BSc Marine Biology alumna Ingrid Solheim (class of 2019) has joined the crew of the deep-sea research vessel Falkor as an instrumentation specialist — a role that recently took her above the Mariana Trench, the deepest place on Earth.
Solheim credits the hands-on instrument work of her Northlight years for the path her career has taken. “The CTD casts we did in MB120 Oceanography Basics aboard RV Skarv are exactly what I do now — just ten thousand metres deeper and with far more expensive equipment,” she says.
After graduating she completed a master’s in ocean engineering and spent two years calibrating autonomous sensors for a research consortium before joining the Falkor. Her advice to current students: “Volunteer for every cruise berth you can get. Seasickness passes; instrument experience doesn’t.”
Solheim returns to campus this November as a guest at the Alumni Reunion Weekend.