Category: Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences & Arizona State University Page 5 of 8

My last morning on the R/V Atlantic Explorer has arrived. Everyone is clearing off the ship from the previous cruise and I am packing my things, making sure I don’t leave anything behind. 

This last cruise was different than the previous cruises I had been on since my time on the R/V Atlantic Explorer. It consisted of different back deck operations, which were awesome to watch and help out with. 

I got to experience a recovery and deployment of a subsurface mooring that is anchored in 4500 meters of water. The Oceanic Flux Program (OFP) site is located 75km SE of Bermuda and has been around for the past 40 years. It is the longest running time-series, which has helped to understand the ocean biogeochemical cycles. The team for this mooring site has come out twice a year (spring and fall) to recover the mooring and make all of the repairs needed before it gets redeployed. 

Recovery of the Teledyn-RDI Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP)

This cruise also consisted of some MOCNESS tows, which stands for Multiple Opening/Closing Net and Environmental Sensing System. The net we had consisted of 9 nets, which and be manually controlled by the scientists when to open and close a particular net. Each net is designed for capturing zooplankton at various depths in the water column. 

Night MOCNESS deployment

Photo by Liz Cunningham

Well I am off to say my last goodbyes and taking in the last moments here in Bermuda. Thanks to all that have made is possible for me to have this wonderful experience. 

Fair Winds!

 

And I am back to better internet. I had tried to wrote this blog post while we were out on the second leg of this cruise but the internet was spotty. A few rain storms came through and heavy cloud coverage impacting the satellites.

On this second leg of this past cruise we had Clio aboard. Clio is an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV), that was shipped to the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (BIOS) earlier this year from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI). This is the third time Clio has come aboard the Atlantic Explorer. It is being deployed at the BATS station, 45 miles (75 kilometers) off of Bermuda.

Maya and CLIO

Clio is operated by the scientist on board and can give up to a maximum depth of 3.7 miles (6 kilometers), working up to 12 -14 hours at a time. The AUV is required to travel vertical during its time in the water for long periods of time rather than horizontal and travel at a constant depth, which is more common on AUVs.

The purpose for Clio is to help gather samples for with biological and chemical analysis throughout the ocean water column. Once Clio is lowered into the water it will stop at certain depths, programmed by the scientists, collecting particles via pumps that suck the water through the filters. If all goes well during these dives, Clio could be used to collect data while other science deployments occur. Currently it is not possible to do to many deployments when a wire based deployment is in progress.

I have less than a week left here, it has all gone by too fast. I have been gaining so much information and learning the various aspects that marine technicians are responsible for on a research vessel. I have one more cruise before I head back home. 

The R/V Atlantic Explorer has made its way home to the Bermuda Institude of Ocean Sciences (BIOS), thursday morning. I was up for the CTD cast at 2230 and then went to bed so that I could wake up in time for the ship to arrive at the dock. Once we arrived we waited for customs to clear us. As the ship was making its way back, Jillon showed me the various tasks that marine techs are responsible for at the end of a crusie. We also had to prepare for the ship to be dockside for the next five days. After being cleared by customs, the scientists and crew on shore were able to come on to the ship and retrieve the samples they had collected during the trip and bring them to the lab. The crew on the boat began the various tasks that had to be done during the demob of the ship. There was a bunch of activity as we hadn’t seen these people for the past two weeks. This is when I met the other marine techs, Rory and Mason, that I would be sailing with during the last three weeks of my internship. 

I helped out the other marine techs take apart the CTD so that we could switch the sensors out. First we had to dump all of the water that was collected in the Niskin bottles, then we had to take the Niskin bottles off so that we could get to the sensors. I had never seen a CTD without all of the bottles on. Then began the task of unplugging all of the wires, labeling each one and protecting each of the plugs. During this process we made sure that everything was labeled clearly so that when we had to put it all back together, it would be much easier. It took us the rest of thursday to get all of the sensors off.

