick-up form. Be sure you hit complete on the payment page even though you are not expected to pay at this time. You will get an automated email indicating you are on the waitlist. If a space opens up, we will call you and if you are still interested, we would enroll you into the program and take payment at that time. You are never automatically enrolled.
Thanks to the generosity of EGCF, a nonprofit foundation, the Maria Mitchell Association is offering a minimum of twelve scholarships for eligible Nantucket residents and visitors. We are able to offer both partial and full scholarships. Please visit our website for more information and our scholarship application.
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“If you don’t look, you don’t see. You have to go and look.”
-Edith Andrews
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Keep Calm and Bird On
By Ginger Andrews
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The Nantucket Conservation Foundation’s Milestone Bog property, off Milestone Road, is a great place for early spring birding. With shallow wetlands interspersed with dry paths and bordered with both dry grassland and small wooded areas, it gives a great mix of habitats in a relatively small space. |
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Waterfowl such as Wood Duck, Northern Shoveler, Northern Pintail, and Green-winged Teal have been found lurking in the wet impoundments. There, tall grasses, and the shelter of the dikes that provide access, give wildlife a chance to rest and feed. Shorebirds such as Greater Yellow-legs, Pectoral Sandpiper, and Short-billed or even Long-billed Dowitcher use both the edges and the low spots. Binoculars are a necessity to identify these skittish birds; a telescope is even better, as the less disturbance there is, the happier the birdlife.
Northern Harrier, American Kestrel, Merlin, and Common Raven have also been seen here. Both Kestrels and Merlins have sometimes nested in the vicinity.
In upland areas, Eastern Meadowlarks have been seen. American Pipits have been discovered regularly, and it’s a great place to put Savannah Sparrow on your list. These stripy, short-tailed sparrows look a lot like Song Sparrows, so it’s a good introduction to looking at—and listening for—the subtle differences that make sparrow ID both initially frustrating and ultimately rewarding.
The buzzy, more insect-like song of the Savannah Sparrow is a good place to start tuning your ear for the differences. Song Sparrows have a lighter, more melodic song, and a larger repertoire. Savanna Sparrows, once they learn their song from their father, pretty much stick with it. Song Sparrows on the other hand, take a jazzier approach, tossing their tunes back and forth, adding variations. Listening in early spring, before the dawn chorus becomes too overwhelming, is a good place to start.
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Astronomers have recently announced that they might have found evidence that volcanic activity is creating a new atmosphere on an exoplanet orbiting a nearby star.
Check out WCAI's podcast, "Looking Skyward" featuring MMO Director, Dr. Regina Jorgenson to hear what she has to say about this new observation and how it may impact the exoplanet.
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If you missed Izzy Gaw's Winter Science Speaker Series presentation, you can find the recording of her talk entitled "The Debris Diet: How Microplastics are Infiltrating the Marine Food Chain" on our YouTube channel.
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MARIA MITCHELL ASSOCIATION
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
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BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Helene Weld, President
Judy MacLeod, First Vice President
Frances Symes, Second Vice President
Curt Burwell, Treasurer
Joseph E. Santucci Jr., Clerk
MEMBERS
Richard Bard
Beverly Barlow
Margaret Falk
Chris Griffiths
John Hartner
Carolyn Holt
Toni McKerrow
Michael Nelson
Molly Paiement
Mary Archibald (Bebe) Poor, D.V.M., M.S.
Katherine Rhode, Ph.D.
Brian Sullivan
Jane Tausig
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HONORARY MEMBERS
Howard Blitman†
Sally Charpie
John Daniels
Daniel Drake
Joan Gulley
Judith Lee
Malcolm MacNab, M.D., Ph.D.
Eileen McGrath
Nathaniel Philbrick
Anne P. Strain
Edward Symes, III
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The Maria Mitchell Association creates opportunities for all to develop a life-long passion for science through education, research, and first-hand exploration of the sky, land, and sea of Nantucket Island. |
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