(9/4/23-9/10/23)
Another exciting week with the JASON team! This week we wrapped up leg 3 of the Kelley Cruise. On Monday the team had to reterminate JASON’s cable because it was compromised on one of the dives. Luckily with everyone working together, the turnover time was approximately 8 hours, and we were back in action and launching by 5:30am. The multi-dive shifts continued into Tuesday where we ended up flying around some really amazing hydrothermal vent sites! Some of them ranged in height from 12 to 18 meters! Absolutely fantastic to see. By 6pm Tuesday, we began the transit back to port. We were able to finish all science objectives for this 3rd leg and spend the last little bit of time exploring and surveying the area.
Our days back at port were spent prepping the ROV for the 4th and final leg of the Kelley Cruise. I was even able to replace the starboard horizontal thruster seals on Wednesday by myself! Since I was trained the week before, the steps were fresh in my mind and then I was able to help guide another team member through replacing the port horizontal thruster. On Thursday, September 7th, our team met at a local park called Tsunami Hill, where we grilled steaks and had ourselves a team cookout. It was a really nice reprieve to get off the ship and get together for something like this. We shared our stories of struggles and successes on not just these current cruises, but previous ones as well. There was music, super delicious food, and a lot of laughter.
By Friday, September 8th, we were prediving the ROV and preparing for transit. Those of us on the midnight shift had to adjust back from a couple of day shifts to the midnight shift, so we primarily napped in the afternoon so we would be ready come midnight. The first dive of the 4th leg started at 1am Saturday morning. JASON was used to carry down and attach a float to a buoy system, survey cable hookups, and was recovered by 4am. We then launched again at 5:30am, where we attached a large winch system to JASON’s basket and connected it to the buoy. By 7am, JASON was back on deck and the science and ship’s crew were switching the buoy’s line from JASON to their own winch system on the back deck. They were able to recover the buoy but lost a beacon that was placed on the buoy for location. It most likely popped out of its location on the buoy while they were recovering it.
On Sunday, September 10, we started our shift with recovering the lost beacon and then flying around the seafloor, following different cable systems from junction boxes, and verifying their locations while dodging hundreds upon hundreds of fish. One even wedged itself in our latch/winch system and I was able to remove it once on deck. By 2:30am, JASON was recovered, and science started work on deploying moorings.
My time at-sea is quickly coming to an end. There is only another week left before we head back to port, so I am making sure to enjoy this last week and learn as much as I can.
Tip of the week: “Timeout while at port.”
When working at-sea for extended periods of time, make sure you take time off the ship while at port. The days can melt together, and especially working the midnight shift, you never really know which day is what, or what time it is. One of the port days, I was able to walk over to a local beach and lay out in the sun for a few hours. It was invigorating! Many of us will go out to eat together, have bonfires on the beach, or just run to the store for needed essentials. Although there is work to be done, I have found that in our time off in the evenings, we each tend to leave the ship and spend some self-care time on land. This little oasis time off ship can reignite your energy levels!