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GLOBE Student is Recognized with 7 Awards at USM Regional Science Fair

May 29, 2025

Lily C., a 9th grader from Gulfport High School, Gulfport, Mississippi, took her GLOBE project “The Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone” to the 2025 University of Southern Mississippi (USM) Regional Science Fair. Lily started this project as an 8th grade student at Bayou View Middle School, where she was under the guidance of GLOBE educator Angela Lee. As she moved onto her high school career, Lily reached out to Mrs. Lee so that she could borrow equipment to continue testing the water quality of the Gulf of Mexico.

Lily used a water quality kit provided in a backpack of materials courtesy of Mrs. Lee. She tested salinity, dissolved oxygen, pH, nitrogen and transparency. Lily tested several sites along the Gulf Coast and compared her data to data being collected by NOAA. Lily noted that some days the dissolved oxygen and salinity was much lower than what was measured by NOAA. During this time period, she also noted that the rivers had passed their flood stage, which could have contributed to the difference.

Lily updated her project information for submission to the 2025 USM Regional Science Fair. She received the following awards for her GLOBE project.

NOAA's 2025 Taking the Pulse of the Planet Award
The Air & Waste Management Association Justice Manning Award for Environmental Science
Mississippi Department of Marine Resources Excellence in Marine Sciences Award
NASA Earth System Science Project Award
The Ricoh Sustainable Development Award
The Science Champion Award from the United States Agency for International Development
The United States Air Force Award for Outstanding Achievement