LEAD, S.D. (KELO) –The Sanford Underground Research Facility, also known as SURF, is one of the premier underground science locations in the world.
Every summer, SURF looks for interns to help grow many different fields in science.
SURF offers hands-on real-life experiences that help showcase what a future career in science could look like.
Kate Shelton is working in the communications department, helping translate science through graphics.
“I’m happy to have such an awesome team to work with and get feedback on for something I’m new to. First you kinda have to understand the science yourself. So that is one fun part, that you get to learn the science yourself and that’s something that draws me to the science communication field. Where you’re always going to be learning and I always want to continue to learn,” Intern Kate Shelton said.
Intern Colton Clay’s internship takes him underground.
“I don’t want to be stuck kind of just sitting around observing and looking at things for who knows how long, so I’ve actually enjoyed being able to physically do things,” Intern Colton Clay said.
Clay is getting hands-on experience working with the ventilation system.
“Surveying some of the underground areas that we really don’t have access to so a lot of the shafts and the raises that we have underground and on the surface to make sure that they’re still in functional condition. Make sure that they’re not blocked up and prevent airflow from getting down under or from escaping,” Clay said.
Each internship is unique, but they all provide valuable experiences.
“I hope to combine both of those passions and maybe do something in lines of science communication where it might be more geared to sustainability or environmental things. So this kind of was a way of me testing out how that meshes and if I’m really interested in Communicative Science,” Shelton said.
This summer SURF has 9 interns working and learning several different career paths in the world of science.
