Millersville University senior Alex Davies is soaking it up.

Davies is among a group of MU students who will be learning about ocean temperature and how to measure currents at Wallops Island, Va., this week –– but he's already getting a head start.

Davies is now at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility, studying oceanography as part of an internship.

In addition to a NASA facility, Wallops Island is home to the Marine Consortium, which is made up of more than a dozen universities and colleges and whose focus is to educate students majoring in science-related fields.

Through the years, NASA and the consortium have partnered to teach students about oceanography.

Beginning today, Davies and about a dozen other MU students will study oceanography and other topics in earth and marine sciences on Wallops Island.

Davies, 22, of Bel Air, Md., obtained the internship through the help of Ajoy Kumar, an oceanography professor at MU, who will be teaching a fields and methods course at Wallops Island.

"Being here is so important," Kumar said. "There is so much to do with lab equipment that you can't do in a real classroom. While students are actually in the ocean they can use their instincts to see how the ocean is changing."

Davies said he is thrilled to be interning at NASA, but he also is looking forward to joining his classmates for experiments.

"I am ready to get my hands dirty," he said.

So far, Davies, who has been at NASA for two weeks, said he already has learned much.

"NASA is using emerging technologies to find new ways to look at the Earth's phenomena," Davies said.

After his three weeks with the MU group, he will return to NASA for eight weeks and then head back to school.

Davies, who is majoring in meteorology and ocean sciences and coastal studies, said last week he was learning how to measure the velocity and direction of the flow of ocean water minus the tides through high-frequency coastal ocean dynamics applications radar.

MU oceanography and earth science students are required to travel to Wallops Island to conduct experiments.

During the trip, Kumar also will show students how to use a variety of instruments.

Kumar said the experiments students will take part in are important.

"(Science) students must learn about the ecosystems along the coast because it affects the health of the people who live along the coast," Kumar said. "By maintaining parameters, students can learn how climate affects the environment."

Shortly after students arrive at Wallops Island, construction will start on a new $15 million 80,000-square-foot facility that will be paid for through a loan from the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, Kumar said.

Kumar said the facility will consist of six wet laboratories, dormitories, classrooms and a fish collection storage area.

Kumar said the new facility will improve the quality of education students that receive at the consortium.

E-mail: mpennino@lnpnews.com