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Contact Information
Aquarena Center is operated by the Southwest
Texas State University's Continuing
Education Department's "Diving for Science"
program. To find out more information about
the program or to enroll in the Scientific
Diver course, contact the scientific diving
officer, Bridget Lewin, at (512) 245-9769 or
go to the center's Web site at
www.aquarenacenter.com. The cost of the
Scientific Diver course is $200.
The center is about 28 miles (45 km) south
of Austin in San Marcos, Texas. Take Exit
206 off Interstate 35 and travel west on
Aquarena Springs Drive about two miles (3.2
km). The center is open seven days a week,
but hours may vary seasonally. The center is
closed Christmas week and the first week of
the New Year. In addition to the
glass-bottom boat tours, a variety of
educational tours and field trip programs
are offered at Aquarena Center. For more
information,
call (512) 245-7540. |
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World’s Leading Underwater Explorer at Aquarena
Dr Sylvia Earle will visit Texas State
University-San Marcos on March 26, 2008 as a special guest speaker
for the university¹s Common Experience. Dr. Earle will also be on
hand to cut the ribbon at a ceremony to be held at
Aquarena Center at 3pm on Wednesday,
March 26th to officially announce the underwater web cam
recently provided by television station FOX 7 News in Austin Texas.
The general public is invited to attend the ceremony at The Landing,
adjacent to Spring Lake.
Dr. Earle is the National Geographic
Explorer in Residence and a Distinguished Lecturer for the James and
Marilyn Lovell Center for Environmental Geography and Hazards
Research at Texas State University. Named Time Magazine's first
"Hero for the Planet" in 1999, and called
a "Living Legend" by the Library of Congress, Dr. Earle has authored
more than 150 scientific, technical, and popular publications, and
appeared in hundreds of television productions. She has directed
over 60 diving expeditions, logged more than 6,000 hours underwater,
and set the record for solo diving: 1,000 meters or 3,281 feet.
The Diving for Science program actively
supports Aquarena’s mission with
certified divers representing all parts of Texas who help protect
and preserve natural springs and aquifers throughout the state.
O’Shea, FOX 7 Vice President of Engineering and Operations,
approached Aquarena with his idea of
providing the web cam to make an underwater view of Spring Lake
available to the public via the World Wide Web. The web cam was
recently installed in Aquarena’s “Deep
Hole,” one of the most scenic viewing areas and the deepest location
in Spring Lake. Viewers will be able to gain a better understanding
and appreciation of the beauty of the sensitive spring-fed habitat;
home to 8 endangered and threatened species found only in Spring
Lake and San Marcos River.
The Diving for Science program is a
nationally recognized for its unique approach of organizing
certified scuba divers to perform strictly regulated tasks in this
“critical habitat”. Divers not only take 40 hours of course work to
qualify to join the work group, but they are financially
self-supporting. This is in perfect alignment with all of the
educational programs at Aquarena that
are also self supporting. A totally
self-sustaining nature center, aquatic wildlife preserve and a
registered historical landmark, Aquarena
is a rare and endangered entity all to itself.
Ron Coley, Aquarena
Center Director, calls the installation “a very exciting
development. Allowing the general public to log on to see what is
going on underneath Spring Lake will increase awareness of the
crystal clear spring-fed water bubbling up from the Edwards
Aquifer. We hope the scenic view motivates people to come enjoy the
glass bottom boat tour and get more people interested in our Diving
For Science program to learn about this
unique aquatic habitat.”
Visit www.aquarena.txstate.edu for more
information about Aquarena¹s Diving for Science program. To view
the underwater web cam located in Deep Hole, visit
http://media.myfoxaustin.com/cams/webcams.htm.
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COPYRIGHT 2002-2011 BAY AREA DIVERS, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
