The Virginia Institute of Marine Science has two upcoming events at its Gloucester Point campus.

VIMS will hold its Freezing Seas and Marine Snow Discovery Lab from 6-8 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 17, in the Catlett-Burruss Research and Education Lab. Discover what lives in the coldest waters of the ocean, why sea ice is so important in the Arctic and how it “snows” under the sea.

Designed with element-ary-aged youth and their parents in mind, Discovery Labs are provided for free by the Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in Virginia (CBNERR-VA) at VIMS. Each lab focuses on a different topic related to the Chesapeake Bay and the local environment and includes exhibits, demonstrations and hands-on activities as well as a short presentation by an expert on the topic. Registration is required due to limited space.

Blue Crab Bowl

VIMS and Old Dominion University will hold the 26th annual Blue Crab Bowl, the regional competition of the National Ocean Sciences Bowl, on Feb. 10 from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. at Watermen’s Hall on the VIMS campus.

In this academic competition, high school students answer questions drawn from scientific and technical ocean science disciplines. Teams are selected by lottery from all valid pre-registration forms submitted last November. Competition teams consist of five high school students (four competitors and one alternate) and an adult coach.

The winning team will move forward to compete in the national competition. Observation of the Blue Crab Bowl is open to the public.