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Land locked to open ocean

Putting a pH sensor in the hands of students?

Background Image: pHyter sensor being held on a research vessel

8.1. The current average pH of the ocean after being reduced significantly from decades of rampant carbon dioxide being pumped into the atmosphere, and ultimately, absorbed by our ocean. But how is pH measured? If a citizen scientist wants to see this for themselves, is it possible? Measuring ocean pH typically requires expensive equipment and trained operators. Commonly these instruments, while highly accurate, haven’t been available to those outside of the scientific community. Recently, the curious mind and drive of William Pardis, a former student at Flathead Valley Community College, allowed this disconnect to be bridged with the development of the pHyter.

The pHyter is a hand-held pH measuring instrument that is affordable, accurate, and durable. It opens the door to ocean pH monitoring to not only more researchers but also to educators, students, oyster growers, fishermen, and citizen scientists. Additionally, the new device provides the opportunity for the development of a global ocean acidification data map. By combining technologies already in place, the data that is collected can be uploaded to a collaborative database piecing together measurements from around the world.

Background Image: Man standing in the ocean in the South Pacific

Ocean monitoring advancements from an unexpected place: Montana

Where did the pHyter come from? Why was it developed? It was not created in a lab or an oceanographic institute, rather, it was developed in William’s garage in landlocked Montana. While attending Flathead Valley Community College, William met Dr. David Long, an Associate Professor at the college, who was looking for an instrument that his class could use to measure pH when they traveled to the South Pacific. “William walked through my door one day and I threw a paper at him and said ‘Hey can you make one of these?’ The paper described a very primitive device that just didn’t work very well,” said Dr. Long describing the inception of the pHyter. “He just took the design and ran with it.”

“My goal at Flathead Valley Community College is to provide the opportunity for truly talented people to make it to where they really want to go and make serious contributions,” continued Dr. Long. “My students are fellow scientists and that’s important. There are an awful lot of people out there in rural America who are independent thinkers. With my research program, the whole point is to give students an opportunity to experience a career before they are committed to it.”

Background Image: William Pardis and Dr David Long in the South Pacific

Where did NOAA come into the equation?

NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries West Coast Region collaborated with Dr. David Long and former student William Pardis from Flathead Valley Community College with funding in large part by the NOAA Ocean Acidification Education Mini-Grant Program. The grant allowed the opportunity to not only pilot test the pHyter instrument but to develop an Ocean Acidification Plankton Monitoring curriculum. From this initial pilot program, the curriculum has been adopted by schools on the Olympic Peninsula, including an Ocean Guardian School. It even earned students from the Quileute Tribal School in La Push, Washington, the title of “Get Dirty!” Ambassadors by Nickelodeon to help support community involvement and environmental education.

“This instrument can change the landscape of pH monitoring around the world. It was so exciting to get it into the hands of people and give them ownership over the health of our ocean and understanding it,” said Nicole Harris, Education Specialist with Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary.

“Our intention through this pilot was to get the tools to teachers, information into the schools through the teachers and students, and then make it grow,” added Jacqueline Laverdure, Education and Outreach Coordinator with Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary.

Jan Newton is a world expert in ocean change and human impacts to marine systems. It started in her hometown of Seattle, where she spent her childhood on her parents’ 17-ft boat and exploring the beaches near the San Juan Islands and Puget Sound, Washington. Newton remembers this time fondly, saying “the love for nature, the beach and sea was always part of me.” Years later, unsure what to do with her undergraduate science degree, she made the trip to the University of Washington to apply for graduate school in zoology. Having missed the program’s deadline, they pointed her to the oceanography department. There she found her scientific home, with her work focused on climate and human influences on ocean processes.

Jan now wears many hats – scientist, leader, and mentor. She is a senior principal Oceanographer at the Applied Physics Lab at the University of Washington and an affiliate professor in the UW School of Oceanography and School of Marine and Environmental Affairs. She serves as Co-director for Washington Ocean Acidification Center and is the Executive Director of the Northwest Association of Networked Ocean Observing Systems (NANOOS), one of the nation’s regional ocean observing networks, and a Co-chair of the Global Ocean Acidification Observing Network (GOA-ON).

Background Image: person looking at the ocean from the Olympic Coast

Hands-on Approach to Teaching Ocean Chemistry

Ocean acidification (OA) refers to a change in ocean chemistry in response to the uptake of increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere due to the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, gas, and oil, along with land-use change. Seeing that OA can be difficult to conceptualize, the pHyter allows for a hands-on learning approach for students to not only collect data, but to independently come to the conclusion that the ocean is increasing in acidity. The curriculum developed by National Marine Sanctuaries of the West Coast consists of four modules that guide students through concepts of OA, effective contributions to scientific discovery, analysis and interpretation of data, and stewardship actions related to OA. By putting the technology into the hands of the students and making them part of the research efforts; it brings students into the conversations around ocean acidification.

