Maui Ocean Center educator headed to deep sea aboard research vessel Nautilus

A Maui Ocean Center educator has been selected for a prestigious fellowship that will send her to one of the Pacific Ocean’s most remote stretches this fall.

Sabrina Medina, Education Program coordinator with the Marine Institute at Maui Ocean Center, was chosen by Ocean Exploration Trust as one of 14 Science Communication Fellows for 2026. She will sail aboard the organization’s exploration vessel Nautilus in August and September as part of a 30-day expedition near Wake Island, the isolated atoll roughly midway between Hawaiʻi  and the Mariana Islands.

The expedition will use remotely operated vehicles, mapping technology and telepresence systems to survey largely uncharted deep-sea habitats, abyssal plains and unexplored seamounts in the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument. The team will also investigate potential maritime heritage sites connected to the Battle of Wake Island.

Medina, originally from Orange County, Calif., was selected from a worldwide applicant pool. While at sea, she will participate in live broadcasts and question-and-answer sessions streamed through NautilusLive.org, allowing Maui students and residents to follow the expedition in real time. Schools and community groups can schedule free live question-and-answer sessions with shipboard researchers beginning in June.

“I am most excited to show students that there is no single way to belong to ocean science,” Medina said. “I hope to inspire a new generation of ocean explorers to use the skills and interests that make science accessible to them.”

Ocean Exploration Trust was founded by Robert Ballard, famous for discovering the wreck of the Titanic. The nonprofit operates the Nautilus with a mission to explore uncharted ocean regions while advancing science, technology, engineering and math education worldwide.