Santa Cruz residents know fog as a familiar coastal companion, but UC Santa Cruz researchers are taking a fresh look at its untapped potential. Led by Peter Weiss-Penzias, a faculty researcher in biological sciences and chemistry, and Art Professor Jennifer Parker, the “Fog Tree Harvester” project is reimagining fog as a valuable water resource.
“People here feel a connection to the fog, but few realize its potential as a water source,” said Weiss-Penzias. The Fog Tree Harvester project is setting out to change that understanding by creating sculptures equipped with fog-catching nets designed to collect water from the air.
This initiative is a collaboration between UC Santa Cruz’s Climate Action Lab, housed within the Arts Division, and the Center for Coastal Climate Resilience (CCCR). During CCCR’s Fall 2024 Research Symposium, Parker and Weiss-Penzias introduced the project to a multidisciplinary audience, underscoring fog’s role as a global resource and demonstrating how art and science can intersect to inspire public engagement and education.
Fog captivates artists and scientists alike, moving through worlds of imagination and sustenance. Its shifting forms invite wonder, while its moisture sustains entire ecosystems. Scientists are drawn to fog, studying its delicate layers to understand how it supports life, binds landscapes, and nourishes in ways we’re only beginning to grasp. “With this project, we’re aiming to gather baseline data on fog’s water content, allowing us to monitor it now and in the future,” said Weiss-Penzias. “In one of our experiments last year, we found that fog could meet about 35% of the water needs for a vegetable garden.”
The Fog Tree Harvester Project goes beyond data collection. It aims to inspire and educate the Santa Cruz and Bay Area communities through functional public art installations that harvest fog and showcase its potential. The sculptural design is a collective vision to transform traditional fog-catching nets into a more dynamic, eye-catching installation.
“We wanted to move beyond the simple function of a fog net, creating something that invites wonder and draws people into the landscape’s rhythms,” Parker explained. “Imagine a future where fog catchers quietly inhabit gardens and backyards, harvesting moisture directly from the atmosphere to sustain life. These subtle yet essential fixtures remind us of our deep connections with the atmosphere and all that sustains us,” Parker added.
The first fog tree sculpture is now on display at the UC Santa Cruz farm. Parker and Weiss-Penzias recently received funds from the 2024 CITRIS interdisciplinary innovation grant and plan to expand the project with additional installations, including an upcoming exhibit at the Seymour Marine Discovery Center in 2025 and other locations across the Bay Area.
The project exemplifies the power of cross-disciplinary collaboration to address real-world issues and is supported by CCCR, OpenLab Collaborative Research Center, the UC Santa Cruz Arts Division and UC Santa Cruz Science Division, and the UC Santa Cruz Carbon Fund.
The fog tree project is one of over 40 projects that CCCR has supported since its inception in Fall 2022 when it was awarded a $20 million grant from the State of California to advance solutions for coastal resilience in response to climate change.