Amanda Gray

This is a seaglider, product of the Integrative Operational Platforms group in UW's Applied Physics Lab. It's a "buoyancy-driven autonomous underwater vehicle", or in other words, an underwater robot stuffed full of sensors. I started working for APL-IOP shortly after Easter in 2006 as an "undergraduate programmer," and I've fallen madly in love with these bright yellow bots. So now I'm a grad student in physical oceanography! Seaglider paper: [PDF]

In Spring 2008, I'll be out to sea, studying the mesoscale physics, biological and optical properties of the North Atlantic Bloom. (NASA image courtesy Norman Kuring, Ocean Color Group at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.)

The last requirement for the Bachelor of Science degree in Physics was an advanced lab (Phys434): for my final project, I used LabVIEW to analyze sounds recorded by Seaglider 23 off the coast of California. Even though LabVIEW is not my preferred programming platform, I really ejoyed the projects in the class. I finished it at 10 pm on the 14th of December -- and now I'm done! A huge Thank You goes to all the professors and students I worked with over the past 6 quarters. I couldn't have done it without you!