“The one thing that struck me with the pHyter, is the aspect of bringing the human element back. It seems to have a very educational and systemic impact that goes beyond just getting quantitative data, but gets people to qualitatively understand the issue,” said William, the co-creator of pHyter and now an engineer at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute. “It brings people closer to the science. It enables people who wouldn’t normally be able to, to witness this phenomenon.”

Background Image: students filtering ocean water

Looking to the pHuture

The pHyter team is currently working with Sunburst Sensors to constantly test and improve on the instrument’s accuracy, user interface, and design. The current challenge being faced, however, is meeting the requests from educators, researchers, and citizen scientists across the world. This is not the first time the team has faced challenges and certainly will not be the last. What keeps them motivated to constantly move forward is the vision for the device that William laid out: “Imagine people across the developing world making observations and uploading data to a database and what it could be like for them to actively participate in advancing their own understanding of ocean chemistry and the ocean environment.”

Background Image: pHyter and portable refractometer

Effects of ocean acidification and temperature on Alaskan crabs

Red King Crab
Image credit: David Csepp, NMFS AKFSC ABL

Long-term declines of red king crab in Bristol Bay, Alaska may be partially attributed to ocean acidification conditions. These impacts may be partially responsible for the fishery closures during the 2021–2022 and 2022–2023 seasons. Researchers found that ocean acidification negatively impacts Alaskan crabs generally by changing physiological processes, decreasing growth, increasing death rates and reducing shell thickness. Funded by the Ocean Acidification Program, scientists at the Alaska Fisheries Science Center continue to investigate the responses of early life history stages and study the potential of various Alaska crabs to acclimate to changing conditions. Results will inform models that will use the parameters studied to predict the effects of future ocean acidification on the populations of red king crab in Bristol Bay as well as on the fisheries that depend on them. Fishery managers will better be able to anticipate and manage stocks if changing ocean chemistry affects stock productivity and thus the maximum sustainable yield.

More about this work

Forecasts for Alaska Fisheries

Crab pots and fishing nets in Alaska's Dutch Harbor
Image credit: Michael Theberge

Understanding seasonal changes in ocean acidification in Alaskan waters and the potential impacts to the multi-billion-dollar fishery sector is a main priority. Through work funded by NOAA’s Ocean Acidification Program, the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory developed a model capable of depicting past ocean chemistry conditions for the Bering Sea and is now testing the ability of this model to forecast future conditions. This model is being used to develop an ocean acidification indicator provided to fisheries managers in the annual NOAA Eastern Bering Sea Ecosystem Status Report.

ADAPTING TO OCEAN ACIDIFICATION

The NOAA Ocean Acidification Program (OAP) works to prepare society to adapt to the consequences of ocean acidification and conserve marine ecosystems as acidification occurs. Learn more about the human connections and adaptation strategies from these efforts.

Adaptation approaches fostered by the OAP include:

FORECASTING

Using models and research to understand the sensitivity of organisms and ecosystems to ocean acidification to make predictions about the future, allowing communities and industries to prepare

Closeup of oysters cupped in someone's hands

MANAGEMENT

Using these models and predictions as tools to facilitate management strategies that will protect marine resources and communities from future changes

TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT

Developing innovative tools to help monitor ocean acidification and mitigate changing ocean chemistry locally

REDUCING OUR CARBON FOOTPRINT

50 more ways to reduce your carbon footprint >

On the Road

Drive fuel-efficient vehicles or choose public transportation. Choose your bike or walk! Don't sit idle for more than 30 seconds. Keep your tires properly inflated.

With your Food Choices

Eat local- this helps cut down on production and transport! Reduce your meat and dairy. Compost to avoid food waste ending up in the landfill

With your Food Choices

Make energy-efficient choices for your appliances and lighting. Heat and cool efficiently! Change your air filters and program your thermostat, seal and insulate your home, and support clean energy sources

By Reducing Coastal Acidification

Reduce your use of fertilizers, Improve sewage treatment and run off, and Protect and restore coastal habitats

TAKE ACTION WITH YOUR COMMUNITY

You've taken the first step to learn more about ocean acidification - why not spread this knowledge to your community?

Every community has their unique culture, economy and ecology and what’s at stake from ocean acidification may be different depending on where you live.  As a community member, you can take a larger role in educating the public about ocean acidification. Creating awareness is the first step to taking action.  As communities gain traction, neighboring regions that share marine resources can build larger coalitions to address ocean acidification.  Here are some ideas to get started:

  1. Work with informal educators, such as aquarium outreach programs and local non-profits, to teach the public about ocean acidification. Visit our Education & Outreach page to find the newest tools!
  2. Participate in habitat restoration efforts to restore habitats that help mitigate the effects of coastal acidification
  3. Facilitate conversations with local businesses that might be affected by ocean acidification, building a plan for the future.
  4. Partner with local community efforts to mitigate the driver behind ocean acidification  – excess CO2 – such as community supported agriculture, bike & car shares and other public transportation options.
  5. Contact your regional Coastal Acidification Network (CAN) to learn how OA is affecting your region and more ideas about how you can get involved in your community
       More for Taking Community Action