Maya working on the CTD. 

Photo Credit: Jillon McGreal

On friday, the task was to get the new sensors back on. We took our time in putting the sensors back on, making sure that they were in the right places and were accurately put together. Electrical tape and zip ties were used to secure the tubes and rings holding the sensors into place. One of the tasks that I had was to write down which sensor was used and if it was attached to the primary or secondary set or sensors. This is beacuse each sensor as its own calibration and when we set it up on the computer we have to let it know which sensor is being used. Once all the sensors were in place it was time to plug everything back in and check to see if it was working. With the labeling done correctly yesterday it was easy to see where each of the connections went. Then it was time for a deck test. This is where we go up to the CTD computer, and turn it on to see if the CTD will communicate with the program. it was all good. During this test we checked to see if the sensors were reading numbers that made sense. According to the marine techs I was working with, it looked good. This brought us to the end of the day so we cleaned up and on Monday we will finish putting the CTD back together. There are a few more tasks that have to be done before we head out mid-week for the next cruise.

We have arrived in Puerto Rico! The first leg of this cruise has come to an end. During this past 8 days I have held the night shift (1500-0300) with my mentor, Nick. This was an adjustment since I am normally more of a morning person, but I made it through. Sleeping most of the day until my shift began later in the day. 

During this cruise the main piece of equipment deployed was the CTD, where it would be deployed down to the bottom of the ocean. As we got closer to Puerto Rico the depths we were sending the CTD down were in the 5000 meters range. Our last station where we deployed the CTD was in the Puerto Rico Trench, which is located on the boundary between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean and has maximum depth of 8,648 meters. Although when we got here, there we only sent the CTD down to 6000 meters, since that was the maximum depth for some of the senors we had it. Other deployments that were done during this leg were zooplankton tows and saito-pumps.

 

CTD being deployed

During the times that were transiting to the next station or while we wer wating for a CTD to come back to the surface, I worked on raspberry pi. This is a small single-board computer that is used to help learn about programming though various projects. I was able to make a light turn on and off along with various other projects, using linux and python, two computer coding languages. I am still just beginning to understand them, but through the practice of the different prrojects I am understanding a lot more than I started out knowing (which was none). 

            

                 Maya working on Raspberry Pi                         Raspberry Pi breadboard set up

                 Image taken by Nick Mathews 

We are have the rest of today and the morning of tomorrow off. Then it is time to head back to Bermuda. 

Hello again! 

I have now spent a week on the R/V Atlantic Explorer and one research cruise complete. Prior to the BATS-Val cruise, which I am currently on, heading to Puerto Rico, there was a 24 hour curise with a group of students from Oxford University. Once we leave the Bermuda Institute for Ocean Science (BIOS), the home of the R/V Atlantic Explorer, we run through some of the saftey drills. We practiced putting on the immersion suits, which would be used if we had to abandon ship. The immersion suit is a special type of waterproof dry suit that protects the body from hypothermia. The suit a bit big on me.

Maya in Immersion Suit

On this cruise we headed out to Hyrdostation “S”, a bi-weekly cruise to supplement for the Bermuda Atlantic Time-Series Study (BATS). While at this station we deploy the Conductivity, Temperature and Depth (CTD) to monitor the physical and chemical properties of the water column. As the CTD makes its way down to the bottom (or another depth decided on by the scientists) a profile collecting the temperature, salinity, oxygen and fluorescence is created. On the way back to the surface water samples at certain depths are collected in bottles, which will then be sampled. 

This was the first cruise I went out on with the R/V Atlantic Explorer and the first time I have been back out on the ocean in three years. I had to get used to the motion of the boat and deal with sea sickness for the first day. Luckily it only lasted one day and since then I have been fine. 

