To start my MATE internship, I boarded the R/V F. G. Walton Smith Monday afternoon and set out for a cruise that evening. The mission of this cruise was to recover 3 moorings, that were deployed over the past 5 years, and deploy 2 others in Jupiter, FL. My job for this cruise was to stay within close proximity to the divers with the vessel while they were in the water because our vessel was flying the dive flag. Before we left the docks I was able to help the chief engineer with the pre-departure checklist and starting the engines and generator. As we were leaving Miami Channel I got to see about 8 dolphins riding the bow. That night as I was on watch we lost the port engine, it wasn’t until early the next morning that it was able to be turned back on. We finally made our way to Jupiter that evening before sunset and the divers were able to located and tag one mooring to recover the next morning. Having engine problems, we were only able to deploy one mooring and recover instruments off another. We were able to limp back to port on one engine and about an hour to two hours out from the university we were able to restart the port side engine to have full maneuverability to get to the dock. After docking, I met the other MATE intern and we helped the engineer with trying to troubleshoot the engine problem. We swapped the actuator from the starboard engine to the port issue engine to see if that was the problem, but unfortunately not, it had to be the engine computer. To fix this I was able to crimp wire to run from the battery to the engine. Before we left for the next cruise I was able to help with the fuel delivery, replacing the racor filters for both engines and added a switch to the wire that was place the day before Sri the port engine.
For this second cruise, the scientists onboard ere collecting data on red tide aloof the Florida keys and into the Gulf of Mexico along the western coast of Florida up to Saint Petersburg area. They are performing net tows, CTD casts, and collecting water samples to observe trace metals. For this cruise I am helping in the bridge with bringing the boat from station to station, holding the boat steady with the wind off the stern for CTD casts, and helping out on deck with steadying the CTD upon entering and exiting the water. So far for this cruise, the only wildlife I’ve seen was a sea turtle and a bunch of pelicans. I’m still on the hunt to see more aquatic life everyday.
Dolphins off the bow.