March is already buzzing with energy, inspiration, and connection across our community.
Our gatherings in Palm Beach and Naples were incredibly well attended. It was wonderful to see so many of you show up with curiosity and commitment to hear about Workshop/APD’s vision and the exciting direction ahead for the MMA Discovery Center & Aquarium. These gatherings sparked meaningful conversations about impact, growth, and how we envision our campus on Washington Street. Heartfelt thanks to David and Suzanne Frisbie, and to Chris Quidley, along with our dedicated board members Karen Ketterer, Joe Santucci, and Curt Burwell, who made the trip and helped make these events such a success. Your leadership and presence matter deeply.
We are especially excited to welcome Doktor Kaboom: Under Pressure! on March 13–14, presented in collaboration with Nantucket Dreamland, kicking off our STEAM Festival weekend with high-energy fun. It's a fantastic way to bring the whole community together — and what better way to celebrate Pi Day (3.14) than with explosive (and educational!) fun? This is exactly the kind of joyful learning experience that connects science to wonder.
On March 18, we will host an Owl Preservation Panel as part of our Science Speaker Series, featuring an expert discussion on the impacts of avian flu and rodenticides on owl populations and other wildlife. The panel including MMA Field Ornithologist, Ginger Andrews, will explore how these growing threats affect our region and what our community can do in response. As Nantucket continues to grow, conversations like this are essential to balancing development with responsible environmental stewardship.
And of course — our popular Sea Skies & VinesWinemaker Dinner tickets are now live! Don’t miss the opportunity to experience incredible wines from acclaimed winemaker Moone Tsai. It promises to be an unforgettable evening of exceptional wine, beautiful company, and shared purpose with proceeds supporting the future MMA Discovery Center & Aquarium.
Finally, immense gratitude to our dedicated team who make everything flow and come together so seamlessly. The magic you see at each event is built on thoughtful planning, collaboration, and heart. Thank you for showing up with excellence and care every single day.
March is a month of momentum — of science, stewardship, celebration, and community. I look forward to seeing you at one (or all!) of these special gatherings.
With appreciation,
Joanna Roche, MMA Executive Director
March FREE Community Events!
The Annual Nantucket STEAM Festival
Saturday, March 14 (3.14 - Pi Day!) | 10am - 2pm
A designated sensory-friendly half-hour starts at 9:30am before the festival begins.
The Nantucket High School Gymnasium
A Free Community Event!
This year's STEAM Festival falls on March 14 which means Pi Day! 2026 will mark 12 years of this annual FREE event. Join the MMA and our incredible team of collaborators for this FREE, hands-on community event centered around science, technology, engineering, art,and mathematics (STEAM). This year’s theme is “3.14 Miles from Shore: Infinite Patterns,”: celebrating hands-on STEAM learning across sky, land, and sea.
This year’s community partner organizations include: the Artists Association of Nantucket, Egan Maritime Institute, Girl Scouts - Nantucket, Linda Loring Nature Foundation, Mass Audubon, Nantucket Atheneum, Nantucket Community Sailing, Nantucket Community School, Nantucket Conservation Foundation, Nantucket Dreamland, Nantucket Fire Department, Nantucket Police Department, Nantucket Historical Association,Nantucket Land and Water Council, Nantucket Lighthouse School, Nantucket Islands Land Bank, Nantucket Island School of Design and Art, Nantucket Lights, Town of Nantucket Natural Resources Department, UMASS Boston Field Station Nantucket, US Coast Guard Station Brant Point, Nantucket S.T.A.R, and Sustainable Nantucket. All will be highlighting the incredible opportunities to discover STEAM on Nantucket.
Don’t miss your chance to explore, experiment, and celebrate the wonders of STEAM in a day full of discovery, excitement, and a little bit of math magic! We’re thrilled to spark curiosity in the next generation of changemakers — no ticket required! This year's STEAM Festival is underwritten by Beverly and David Barlow.
Doktor Kaboom: Under Pressure!
March 13 at 7pm and March 14 at 3pm
Be amazed by the power of pressure - and what it can teach us.
Equal parts interactive science, comedy, and personal empowerment messages, Doktor Kaboom returns with a new show. Doktor Kaboom: Under Pressure! illustrates physical science concepts, which are also metaphors for real-life mental and emotional pressures.
Praised for keeping crowds riveted with interest and rolling with laughter, Doktor Kaboom is also known for empowering volunteers from the audience to be the heroes of the moment. In Under Pressure!, Kaboom validates the pressures some students may feel, and shares tools and life lessons as resources for dealing with the difficulties that face us all. This incredible event is made possible by a grant from the Remain Fund at the Community Foundation for Nantucket.
The Friday performance will be followed by an Ice Cream Bar, generously sponsored by Island Kitchen, and a photo opportunity with Doktor Kaboom in the Harborview Room.