It has a been a day in since we left Bermuda for Puerto Rico and we had already stopped at a station north of Bermuda to do CTD’s, zooplankton tows and put pumps in the water. During each of these deployments I was able to observe Nick and Jillon, watching the steps for each of the casts so that I would be able to do them soon. This week has been full learning and I am excited to become more involved as the internship continues.                                                                                    

Hello Bermuda, 

The day has finally come were I will take a plane for hour and a half and land in Bermuda! This is probably the shortest plane ride I have ever been on. By the time the drinks and snacks were passed out, the seatbelt light went back on. We were preparing for our descent and landing! As the plane was landing I could see the white caps along the surface of the clear blue ocean. Once we got closer, it became easier to see underneath the surface of the water. 

     

Approaching landing at the BDA, Bermuda airport. 

I have offically landed in Bermuda and made my way to the Bermuda Institue of Ocean Sciences (BIOS), which is home to R/V Atalntic Explorer (RVAE). Although on this day the ship is still out so I will have to wait until morning. Once I dropped off my bags in my room for the night I was given a tour of BIOS and then dropped off at the Marine Opperations Building where I met Jillon, the marine technician on the RVAE and the previous MATE-intern Emily. As I was waiting, Rick, the port captian, asked for Emily’s and my help, moving crates around in the warehouse, trying to make more room. There wasn’t much to move, but boy was it hot and humid out, quite the difference than this morning when I left Boston, MA. I was then on my own for the rest of the night, where I explored a few of the beaches and bays around BIOS. 

The next moring, as I was eating breakfast, I saw the RVAE coming back to the dock! I will finally get to meet everyone aboard and begin to learn the layout of the ship. After breakfast, I went down and meet the ship and the crew (I am beginning to remember everyones name). Nick, my mentor shows me my room on board and then gives me a tour of the ship. I begin to explore and get my bearings of the ship. Since the ship just returned, there is not much for me to do yet, so I go and explore more the island. I took a walk into St. Georges and made it to another bay on the other side of the island. During this trip I got rained on four different times, but luckily it was warm rain and I was dry soon after the shower passed. It is the first night and it feels good to be sleeping back on a ship. Even though I have only been here for a day, it has already begun to feel like home. The first cruise departs Monday morning!

R/V Atlantic Explorer returning to BIOS

 

Hello! 

In one week I will be boarding a plane to Bermuda where I will spend the next six weeks aboard the R/V Atlantic Explorer. I am a recent graduate of the University of Connecticut with a Bachelor’s degree in marine science. This will be my second time out to sea, but a much different experience than my first. While I was an undergrad, I did a semester through the Sea Education Association where I spent six weeks sailing aboard the SSV Robert C. Seamans. We sailed form Christchurch, New Zealand to Pape’ete, Tahiti. Along the way we made two port stops at Chatham Island, New Zealand and Raivavae, an island located in French Polynesia. Ever since experiencing what it is like to be out in the middle of the ocean, I have been itching to get back out on the water. This opportunity to be a MATE intern and learning to be a Marine Technician is an area that will combine my interest with the use of technology and working on a research vessel, participating in ground-breaking marine and oceanographic research. I am looking forward to doing reasearch in the Atlantic ocean.

I have never lived aboard a research vessel and I am looking forward to all the challanges, experiences and adventures that I will have over the next six weeks. Everything is laid out ready to be packed as I am going over my list of items to bring, making sure I am not forgetting anything. My excitment and anticipation of this trip has heightened as the days go by. 

See you soon, Bermuda! 

Maya 

 

When I wake up we are dockside in St. Georges. The wind, too, has shifted. Typically, there is a steady breeze coming in from the Northwest, or no breeze at all. But today, at sunrise, I face East and feel wind on my cheeks. The sky is pink and warm.

Even though the cruise is complete, there is still unloading of all the scientists and their equipment, which can take a couple of days if everything goes smoothly. After demobilization, there is usually some time to fix any issues that arose while at sea, maybe get a day or two off, and then prepare for the next batch of scientists.

