IROE team engage the public in offshore wind engineering at Southampton Science and Engineering Festival
The IROE team were out in force at the annual SOTSEF Science and Engineering Day highlighting the role of offshore engineering in supporting the energy transition.
A range of hands-on activities enabled members of the public to install different anchoring systems to hold floating wind turbines in place and stable in the ocean, and then test how strong they were. An interactive digital display allowed people to explore the range of activities that go on in the ocean, the range of seabed deposits that offshore engineers encounter, and how marine spatial planning informs where to put future offshore wind.
For the younger visitors, a hands-on experience allowed them to play with all sorts of seabed sediments, from smooth fine clays and glassy silica sands, through mixed sediments containing everything from clay to cobbles. The team got to talk to them about which would be good engineering materials and find out where they would choose to build and offshore wind turbine
With more than 5000 visitors attending the Science and Engineering Day it was a busy and fun day!
Find out more about SOTSEF and future events at www.sotsef.co.uk.