Our Gallery 2 exhibit highlights pioneering oceanographers and the instruments they invented to study the Gulf Stream and global ocean currents.
The exhibit tells the story of Benjamin Franklin’s early efforts to chart the Gulf Stream, and the discovery of the original Franklin-Folger Gulf Stream chart in 1978 by scientist Philip Richardson of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
Other featured Woods Hole oceanographers include Allyn “Al” Vine, namesake of the submersible DSV Alvin, and Mary Sears, who played a pivotal role during World War II analyzing oceanographic data in Pacific.
Items on display include a bathythermograph (BT), an analog instrument that measures ocean temperatures, and a viewport from the Alvin.
