Philmont STEM expert will sail aboard the Nautilus this summer

Sarah Burgess, STEM coordinator at Philmont Scout Ranch, has been hand-picked to sail aboard the Nautilus exploration vessel this summer.

This is no ordinary boat. The Nautilus is owned by Dr. Bob Ballard, the oceanographer who discovered the Titanic. Ballard has been inviting the BSA aboard his ships for some time.

Burgess, who has helped spearhead some of Philmont’s science-infused treks, will join the Corps of Exploration in late July and early August as they explore the California Badlands on a route from Long Beach to San Francisco.

On this STEM-heavy trip, Burgess and her fellow explorers will investigate deep-sea biology, geology and archaeology in the Gulf of Mexico and Eastern Pacific Ocean.

This is truly a global effort. The team consists of 28 educators and 26 students from 25 different U.S. states and five different countries.

Burgess says she couldn’t be more excited.

“I am ecstatic to be part of the Corps of Exploration aboard E/V Nautilus this year!” she says. “I look forward to sharing this experience with all the staff, participants and visitors adventuring at Philmont this summer. Ocean exploration is a new frontier, with exciting discoveries yet to happen, and I think many of our Scouts and Venturers will be the next generation of explorers in this realm.”

Wish you were going along? Me too. Fortunately, we can follow along from the comfort of our laptops. 

Educators and students, including Burgess, will participate in live interactions with shore-based audiences via Nautilus Live, a 24-hour web portal bringing expeditions from the field to future explorers. It’s all happening at the Nautilus Live website.

Not surprisingly, you can also follow along on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.

There are plans for Burgess to connect live from the ship with summer staff and participants at Philmont. Now that’s using technology to its fullest.