Nautical Research Platform for Water-Bound Experiments

Conducting research in lakes and rivers requires large crews and heavy-duty equipment, making even simple tests more costly and time consuming. Newer research methods are evolving constantly as new technology enables more precise and accessible experiments to be conducted. The need for simple execution of water-bound experiments exists and must be addressed to aid our understanding of these environments. We at the Microgravity Undergraduate Research Team have taken our previous research in autonomous Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) and applied our efforts to relieving this problem. Our current research aims to provide a universal platform for research and experiments to be conducted in lakes and rivers, where we can then expand our efforts to more broad applications. The design allows for remote-control navigation by one user and easy portability. To address precision in experimentation, we have integrated autonomous GPS waypoint navigation which removes user error in sensitive measurements. The most important factor in its design is modularity; the ability to accommodate a wide range of equipment for research. Our platform succeeds in making water-bound experiments more accessible and more precise for a multitude of potential applications

Middle Fork of the Boise River Water Quality Concerns and Watershed Health Education

This study uses a mixed methods approach to study the water quality of the Middle Fork of the Boise River and the knowledge held by high school students in an urban school district regarding the water quality issues affecting the Boise River watershed. This study focuses primarily on the effects which Kirby (Atlanta) Dam currently has on the watershed as well as repercussions which may arise with climate change and a predicted frequency increase in drought occurrences. The current and potential consequences of toxic, heavy metals eroding into the river from above the dam on recreating humans, the overall environment, and fish populations (particularly Bull Trout) are addressed along with possible actions to resolve the building sedimentation of contaminants at Kirby Dam. Additionally, an analysis of questionnaire responses from a sample survey was implemented to show a correlation between knowledge learned in K-12 classes regarding the environmental sciences and public awareness pertaining to programs set forth to improve overall Boise River water quality