MILWAUKEE — The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee hopes to get more students interested in Great Lakes research.

Maxwell Morgan is the captain of the Neeskay. It is a vessel that conducts on research on Lake Michigan for the university.

Recently, he took a group of UWM students for a day out on the water.

“It’s great. It’s a lot better than sitting at the dock. I can tell you that. This is what I took this job for. Being out on the open water,” Morgan said. “It’s something I have always loved, and it’s my favorite place to be.”

Morgan guided students through several experiments.

This included monitoring the temperature of the water and examining the mud for contaminants.

“Whether it be for making it clean for drinking or how to treat contaminated water or recreational for swimming or for fishing, drinking,” Morgan said. “Water is one of the most important resources on the planet, so if we could get a better idea of what’s going on with the water, we have the better off we will be.”

For one test, Morgan examined the health of the Lake Michigan ecosystem by finding out how much plankton is in the water.

Alaina Blackledge is one of the students. She volunteered to toss the net used to gather samples from the lake. When pulled up, the students found a good amount of plankton.

Blackledge wants to become a science teacher. She went on this trip to increase her knowledge in the field.

“I think, honestly, exciting people about learning is really important so when you offer an opportunity, ‘Hey let’s go out on Lake Michigan on this research vessel,’ that can excite a lot of people who would maybe never think about coming out here for this purpose,” said Blackledge.

Seeing students like Blackledge who take part in this research gives Morgan a sense of pride.

“It’s a great opportunity. I think with that being such a big resource,” Blackledge said. “There’s going to be more and more job opportunities out there, so the more people we can have trained to know the different science about water, the better.”

Morgan said the Neeskay has served the university for decades and they will eventually replace it with a new research vessel called the Maggi Sue.

He believes while the Maggi Sue will help advance great lakes research, he will always be thankful for Neeskay’s contribution to UWM.

More information on the university’s new research vessel can be found at https://uwm.edu/freshwater/facilities/fleet/maggi-sue/.