Image of a Snowy Owl by the late Greg Hinson, whose images will continue to inspire.
March Science Speaker Series
Owl Preservation: A Panel Discussion
Wednesday, March 18 | 6:00 - 7:00pm on Zoom
Join the MMA for an important and timely community conversation focused on the protection of owls and the growing concern over avian flu and rodenticide impacts.
The discussion will feature acclaimed naturalist and author Scott Weidensaul, a Pulitzer Prize finalist for his book, Living on the Wind and A World on the Wing. A contributing editor to National Audubon Society and a longtime columnist for Bird Watcher's Digest, Weidensaul is a Fellow of the American Ornithological Society and co-founder of Project SNOWstorm, which tracks snowy owl movements through satellite telemetry.
Joining Weidensaul will be Susan Baker of the Chicago Ornithological Society and the Chicago Bird Alliance Rodenticide Committee; Meaghan Q. Sinclair, a Mass Audubon Certified Field Naturalist, wildlife photographer, co-founder of Save Concord Wildlife, and member of the Mass Audubon Governance Council; Heather Packard, Community Organizer with Mass Audubon’s Policy & Advocacy team and manager of Climate and Nature Champions; Gwen Shipley, a Council Co-Leader and Climate and Nature Champion with Mass Audubon; and Ginger Andrews, the MMA’s Field Ornithologist.
Together, these distinguished experts bring deep scientific expertise, conservation leadership, and extensive field experience to a timely and engaging discussion.
Pre-registration is required for Zoom. This event is FREE.
Night-time has always had a mysterious appeal, which brings out a whole new cast of avian and other creatures. It requires patience, and a shift of consciousness from sight to hearing. Join the MMA's Field Ornithologist, Ginger Andrews, to listen for the calls of Saw-whet owls and other nocturnal creatures. We will search for Saw-whets as they begin their nightly activities. While a sighting is not guaranteed, you will certainly be able to observe several fascinating nocturnal animal species.
Daring Daughters: Celebrating Our Island's Trailblazing Women
MMA Research Center, 2 Vestal Street
Friday, March 6 | 3 - 4:30pm
In honor of Women's History month, Jascin Leonardo Finger, MMA Deputy Director and Curator of the Mitchell House, Archives and Special Collections, will host an in person talk about Nantucket’s fascinating women’s history. During this talk, she will share her research concerning the place of women in Nantucket’s history and the US and highlight some of these important women and their accomplishments and influence.
The MMA Learning Labs are made possible by a grant from Remain Fund at the Community Foundation for Nantucket.
Hinchman House Natural Science Museum, 7 Milk Street
Friday, March 20 | 6 - 7:30pm
Experience the Natural Science Museum after dark during this special art program. Guided by artist, Nikoline Bohr, you'll create a personalized work of art in a calm and inviting setting. Connect with fellow participants, explore your creativity, and take home your finished piece as a lasting keepsake.
Pre-registration is required. All materials provided.
Hinchman House Natural Science Museum, 7 Milk Street
Friday, March 20 | 3 - 5pm
Have you ever wondered how to draw scientifically accurate plants and animals? Come join the MMA's very own scientific illustrator, Nikoline Bohr, to learn these fun techniques! We will provide all the tools necessary during this months' STEAM Squad session.
The MMA invites participants to explore the intersections of science, technology, engineering, art, and math through creative challenges, guided investigations, and collaborative projects. From designing and testing inventions to analyzing natural phenomena and building artistic interpretations of scientific ideas, students will grow their curiosity, confidence, and problem-solving skills. Each month features a new theme and a fresh opportunity for discovery.
This program is for middle schoolers who enjoy exploring, making, experimenting, and thinking in new ways—no prior experience necessary.
Pre-registration is required. All materials provided.
Sunday, March 8 | 7pm: The Maria Mitchell Association
Saturday, March 21:Nantucket Conservation Foundation
Saturday, March 28:Nantucket Islands Land Bank
Embrace the quiet of the off-season with free, guided walks focused on wellness, connection, and community. Each walk begins at 1pm and is led by the hosting organization in collaboration with a Fairwinds representative.
FREE and open to the public. Pre-registration is required. View registration link for location.
Not offered Saturday, March 14 due to Nantucket STEAM Festival
Join MMA staff on a tour as they feed the hungry animals at the Natural Science Museum! Learn about the unique adaptations of turtles, frogs, snakes, and more! This is a great way to learn about native and non-native species up-close, especially if you love animals.
Not offered Saturday, March 14 due to Nantucket STEAM Festival
Enjoy this program designed for the young explorer in your family! During each session, a MMA educator will read a nature or science themed book, introduce you to one of the MMA's animal friends, and will finish up with an activity related to the story. This is a recurring program, but the specific focus and materials provided will change each week.
