programme which will allow local students to "accompany'' him on his expeditions.

Dr. Bob Ballard, the oceanographer who discovered the wreck of the Titanic , will speak about the Jason Project on Wednesday at the Bermuda Biological Station for Research.

This March, Bermudian students will join 750,000 others in North America and the United Kingdom who have used satellite hook-ups to take part in new discoveries as they happen.

Co-ordinated by the Jason Foundation for Education, the Jason Project began in 1989, when students used live telecasts to accompany Dr. Ballard and his team as they explored the Mediterranean in a submersible.

Not only could the children watch as scientists discovered deep sea "hydrothermal vents'' and an ancient shipwreck, they used an audio hook-up to ask the explorers questions about what was happening.

Since then, students have explored Lake Ontario in Canada and the Galapagos Islands off Ecuador.

In some cases, they even used remote-control joysticks to "fly'' the underwater robotic vehicle used to explore the ocean's floor.

The Jason Project in Bermuda was made possible through a $420,000 gift from Cable and Wireless and help from the Bio Station.

Dr. Ballard is to speak at 8 p.m. at Hanson Hall. Tickets are $5. Those interested can telephone 297-1880.