Current & Upcoming Events

AAUS BOD Call for Nominations

The 2013 AAUS Nominating Committee is seeking individuals to run for two executive officer positions; President-Elect and Secretary, and a Director-at-Large on the AAUS Board of Directors.

Commencing on January 01, 2014, the President-Elect will serve a two year term, automatically succeeding the President at the end of his/her term for a two-year term as President. The Secretary will serve a two-year term. Duties and responsibilities are detailed in the AAUS Bylaws available for reference at http://aaus.org/bylaws. The Director-at-Large position involves a three-year term.  Duties and committee responsibilities will be assigned by the President.

Qualified candidates must be voting members in good standing with the Academy.

Please submit nominations to one of three nominating committee members:

Christian McDonald, Chair (cmcdonald@ucsd.edu)

Steve Sellers (Steven_Sellers@nps.gov)

Dave Pence (dpence@hawaii.edu)

The nominating committee will present a list of nominees and candidate bios to the Board of Directors on March 31, 2013. Candidates will be asked to submit responses to several questions to be provided to the AAUS membership as part of the election process. An electronic poll will open on May 01 and close June 30, 2013. 

FSU Panama City’s Dive Symposium

Florida State University Panama City will host “Deep Submergence: Past, Present, and Future of Oceanic Exploration” on Thursday, June 20. The symposium will give dive, engineering, math, technology, and science enthusiasts the opportunity to interact with professionals in the oceanic exploration industry as they discuss how they have redefined the scope of deep sea exploration. http://www.aaus.org/announcements#FSU

AAUS Member Statistics Submission

It is time for submission of organizational member (OM) 2012 scientific diving statistics to the AAUS database. Please begin compiling these numbers now! Even if your OM is using the web based dive log system, you must still print out a summary report, review it for accuracy and submit it to the website below. OMs admitted in 2012 are not required to submit stats for 2012 but if you have them for the full year and would like to submit contact Cheryl Thacker (cthacker@ehs.ufl.edu) or Mike Dardeau (mdardeau@disl.org). Forms for your 2012 summary submissions are available at   

http://stats.diveaaus.org/User_Login.asp. Statistics are considered late as of April 01. The statistics committee will work with OMs to overcome any technical issues but if the submitted materials are not complete by July 01, the lapse will be turned over to the Standards Committee for action. A link to the site and data collection criteria is available at http://aaus.org/statistics_committee.

Electronic submission of 300-word abstracts are accepted at aaus@disl.org until April 15. Subject line must include "AAUS symposium abstract" followed by lead author's last name. Topics range broadly in the marine sciences from marine conservation, ecology and biodiversity to methods and techniques of underwater research and diving safety. Authors will be notified of abstract acceptance for oral or poster presentation by May 01. Authors expressly accept the obligation of submitting an 800 to 1200-word extended abstract, or full manuscript at the authors' discretion, by July 01 for publication in the 2013 Symposium Proceedings. Editorial and review comments will be forwarded to authors for their consideration with a final submission return date of August 31. For queries please contact Dr. Michael A. Lang (mlang@oceanfdn.org) or Dr. Martin D.J. Sayer (martin.sayer@sams.ac.uk).

2013 Maritime Archaeology Field School

Saint Mary’s College of California (SMC) and the University of Rhode Island will be offering a joint Field School in Maritime Archaeology in Bermuda during July 2013. This annual field school has been conducted in cooperation with the Bermuda Maritime Museum since 1999. The field school is a research-based learning experience that exposes students to a variety of activities including archival research, artifact conservation, archaeological survey, and underwater excavation and documentation of historic shipwrecks. The field school will be conducted from July 15 to August 8, 2013. Training leading to AAUS qualification as a Scientific Diver-in-Training will be provided in advance of departure for Bermuda. Classroom work focused on maritime history and maritime archaeological field methods will comprise week one of the field school. Underwater research and documentation of 16th and 17th century shipwrecks will be conducted in Bermuda during the remaining weeks. For additional information and requirements, please contact jallan@stmarys-ca.edu, rodmather@mail.uri.edu, or the SMC DSO at ses13@saintmarys-ca.edu.

