Hack for the Sea - A Hackathon to Create Real Solutions for our Oceans

tl;dr: Come to Maritime Gloucester and hack on ocean data and hardware.

Considering all life on this planet is, in one way or another, dependent on the sea you’d think we’d be more connected to it. But most of us live on land and up until recently ocean-capable sensors were expensive and solitary, making real data and good digital tools hard to come by.

The event will center on creating novel solutions using the inexpensive and easily reproducible ocean-going sensors developed by engineers at Gloucester Innovation. Using Arduino, Raspberry Pi, public databases, communications and networking participants will compete to create unique, useful solutions for the benefit of the sea and those who depend on her.

The event will take place right on the harbor in the heart of Gloucester’s historic working waterfront. The venue is a museum in a former ice factory (which served as the set for the film version of The Perfect Storm) surrounded by nearby dining and drinking opportunities. Informational sessions to be provided by scientists, engineers, fishermen and advocates. 

The opportunity to Hack for the Sea has never been greater. And now a partnership between ocean science innovators Gloucester Innovation, software developers MRH.io, Flying Car communications and marine education non-profit Maritime Gloucester has created an opportunity for the hacker community to “get on board” (blatant nautical reference) the growing fields of DIY sensors and citizen science.