University of Washington scientists are using advanced photography to look at the world in new ways, from the slopes of Mount Rainier to the depths of the Pacific Ocean.
The Burke Museum is hosting four programs featuring environmental researchers and photographers about their practice, technique and goals for investigating the natural world beyond what our eye can see.
The programs, all starting at 7 p.m., will be:
Wednesday: “Volcanoes: Supporting Life Under the Sea.” Dr. Debbie Kelley, associate director for science, will discuss how imaging seafloor hot springs reveals biological communities thriving in some of the most extreme environments on Earth, and helps us understand the underwater volcanoes that form the largest mountain chain on the planet.
Oct. 30: “Imaging Greenland’s Ice from Earth and Space.” Using high-resolution spaceborne cameras, helicopters and a GPS-enabled camera, a UW-Woods Hole Oceanographic team is working to reveal and document changes to the vast ice sheets covering Greenland and Antarctica, which are shrinking as the climate warms and sea levels rise.
Nov. 7: “Wildflowers, Climate Change, and Citizen Scientists.” Biology professor Dr. Janneke Hille Ris Lambers and doctoral candidate Elinore Theobald will discuss the power of crowd-sourcing to document and reveal what is happening to the flowers, pollinators, and entire alpine and montane ecosystems.
Nov. 14: “Orcas in Puget Sound.” Senior vessel captain and field biologist Dave Ellifrit helped build and curate the photographic library of orcas in Puget Sound, and can recognize virtually any eastern North Pacific ocean killer whale at a glance. He will share highlights from the photo library, what it has revealed about orcas and how it affects policy and research.
The Scientific Lens series was inspired by the museum’s International Conservation Photography Awards exhibit, on view through Nov. 25.
The talks will be held at the museum and registration is recommended at burke museum.org/events. The cost is $5 at the door, but free for Burke members and university students, staff and faculty with university ID.
The museum is on the University of Washington Seattle campus, at the corner of Northeast 45th Street and 17th Avenue Northeast.
Hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily, and until 8 p.m. on the first Thursday of the month. Museum admission is $10; $8 for seniors, $7.50 for students and youth; free for ages 4 and younger, Burke members, UW students, faculty and staff. Admission also is free to the public on the first Thursday of each month.
For more information, go to burkemuseum.org.
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