2013 Scientific Dive Course – FHL

The University of Washington (UW) Friday Harbor Laboratories (FHL) will conduct its annual short intensive scientific dive course from August 12 through August 25th, 2013. This is a two-week non-credit workshop designed to provide the basic requirements for becoming certified as a scientific diver according to AAUS standards. It includes First Aid/CPR/Oxygen for SCUBA emergencies training and Rescue diver certification. Students will learn some basic techniques used by scientists conducting subtidal research at FHL and will gain experience in data collection underwater. The San Juan Islands are a challenging and species-rich dive destination.

Course fees will include:  room & board at FHL, DAN and PADI certification cards, and Rescue training e-learning materials. This course is open to scientists and students at any level of study who meet the requirements for AAUS certification: a minimum of 20 logged dives and medical clearance. It is ideal for undergraduates and graduate students who have achieved an advanced level of recreational diving and aim to pursue subtidal research in the near future. Students must provide all their own gear (except for SCUBA cylinders) appropriate for cold water and meeting UW diving safety regulations.

For more information, please see the FHL website: http://depts.washington.edu/fhl/studentSummer2013.html#SumB-xx

or contact the FHL Dive Officer Pema Kitaeff directly at pema@uw.eduor 206-543-0876. Application deadline is April 15, 2013.

Santa Barbara Film Festival to Honor Ernie Brooks

Ernest H. Brooks II (Ernie to all who know him) is one of the legends of underwater photography. The son of Ernest H. Brooks, who was the founder of Brooks Institute of Photography, Ernie grew up in Santa Barbara with the ocean as his playground. Long recognized as one of the premiere underwater photographers in the world, Brooks’ specialty is distinctive black and white images that are timeless in their appeal. His coffee table book, Silver Seas, features an amazing collection of his photographs and is highly desired.

To honor Ernie’s contributions to the science and art of underwater photography, the Santa Barbara Underwater Film Festival will be presenting a Tribute to Ernie Brooks at the beautiful Arlington Theater in Santa Barbara on Saturday, September 14, 2013 at 7:00 PM. The program will be a benefit to raise funds for the Historical Diving Society USA and the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum.

Confirmed presentations at this time include the following:

            • Zale Parry (actress) – Retrospective on the “Sea Hunt” television program

            • Stan Waterman & Rodney Fox – Sharks: Blue Water, White Death

            • David Doubilet – National Geographic Underwater

            • Howard & Michele Hall – The World’s Best Diving

            • Chuck Davis, Louis Prezelin, Ralph Clevenger, Richard Salas, Tim Anguelo –

               The Crew of the “Just Love”

            • Mike deGruy – Remembering Our Friend

            • Ernie Brooks – Silver Seas

Special introductions for the evening will be provided by Wyland, Dan Orr, Bret Gilliam, and Doug Cummings, as well as a few surprise guests. The master of ceremonies for the evening will be Leslie Leaney of the Historical Diving Society USA.

A special VIP reception will be held on Friday evening at 7:00 P.M. on Friday, September 13 at the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum at the Santa Barbara Harbor. Space for this opportunity to mingle with the presenters will be very limited, so be sure to sign up for this event early. Hotel information can be obtained through www.santabarbaraca.com.

Tickets for the VIP Reception with Film Festival Reserved Seating are $150.00 (plus ticketing fees) and are in short supply. General admission tickets with open seating are $38.00, plus ticketing fees. To order tickets, call the Arlington Ticket Agency at 805-963-4408. Tickets can also be ordered through Ticketmaster.

Both the Historical Diving Society USA and the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum are public 501(c)3 charities and work together to preserve diving history. For more information on the Historical Diving Society USA visit www.hds.org. To learn about the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum visit their facility in Santa Barbara or go to www.sbmm.org.

AAUS Scholarship Recipients are announced today.

2013 Diving for Science Symposium in Curacao