STEM is important because it pervades every part of our lives and as an island people, nowhere is this more apparent than on the seas and oceans that surround us. Ireland is so inextricably bound up with the coast and the sea that no place on this small island is divorced from the marine influence. Over the millennia, the Irish have carved out a living from the seas and shores as much as from the land. The Great Irish Fishing Adventure is predicated on the STEM concept that science is, quite literally in Ireland’s case, everywhere in the world around us.

To this end, the series has secured the support of the Marine Institute that provides scientific and technical advice to Government to help inform policy and to support the sustainable development of Ireland’s marine resource, as well as a team of eminent researchers in a multitude of academic disciplines to provide a sound scientific footing.

The choice of a female presenter and an inspiring cast of scientists, of which over a half are female, will help to bridge the gender gap often found in maths and science fields on television. The Great Irish Fishing Adventure breaks the traditional gender roles, showing cutting edge female Irish scientists applying STEM research in exciting, real world situations, in an interdisciplinary and applied approach.

What separates The Great Irish Fishing Adventure from traditional science television is a blended approach showing viewers how scientific method is applied to everyday life. In a completely natural way the series is rich in computational thinking and the real world applications of problem solving, illustrating the role of STEM in our lives. Each and every decision made uses an aspect of STEM to understand the implications. Viewers are exposed to adventurous applications of STEM-related concepts, with the aim of engaging and inspiring an audience of diverse ages and backgrounds. Rather than featuring the four STEM disciplines as separate and discrete subjects, The Great Irish Fishing Adventure integrates them into a cohesive paradigm based on real-world applications.

The Great Irish Fishing Adventure, as well as having a particular scientific relevance to the island of Ireland, also presents the opportunity to address STEM subjects at the very cutting edge of some of the most pressing and current global issues in ways to inspire curiosity in these dynamic fields. Climate change is the most significant challenge facing society in the 21st century, and the seas and oceans around Ireland offer a fascinating insight into the process and likely outcomes right now.

In each episode of the series presenter Lucy Hunt will be joined on board by a scientist to discuss his or her area of marine research. These will be informal chats as the fishing gets underway. The tone will be accessible and informative and the science will be illustrated by the underwater footage shot exclusively for this production. Among the subject areas covered over the course of the six episodes will be:

• how the seas work – tides, temps and winds. Meteorologist Dr Conor Sweeney, of UCD Earth Institute, School of Mathematical Sciences, explains how, outside of Earth’s equatorial areas, weather patterns are strongly linked to surface ocean currents. Currents are movements of ocean water in a continuous flow, created largely by surface winds but also partly by temperature and salinity gradients, Earth’s rotation, and tides (the gravitational effects of the sun and moon). Major current systems typically flow clockwise in the northern hemisphere and counterclockwise in the southern hemisphere, in circular patterns that often trace the coastlines.
• Michael Gillooly from the Marine Institute in Galway describes the Integrated Marine Observations System (IMOS) displaying real time readings from sensors and instruments provided from the Weather Buoy Network, Wave Buoy Network, Tide Gauge Network and Furnace Weather Station. Observations include air temperature, atmospheric pressure, atmospheric humidity, sea temperature, wave height and period statistics, wind speed and direction. Michael also explains how the Marine Institute is part of EuroGOOS – a network of observatories sharing data across Europe.
• climate change impacts on Ireland’s oceans - this episode features Adjunct Professor in the School of Biology and Environmental Science at University College Dublin, Ken Whelan who, in 2009, co-authored a report featuring the most comprehensive analysis to date of marine climate change in Irish waters. What did that seminal report tell us and how does the measurement of deep ocean currents to the west and north of Ireland make a contribution to scientific understanding of current patterns and their effects on climate change?
• the behaviour and the biology of the fish - renowned aquatic ecologist Felicity Huntingford demonstrates the many new techniques that have emerged in furthering understanding of the physiology of fish behaviour and how these studies have been enhanced by video recording. This research has provided many opportunities to explore the fascinating complexities of animal behaviour. How do sensory input, hormones, genetics and experience interact to shape individual behaviour? And how do fish cope with their complex social and biological environment, including parasites, competitors and collaborators?
• plankton and light penetration - life in the oceans as we know is limited to zones where light can adequately penetrate. Marine Botanist Kathryn Schoenrock of NUI Galway describes an underwater world where light penetrating seawater provides the energy to fuel vast photosynthetic hordes of microscopic marine plants—phytoplankton—which are an essential source of food and oxygen for the entire planet. Just below the surface, our diver will see green light, depending on how much phytoplankton is present. Water with high concentrations of phytoplankton is green and darker for the same reason that dense tropical forests are: plant pigments absorb blue and red light and reflect green light.
• the gulf stream or the north Atlantic drift is one of the strongest and most important ocean currents in the world. Driven by water density and wind patterns, the Gulf Stream currents move warm water in the Atlantic Ocean from the Caribbean Sea northeast to northern Europe andIreland. Oceanographer Triona McGrath of Natural Sciences/Ryan Institute, NUI Galway, will explain how without this warm north Atlantic drift, Ireland could be as cold as Canada - up to 5 °C cooler.
• the “cold blob” and what it might mean to our seas. The North Atlantic between Newfoundland and Ireland is practically the only region of the world that has defied global warming and even cooled. University College Cork climatologist Dr Kieran Hickey describes how this ‘blob’ of abnormally cold water near Greenland, has the potential to put enough drag on the ocean current to impact weather conditions in the years to come.
• pollution – enrichment, oils, pesticides, acidity and plastics. Ten million tonnes of plastic enter our oceans every year, and environmental experts believe that by 2050, plastic will actually outweigh fish in the sea. Karin Dubsky from Coastwatch Europe, explains how this isn’t just a problem for the 600- plus species of marine life that suffer directly from plastic pollution. When fish ingest plastic the material can enter the food chain “and end up on your dinner plate”.
• The importance of ocean chemistry – Dr. Rachel Cave explains that we directly affect ocean chemistry by adding CO2 to the atmosphere, as it diffuses into the Ocean and lowers the pH. It’s known as Ocean Acidification, and it affects the food supply for fisheries and the growth of deep-water corals which are an important fish habitat in Irish waters and the wider ocean.
• Ireland as as a location for annual visits from sharks, rays and other amazing cartilaginous fish. Marine biologist Anne Marie Power, School of Natural Sciences, NUI Galway, describes the unique biology of the shark and how species are now swimming in our waters, like the Oceanic whitetip shark is normally found in tropical waters, but it’s now among 35 species of shark which have been found in Irish waters.