Dockside in St. Georges

This week, Jillon returns! She is another technician aboard the Explorer, and once she is back I will no longer be the only female on the crew. Women at sea are a rare breed, tasked with forging their own space in a workplace that continues to be largely dominated by men. Life at sea is not glamorous or forgiving, and includes living on a boat with a bunch of boys. For these reasons, I have found that the women who have chosen this life are resilient, independent, and pretty incredible.

Jillon arrives and lives up to the expectation. She is all smiles with a bright and sunny disposition, a surfboard strapped to the side of her moped, a sticker-covered water bottle in hand, and the symbol for ground tattooed on her forearm. I spend most of the week with her.

We begin work with the waterwall. The underway seawater system is designed to pull seawater in at the bow of the ship, where temperature and salinity of the surface water are measured. Through a series of pipes, the seawater winds its way along the port side of the ship, past the steward’s stateroom (which it occasionally floods), through hallways, and inside the forward lab. The foremost wall in the lab is covered in sensors that measure the rate of flow, fluorescence, and dissolved carbon dioxide. A network of tubes connects the sensors and directs the water through each and subsequently into the sink and overboard. This allows for water sampling to be done at any time from the convenience of the lab and for constant monitoring of the ocean’s surface water characteristics throughout the cruise.

During the Sentry cruise, one of the fluorometers began to leak seawater, so we discreetly shut down the waterwall and removed the sensor. The previous group of scientists weren’t interested in the underway data, but the upcoming BATS team definitely is. Jillon and I remount the sensor, more securely this time, and tinker with the valves and water pressure until the flow meters spin.

We make other repairs and handle issues as they pop up. Jillon also teaches me how to terminate cables and solder electronics, which I am very excited about. By the end of the week it feels as if we have accomplished a lot. Jillon is driven to be productive, and in just a short time, I have learned a great deal from her.

Jillon on the back deck

In our free time we drive to the ocean side of the island and I swim while she surfs. The sand on the south shore is fine and speckled with rose-colored bits that have made Bermuda famous for its pink beaches. The surf isn’t spectacular, the waves are short and steep and crash all at once, but that doesn’t stop anyone from trying. Anyways, it is healthy to just escape the boat every once in a while.

I have completely lost track of time, and I suddenly realize I am just a couple weeks away from my departure. All of me wishes I could stay longer. This upcoming cruise will be my last, at least during this internship. Now, there is talk that the next cruise may be postponed; a tropical storm is inbound from the east. Jillon’s face brightens at the thought of the surf.

3: Across the horizon

On a clear day, we can see for miles in all directions. The swell is low, but the ship still rolls back and forth as we cruise on.

Our course is set for Hydrostation S; only a few dozen miles south of Bermuda. This site has been visited and sampled every other week since 1954, making it the longest-standing oceanographic time series in existence. The sampling at Hydrostation compliments the Bermuda Atlantic Time Series (BATS), another sampling station, even further south, which began in the eighties. Hundreds of cruises have been completed to support this endeavor. In turn, hundreds of research articles have been produced that provide fundamental understanding of issues such as oceanographic processes and global climate change.

 

Sunset at sea.

The BATS team is our primary client. The scientists that run this operation are based at the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (BIOS), the same research facility that the Explorer docks at. Some members of the lab have been part of the BATS team for decades and are very familiar with the ship and crew. Time aboard Explorer is incredibly pricey. Depending on the demands of the cruise, costs can run as high as a thousand USD per hour. Every second aboard the vessel is incredibly precious, and the BATS scientists know very well how to make the most of every moment.

As soon as we reach Hydrostation, we prepare for our first cast. To monitor the physical and chemical properties of the water column, we use an instrument that measures Conductivity Temperature Depth (CTD for short). Much of the research and operations during the BATS cruises revolve around its successful deployment and recovery.

