Join Dr. Wood for a presentation and discussion on the topic of his most recent research: the HMS Challenger!
Dr. Wood is a Robert W. Schaefer Professor of Liberal Arts and Sciences with appointments in English and the Department of Earth Sciences and Environmental Change. He has dedicated himself to the study of environmental writing and history with a focus on the discoveries of the 19th century. At this event, he will give a presentation and discussion on the voyage of the HMS Challenger. During its four-year voyage, the HMS Challenger sailed 70,000 miles and recorded data at more than 360 research stations worldwide. The mission was the massive first step in the field of oceanography, with massive amounts of data being gathered on the topography of the seafloor and its currents, as well as the documentation of 4,700 new species of marine creatures and plants. Dr. Wood has researched the Challenger thoroughly as part of his Oceans 1876 project, which includes his soon-to-be published book, “The Wake of the HMS Challenger.” The project is focused on the gathering and digitization of the numerous findings of the Challenger expedition in the hopes of providing a historical baseline that scientists can use to compare with the status of the oceans of the modern day.