Designed for students in Grades K–5, this engaging program invites young explorers to dive into nature and science through hands-on seasonal activities, creative projects, and outdoor discovery — even as winter shifts into early spring.
It’s the perfect opportunity for curious minds to learn, create, and explore our island!
Each Afternoon Holds Different Activities, Crafts, and Adventures!
House-shopping Bald Eagle checked out an Osprey- built abode. Photo by Mitch Blake.
Keep Calm and Bird On March 2026!
by Ginger Andrews
Balmy or bitter? Either way, March is a month of changes. We expect the first American Oystercatchers. But this year it seems it might not be a question of “first” as much as “last and still going.” Two have showed signs of living over one of our most wintery winters in almost a decade. We don’t know how long they can survive frozen harbors and marshes, but as of this writing they were still hanging in there.
March is also when we expect the first Ospreys, returning from the Caribbean or South America, to reclaim their nest platforms of the previous year. This year, they may face some competition, as more than one Bald Eagle has checked out the island—and its nest potential—recently. An adult was seen on the ice at Sesachacha Pond on February 12. Then a Juvie (or could there have been 2?) checked out first a nest on a pole in Pocomo and then a utility pole near Hummock Pond a few hours later.
And towards the end of the month, we expect the first Piping Plovers to return to its beach hatching- or nesting- place in hope of a mate and chance to raise a family. Hardy to sun and cold, they are vulnerable to disturbance from humans and their dogs and cats, as well as crows, ravens, falcons, and hawks. But given protection, the Piping Plover-comeback in New England is still a marvel. It is a demonstration that given sufficient will and determination we humans can maintain or even grow even the most defenseless, the most endangered birds.
But there is still plenty of time to fill in the winter list with an Iceland, Glaucous, or Black-headed Gull. Dunlin, Purple Sandpiper, even a lingering Western Willet—there are plenty of reasons to bundle up and brave the wind, fog, snow, or whatever the weather throws at us. To paraphrase an old saying “there’s no bad weather—there’s only inadequate clothing.”
MMA Discovery Camp 2026
Registration has begun and spots are filling fast!
At MMA Discovery Camps, children become scientists, explorers, and problem-solvers—learning through hands-on experiments, nature-based discovery,
and unforgettable experiences. Registration is open, and space is limited!
Great Harbor Yacht Club (GHYC) Foundation Awards Generous Grant to Advance MMA's Harbor Monitoring Project and Marine Science Research & Mentoring Program
The MMA is deeply grateful for the generosity of the GHYC Foundation whose investment reflects a shared commitment to Nantucket’s working harbor. The GHYC Foundation’s support advances critical environmental research and hands-on learning in our community at a time when coastal ecosystems face increasing environmental pressures.
Harbor Monitoring Buoy Project
The GHYC Foundation funding sustains the Harbor Monitoring Project by supporting the calibration, deployment, and retrieval of monitoring equipment, along with the scientific data analysis of the data led by Dr. Elizabeth Sherman, MMA's Senior Marine Science Advisor. From April through November, the buoy collects data every 15 minutes, generating more than 23,000 data points, over multiple parameters, each monitoring season. This steady stream of information provides a clear picture of harbor health and helps guide environmental decision-making and long-term stewardship of Nantucket’s coastal ecosystems
Marine Science Research & Mentoring Program
The GHYC Foundation grant also strengthens our Marine Science Research & Mentoring Summer Program for grades 8 and up, blending rigorous field science and mentorship. Funding supports summer fieldwork, lab research, student training, and student scholarships. By pairing active field research with mentorship, the program advances Nantucket Bay Scallop science while cultivating the next generation of marine scientists and environmental stewards through meaningful research.
Through this support, the GHYC Foundation helps turn research into action and education into opportunity—ensuring Nantucket’s natural resources are studied, understood, and protected for generations to come.
Check out our podcast, "The Nature of Nantucket," brought to you by 97.7 ACKFM! Tune in every Sunday at 7:20am on 97.7 for each new episode. You can also listen anytime on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Listen here!
Don’t miss our weekly "Star Report," written and presented by the MMA Astronomy Department.
Learn more about Maria Mitchell and the MMA in the latest post from Maria Mitchell’s Attic, a blog by Jascin Leonardo Finger, MMA Deputy Director and Curator. Read here!
March Hours
The Hinchman House Natural Science Museum & Gift Shop, 7 Milk Street:
Saturday and Sunday 10am - 2pm
Closed Saturday, March 14 for the STEAM Fest! Join us 10am - 2pm at the Nantucket High School Gymnasium
Please see our calendar for our winter programming
The Maria Mitchell Association creates opportunities for all to develop a life-long passion for science, through education, research, and first-hand exploration of the sky, land, and sea of Nantucket Island.
