This week was my second week for my internship but also my second cruise. This week was for the BATS team (Bermuda Atlantic Time Series Study). We left Sunday morning July 14th and returned Friday morning July 19th. The BATS team does a cruise once a month so they have got it down to a routine and very structured where they sample and what they are looking for. ?”They have collected data on the physical, biological, and chemical properties of the ocean since 1988” as said on the BATS website. ?They are learning about the role of carbon in the ocean and about the effects climate change has on the ocean. This cruise is incredibly interesting and important for understanding how our earth’s climate is changing over time. We did a very deep deployment of the CTD to 4500 meters. It is really amazing to feel water from the bottom of the ocean it is so cold and it is really cool to experience being out in the ocean in such deep water. We did a lot of CTD deployments, water samples through niskin bottles, sediment traps, and plankton nets. Along with all those other pieces of gear, we deployed the MOCNESS 3 times which was great because our last cruise we were having issues with this piece of gear. We were able to fix it in time for this cruise and it worked every time we deployed it which was very exciting. In the early morning on wednesday we deployed a production array that has a solution in each flask and we attach floats and a spar buoy so it can sample in the ocean all day testing amounts of carbon. We retrieved it later that night. This piece of gear is a little more complicated with the depoyment and recovery than the other gear so it is great to learn more about different kinds of gear and how to properly deploy and recover so that there is a successful sample. There have been the most beautiful sunsets while being out at sea as well as the full moon this week. The colors of the ocean are gorgeous and its great being out at sea with nothing around and experience the beauty the ocean has to offer. We had great weather the entire time and calm seas. We got back to BIOS on friday morning and began to make sure we have everything prepared for the NSF inspection. The crew went through a refresher on SCBA (self contained breathing apparatus) training to have a refresher on how to use them so if there was a fire or a dangerous situation and there needed to be an escape through dangerous atmospheres. This was conducted just to make sure they would be prepared. They all have been through this training before but it helps to go through a refresher and they let me participate as well. The picture attached is of me learning how to use the SCBA. I’ve only been here for two weeks but it has gone great so far and I am learning so much. I cannot wait to see what the rest of my time here has in store.