The name, and instrument itself for that matter, is clunky and large. Looking down from above, the CTD is a rosette of collection tubes around a metal skeleton. We prep the bottles by cocking the ends into a locking mechanism, leaving each tube in an open position. To do this, I hoist myself up on the frame just to reach the latches. With closer inspection, the instrument is decorated with sensors galore, which monitor essential elements and nutrients such as oxygen and light. We remove caps and syringes from the sensors, and Nick radios the bridge to request permission to deploy.

Using a coordination of machine and manpower, the CTD is lifted from the deck of the ship and suspended over the water. It pauses at the surface, then dives down into blackness and out of sight. Now a thin metal cable is the only connection between us. As it sinks, data is collected in real time. This information is communicated upwards through hundreds of (and up to six thousand) meters of water to the ship. From the comfort of the tech lab, I can see that a thousand meters below me, the temperature is 5? C. Nearly ice cold.

 

Deploying the CTD.

Nick tells me that prior to modern GPS, a constellation of Long Range Navigation (LORAN) outposts were used to find Hydrostation. In place of a CTD, scientists would cast a spruced-up segment of glass to the bottom of the sea floor. As the glass sunk and conditions changed, a needle would scratch its surface. From this piece of information, scientists could interpret depth and temperature and create an informative profile of Hydrostation. I find that incredible.

Operations on deck continue throughout the day and night. We split into shifts to cover all hours. The weather is calm and I have my fingers crossed that it remains this way for the rest of the cruise.

Until next week,

Emily

 

 

Minnie & me.

From my window seat I watch the tops of clouds pass. Underneath them: the infinite ocean. I feel my stomach lift as we begin our descent. We land in Bermuda at sunset. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Landing in Bermuda. 

Bermuda is not a single landmass, but an archipelago of nearly two hundred islands. They rest together upon a massive platform in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, parallel to North Carolina. North of the islands, the platform is shallow: perfect for reefs. To the south, the platform drops off immediately to hundreds of meters: perfect for oceanographic research. 

It is dark when I arrive at the dock, but the crew is still up and about. I am immediately welcomed aboard, given a tour and settled in. My stateroom is adorable. It is outfit with a bunk bed, closet, and sink. A sign on the porthole reads: Do not open. Tempting. 

The Explorer is spacious, well kept, and among research vessels, she is elegant. Of course, she has her fair share of quirks: stairs that are a few inches too large and a companionway with a downhill slope. She’s got character, and a crew to match. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Explorer dockside.

The next cruise is scheduled to depart in five days’ time, and there is a lot to prepare. In the morning, I meet Nick, my mentor, up in the tech lab. We hit the ground running. The tech lab is the brain of the ship; it houses a stack of computers that pull data in from a variety of sensors and then send information back out to be processed and viewed throughout the vessel. All of this communication is achieved through an incredible network of cables that weave in and out, through walls and ceilings, and converge in the hub of the tech lab. Over the course of the past few years, cables have been added, rerouted, but rarely removed. 

Behind the rack of computers and switchboards, I find Nick hidden in a waterfall of cables, weeding out all of the unnecessary ones and laying them into a nest about his feet. He says he is giving the lab a haircut. I do my best to keep up as he darts around and spouts off a litany of acronyms and technical jargon. By the end of the day, the rack is condensed and organized, and I have a much greater sense of how the data collection process operates. 

Over the next couple of days, I start to gain my bearings. I know every crew member by name, I can find my way around the ship, and whenever I get the chance, I take time to explore the island. Things around me are starting to take shape. 

All of a sudden, Sunday is here; a week has passed! Dock lines are cast and we are off. Our movement churns up sand and clouds the turquoise water. We push on through the channel, out to open ocean! Conditions are perfect today. The ocean is calm and clear and Explorer moves steadily onwards. Even though it has only been a few weeks since I last sailed, it feels good to be at sea again. My first shift begins and will continue well into the night. The sun sets and the last glimpse of the island shrinks into darkness.