USGS Science Campus Open House: Hours of sciences, sunshine, and ice cream
Ice-cream truck
The USGS Flagstaff Science Campus Open House on September 29 was attended by more than 300 people who learned about the diversity of sciences that we do in Flagstaff. We celebrate, embrace, and are incredibly grateful to so many visitors for making this an unforgettable occasion–as we make science-terrific memories together. Here we share highlights for those who were unable to attend.
Members of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Open House team are from the Astrogeology Science Center; Arizona Water Science Center; Southwest Biological Science Center; Geology, Minerals, Energy, Geophysics Science Center; and Western Geographic Science Center.
Visitors to our science campus had a fun-filled afternoon exploring interactive displays and activities related to geology, geography, biology, hydrology, planetary science, and mapping.
Engaging talks from experts in the field
Dr. Ryan Anderson (at keyboard) is giving a talk about the Mars 2020 mission Perseverance rover, the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission Curiosity rover, and showing out-of-this-world pictures from Mars. Dr. Pardhasaradhi Teluguntla, Danny Foley, and Dr. Itiya Aneece (not shown) also provided engaging science talks for our visitors.
Families were everywhere.
Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are important for everyone, especially young learners. Don’t miss Ryder (A) already selecting the vehicle that he prefers to drive, when he grows up and goes to astronaut training. Dr. Chris Okubo’s son (C) checks out how he’ll look in his astronaut suit someday. His daughter strikes a pose, with a cute little grin, while holding dad’s hand, knowing that one day she'll fly one of NASA's jets, or a new jet built by River (E), who shows the latest model of the Ingenuity helicopter that he built with LEGO bricks. River also built a model of the Perseverance rover.
Wade Foos (B) and wife (D) said the grandchildren absolutely loved the Augmented Reality Sandbox, but was it really the grandchildren, or was it secretly them?
A four-legged visitor got a thermal reading.
Dr. Greg Vaughan delighted visitors, including canine ones, with a thermal infrared camera demonstration. This little puppy let everyone know how excited he was at seeing himself displayed as a thermal image. In this thermal image, bright white areas have the warmest temperatures, while darker purple areas have the coolest temperatures. Animals, including humans, lose most of their body heat from their head, face, neck, eyes, and ears. Places that are covered with fur, or hair, insulate against this heat loss. Like most humans, this person has a cooler nose compared to the rest of their face. This is due to less blood circulation there. Note that the puppy has an even colder nose, because it’s wet – this is due to evaporative cooling.
Flagstaff loves gardens.
The Southwest Biological Science Center’s Drought Research Garden, located just east of the Shoemaker building, is not your typical garden. Here, Rob Massatti shared information with visitors about the research and partnerships happening in Flagstaff to enhance seed availability, seed diversity, and seed quality, which will increase restoration success across the Colorado Plateau. This is a welcomed effort that is part of The National Seed Strategy aimed at feeding the people of the land in the long-term, in the face of challenges, such as climate change, and population growth.
Humans, bugs, dirt, and water–a complex web of life and sustainability
Do you know Flagstaff gets its water from Upper Lake Mary, springs in the inner basin of the San Francisco Peaks, and from groundwater? In 2023, Flagstaff got plenty water, though average this year.
Visitors learned about the USGS’s Gravity Program Gravity Van, which holds special equipment for measuring ground water characteristics. The Gravity Van allows scientists to map changes in groundwater storage and to improve models that simulate groundwater flow.
Together, humans, water, soil, dirt, and bugs are connected for the sake of ecosystem interaction, biological processes, decomposition and nutrient cycling, even adaptation and survival.
The fun thing about Open House is you never know who you might see approach the welcome table. Dr. Lori Pigue, Open House coordinator, welcomed scientist emeritus, Don Bills, who started working for the Arizona Water Science Center in 1978. It was great to see Don again. Dr. Lori Pigue said,
“Activities and engagement described were just the tip of the iceberg provided for our visitors. It was an incredible collaborative effort from our five main USGS Science Centers on campus, and it was a fun-filled day sharing many different types of science with all who visited. The Flagstaff Festival of Science and our Open House are highlights for us every year, and we’re looking forward to bringing more northern Arizona science to all who visit!"
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