Kona Science Cafe Presents Traveling Research Environmental eXperiences (TREX)

Last year, we hosted a group of students and faculty from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who were conducting environmental studies on Hawaii Island. This year, a new student team is back to pick up where the first left off. A team of seven undergraduates from MIT’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering will present results from two studies performed while visiting the island of Hawaii as part of a winter-term field class, “Travelling Research Environmental eXperiences” (TREX). This year the students are focused on two major projects:

• deciphering crop growth limitation through precision agriculture tools, including the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) , and
• the measurements of airborne particulate and gaseous sulfur dioxide (SO2), a major component of vog, using a network of home-built low-cost portable sensors.

The students will present their measurements and analysis of crop nutrients, remote sensing data, and sulfur dioxide, and discuss their environmental implications.

This year’s trip is led by Ben Kocar, a soil and water biogeochemist, and also instructed by atmospheric chemist Jesse Kroll from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at MIT.

After the presentation, we will have pupus, drinks, and conversation. We are informal and it is potluck, so please bring a pupu and non-alcoholic beverage to share. Reusable plates and cups are encouraged, as is taking home your own trash.

Agenda:

5:00-5:15 p.m. Gather and Networking
5:15-6:00 p.m. Presentation and Q&A
6:00-7:30 p.m. more networking, pupus