The OFP time-series encourages collaborations with scientists and educators in the US and abroad. The OFP has facilitated a diverse range of research and educational endeavors since its inception. OFP data are used utilized by researchers around the world, subject to a fair use policy. OFP sample material allows for a wide range of research that employs trace level chemical analyses. The quantitative OFP microphotograph archive opens up new possibilities for remote image analysis and other “virtual” investigations of the deep ocean flux composition.

The OFP welcomes educational collaborations in support of undergraduate and graduate education. The OFP has provide in-kind support for the MS and PhD research of students from universities in the US and abroad whose research utilizes OFP sample materials and has provided sampling opportunities on OFP cruises. The OFP has also provided at-sea training and sampling opportunities for undergraduates (such as REUs, course participants), graduate students and early career scientists.

The OFP has welcomed many educators and science writers who have made important contributions to OFP outreach objectives. Author Liz Cunningham has joined us on OFP cruises to experience oceanographic research firsthand (she even was able to get her hands into sediment from the ocean floor!). Author Christy Peterson interviewed the OFP team for research on her educational book Into the Deep targeted to Grades 6-12.

If you are interested in a potential collaboration that would require OFP sample material, would like to utilize the OFP database in your research, or are interested in joining an OFP cruise for sampling or educational purposes, please contact Dr. Maureen Conte at maureen.conte@bios.edu. Regarding any inquiries for OFP data or possible use of subsampled material, please review the Agreement for Distribution of Oceanic Flux Program Sediment Trap Material. The OFP dataset is archived on the NSF's Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO) site.

 

OFP in the News

MBL News details an interdisciplinary NSF-funded EAGER project, led by Rut Pedrosa Pàmies, investigating the degradation of plastics in the deep ocean and the role of microbial communities.

Boston NPR Station WBUR interviewed Maureen Conte and other scientists about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on long-term research programs.

SciTech Daily details how an OFP study reveals the effects of Hurricane Nicole on deep-sea ecosystems and the carbon cycle.

Online magazine Wired examines how hurricanes may be shaping large parts of the ocean, interviewing Rut Pedrosa Pamies about the effects on the deep sea. The article was picked up by many news outlets.

Local paper The Falmouth Enterprise showcased the opportunities for high school students at Woods Hole research institutions, highlighting OFP high school lab assistants.

OFP Resources for Kids

Author Christy Peterson interviewed the OFP team for research on her educational book Into the Deep targeted to kids Grades 6-12. Peterson's book provides a look at the diverse ocean ecosystems by interviewing the scientists at the forefront of oceanography about their exciting discoveries and the technology that they use in their research. The book is available in hardcover and electronically! Read an overview of the book in MBL News!

Former OFP Research Assistant Alana Thurston prepared a collection of OFP Coloring Pages that have made regular appearances at the Woods Hole Science Strolls. The pages are sketches of microscopic particles and shells collected in the OFP traps. Coloring fun for all ages!

OFP Outreach Photos
Alexander Bochdansky (Old Dominion University) & Rut Pedrosa Pamies prepare his FOSI particle imaging camera for deployment
OFP Outreach Photos
Falmouth Public School 6th graders get a tour of the OFP lab at the MBL by JC Weber
OFP Outreach Photos
Woods Hole Science Stroll: Maureen Conte helps a young artist with OFP coloring pages
OFP Outreach Photos
Science writer Liz Cunningham helps Rut Pedrosa Pamies send a messenger to a submerged seafloor sampler
OFP Outreach Photos
Maureen Conte works with Emily Maness (Univ of Tampa) explaining GCMS data for her undergraduate project
OFP Outreach Photos
Maureen Conte talks OFP mooring components with participants in the Partnership for Observation of the Global Oceans (POGO) post-graduate program
OFP Outreach Photos
Partnership for Observation of the Global Oceans (POGO) scholars assist during an OFP mooring deployment
OFP Outreach Photos
Amy Maas (BIOS) & Andrea Miccoli (BIOS) deploy the MOCNESS for plankton collection on an OFP cruise
OFP Outreach Photos
BIOS Marine Science Day: David Koweek explains pressure of the deep ocean
OFP Outreach Photos
Woods Hole Science Stroll: Rut Pedrosa Pamies helps next-gen marine engineers build mini-OFP moorings
OFP Outreach Photos
Middle school teacher & science writer sorting microplastics during an OFP cruise
OFP Outreach Photos
JC Weber works with Marianna Karagiannis (Univ of Chicago) examining GCirMS data from her undergraduate project
OFP Outreach Photos
Jan-Erik Tesdal (Lamont-Doherty at Columbia Univ) assists Rut Pedrosa Pamies & Maureen Conte (off camera) prepare an OFP sediment trap for deployment
OFP Outreach Photos
Maureen Conte gives a tour of the Atlantic Explorer & highlights the OFP to a group of high school students from Vermont
OFP Outreach Photos
Woods Hole Science Stroll: Annagh Devitt (Univ of Chicago) helps a next generation scientist touch the ocean seafloor
OFP Outreach Photos
Science writer Liz Cunningham helps Maureen Conte with seafloor sediment collected from 4550m depth
OFP Outreach Photos
Nathalie Staiger (Univ of MA-Dartmouth) samples microscopic foraminifera shells from OFP samples for her graduate research
OFP Outreach Photos
Maureen Conte & Louie Kerr work at the Scanning Electron Microscope with Leonard Shaw (Univ of Chicago) for his undergraduate project
OFP Outreach Photos
Damian Grundle (BIOS) collecting water samples during an OFP cruise
OFP Outreach Photos
BIOS International Women’s Day Event: Maureen Conte & Rut Pedrosa Pamies discuss the OFP mooring showcasing a sediment trap 
OFP Outreach Photos
OFP high school laboratory assistant Mike Callahan (Bourne High School) shares his experience with visiting 6th graders
OFP Outreach Photos
Middle school teacher analyzing microplastics with the Plastic Ocean team
OFP Outreach Photos
Deshawn Adler (Mashpee High School) analyzes carbonate in OFP samples
OFP Outreach Photos
WHSTEP Family Science Night at MBL: Next generation scientist examines foraminifera
OFP Outreach Photos
Maureen Conte gives a tour of the Atlantic Explorer & highlights the OFP to a group of high school students from Vermont
OFP Outreach Photos
Franklina Yeboah (Univ of MD) prepares marine samples for isotopic analysis
OFP Outreach Photos
Tori Gray (Univ of MA-Dartmouth) samples microscopic pteropod shells from OFP samples for her graduate research
OFP Outreach Photos
Partnership for Observation of the Global Oceans (POGO) scholars assist during an OFP mooring recovery
OFP Outreach Photos
JC Weber teaches a scholar from the Partnership for Observation of the Global Oceans (POGO) about servicing a recovered sediment trap for redeployment
OFP Outreach Photos
Woods Hole Science Stroll: Annagh Devitt (Univ of Chicago) & Deshawn Adler (Mashpee High School) share OFP exhibits with the community
OFP Outreach Photos
BIOS International Women’s Day Event: Maureen Conte & Rut Pedrosa Pamies discuss the OFP mooring
OFP Outreach Photos
Teachers and the Plastic Oceans team examining microplastics during an OFP cruise
OFP Outreach Photos
Partnership for Observation of the Global Oceans (POGO) scholars prepare floatation for an OFP mooring deployment