Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROV) or “Underwater Robots”
Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary is pleased to host
the 8th annual Great Lakes Regional MATE ROV Building Competition April 28, 2012

2012 ROV Competition Support Events

January 14, 2012
BEGINNER ROV BUILDING WORKSHOP.  Free workshop in Alpena, Michigan from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm, best for adults that work with students in 5th to 8th grade including teachers, informal educators, and parents who are interested in building a student team.   Contact Sarah Waters at sarah.a.waters@noaa.gov or 989.356.8805 x29 to sign up or for more information.

January 25, 2012 at 5:30 pm
2012 MATE ROV competition informational meeting at NOAA’s Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center, 500 W. Fletcher St., Alpena, MI.  This year’s mission will be reviewed, and question and answer session will be held.  Free and open to any interested teams, mentors and students all welcome to attend.

Dates TBA
Plaza Pool Practice Sessions in Alpena, MI – teams sign up to practice on the competition missions

Excite Students with Marine Technology!
Are you interested in learning about Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) technology and its application in ocean and Great Lakes studies?
Want to learn how to build a ROV with students?   
Interested in putting together a student team to participate in a Great Lakes regional ROV competition?  Any middle school, junior high, high school, home school, community college, or university teams of three or more may compete in our event. 

Elementary school teams are encouraged to enter our new Scout Class division.   Parents, Teachers, After-school Clubs, students:  For more information, please contact Sarah.A.Waters@noaa.gov or go to the Marine Advanced Technology Education (MATE) Center’s web page to sign up your team or for more information about how to excite students with marine technology.

Support this program by volunteering at Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary.

Diving into History: The Role of ROVs in Exploring WWII Shipwrecks
A competition that highlights how ROVs are assessing WWII shipwrecks and the potential hazards that they may contain. The following video clips were compiled for use by students participating in the MATE Center video project. They provide examples of real projects similar to the 2012 competition theme and an overview National Marine Sanctuaries and Maritime Heritage.