Megan Cook may have grown up landlocked on a desert in Idaho, but she nevertheless developed a love for the ocean.

Now her life and career revolve around the ocean, and these days you’re more likely to find her in the water than out of it.

Cook, 27, of Kailua, has been selected to go aboard the Exploration Vessel Nautilus, a 211-foot research vessel equipped with state-of-the-art technology, on its expedition to undersea mountain ranges near Puerto Rico later this month.

The Nautilus Exploration Program was founded in 2008 by ocean explorer Robert Ballard, most famous for discovering the wreck of the RMS Titanic. Its work centers on scientific exploration of the seafloor.

The Nautilus began its voyage in the straits of Florida in June and is now in the Gulf of Mexico. The research will continue until November, with the team aboard switching out every few weeks.

Starting Aug. 27, Cook will be the lead science communication fellow on board, sharing the Nautilus’ scientific findings with a worldwide audience for about three weeks via www.nautiluslive.org.

"Here in Hawaii the ocean is all around us, so few people realize we have explored less than 10 percent of our global ocean," she said. "In the day-to-day rush it’s easy to forget how much we have left to learn. It’s a really exciting opportunity."

This will be Cook’s second stint aboard the Nautilus. An ocean ambassador for the nonprofit conservation group Mission Blue, she joined the research vessel’s 2013 expedition to the Gulf of Mexico, where scientists examined the impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on coral reefs.

Part of the Nautilus’ mission is to educate and inspire a new generation of ocean explorers, scientists, engineers and educators.

Cook credits her first-grade teacher for sparking her interest in marine biology.

She grew up in a water-loving family but didn’t actually begin scuba diving until the summer after her first year at Oregon State University, where she studied biology and chemistry.

"I started diving in a lake in Idaho," she said. "There were seven tires and one fish."

Since then she’s gone on to experience spectacular reef environments throughout the world — from Australia to Antarctica — on various scholarships.

Hawaii became home after she moved here as a free-diver for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminstration’s marine debris team.

For nine months she helped remove nets caught in the coral reef at Papahanaumokuakea, the marine national monument in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands.

"It’s incredibly hard work because you’re free-diving down to cut them and haul them out," she said. "It’s probably one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done in my life. Every one of those nets you take, you know you’re making the environment healthier."

When she’s not exploring the ocean somewhere in the world, Cook works part time as a copilot for Atlantis Submarines on Oahu. She’s also a scuba instructor and videographer.

The Nautilus is equipped with two remotely operated vehicles — the Hercules and Argus — that will beam high-definition video and images to a satellite, collect geological and biological samples and map the seafloor. The ROVs can descend to a depth of 4,000 meters, or the length of about 44 football fields.

In the next few years, Cook said it’s possible the Nautilus will head toward the Eastern Pacific, closer to Hawaii.

She is eager to share her next adventure with teachers, who can bring the Nautilus into the classroom by participating in real-time question-and-answer sessions with those on board.

"We don’t know what we’ll find," she said. "It’s possible that we’ll find something that no one’s seen before."

Megan Cook is available to speak at schools before and after her expedition. Contact her at megancook33@gmail.com. Follow Cook aboard the E/V Nautilus at www.nautiluslive.org, on Facebook and via Twitter at @EVNautilus.