Category: MATE Blog Archive Page 4 of 5

Posts that were imported from the historical MATE blog at marinetech.org

Hi all, it has been a packed week and a half! Two days ago, we made a relatively unplanned stop in Boston Harbor after spending the previous week 400 miles offshore. The primary piece of equipment that the scientists are using to collect their data, an oil-filled acoustic array, THORA, went down a few days ago and they did not have the parts they needed to fix it onboard due to 4 packages that contained their troubleshooting equipment and spare parts being lost by the airline. We had to leave port without them at the beginning of the cruise due to time constraints, but they were found a few days ago. The Chief Scientist decided that getting the equipment onboard to fix the array was worth the two-day transit to pick it up, so we’ve spent the past 5 days primarily transiting from our study site to Boston and back.

So far, we have done multiple CTD (conductivity, temperature, depth) and XBT (eXpendable BathyThermograph) deployments and a whole bunch of acoustic tow tracks. The acoustic array looks like a long, thick cable with a long, oil-filled tube attached to it that extends hundreds of feet in the water behind the ship. It listens for sounds in the surrounding water, including sound broadcasted from the R/V Roger Revelle, which has been operating acoustic research equipment in the area for the same project. The Revelle has been deploying an acoustic source, and the THORA array that we tow behind the ship has been listening for the sound emitted by the Revelle to understand how sound transmission through the water is affected by the Gulf Stream and the seamounts at our study site. CTDs and XBTs both give us a vertical profile of sound velocity in the ocean, since sound velocity is a factor of temperature and salinity.

When I first came onboard the ship, I expressed interest in gaining experience in troubleshooting science systems. Well, I’ve definitely gotten my fair share of it over the last week and a half. The CTD was giving us data transmission errors on one of our winches for almost all of the first week, with some of the errors corrupting an entire upcast and others just being small blips in the data. So, myself and the two full-time marine techs, Bonny and Jason, have spent a significant amount of time troubleshooting the source of the errors. The current list of things we’ve done to troubleshoot is nearly in the double-digits, but the CTD is now working error-free on our second winch and we are planning on testing it on winch 1 again soon!

We are currently towing the acoustic array behind the ship and doing coordinated operations with the R/V Revelle and deploying XBTs about every hour along our track. Later today, we will put the SeaTrac, an autonomous boat, in the water to collect additional acoustic data from an array that it tows beneath it. In my downtime while on shift, I’ve mostly been reading manuals for the various shipboard science systems, learning more about the computer networking systems onboard, helping out with regular maintenance tasks like cleaning and organizing, and various other tasks given to me by my mentors.

TTYL!

Armored THORA cable after a suspected shark attack. The science team suspects that the stress inflected on the cable during the attack may have partially caused the system to go down a few days later. Photo credit: Johnathan Todd.

THORA acoustic array being deployed.

Bosun Oscar securing the XBT launcher to the rail.

Myself (left) and my mentor Bonny (right) re-terminating the CTD cable as part of our troubleshooting efforts.

Bonny deploying a CTD at sunset.

Duva Week 6 R/V Langseth

By Eleanor Duva

On July 20, 2024

In Columbia University, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, MATE Blog Archive, R/V Marcus G. Langseth

Station 6 was east of Greenland and we arrived on Saturday the 13^th and started coring on Sunday. One of those cores caught a piece of a sponge! We also were visited by a large pod of pilot whales on Sunday. There was a group of roughly 20 whales that were jumping and diving near the boat, and another group closer to the horizon.

Monday was a big day of coring and by Tuesday evening, we had finished the CTD cast and were headed onward towards station 7, our last station!

Usually transit days are more relaxed, but Wednesday and Thursday brought some excitement. First, we released our last Argo float on Wednesday, followed by an XBT probe to get water column temperature data from the location of deployment. XBT stands for Expendable Bathythermograph; “expendable” because the probe is launched into the water and not recovered. The probe is a small, torpedo shaped object that stays connected to the launching device by a delicate thread of copper wire which transmits the data back to the ship. Once we reach its maximum depth, you break the thin wire and are left with a temperature profile of the water column the probe fell through. XBTs are used on the Langseth for seismic, in which sound is used to map the ocean floor, and an XBT helps find the speed of sound through water, which is dependent on the salinity and temperature of the water.

A few hours later, we experienced some disruptions in power as one of the main engines had a kerfuffle. At this time, I was in the bridge and it was interesting to see how the captain and second mate managed the situation. After some troubleshooting, the engineering team were able to get everything back online.

On Thursday morning, we were notified by the Icelandic Coast Guard that we were the closest vessel to a sailing vessel in distress and asked to render aid. The sailboat lost its sails in a storm and was running out of fuel. We backtracked for a few hours until we were in sight of the sailboat. The second mate, third mate, and one AB went in the fast rescue boat to bring them jugs of fuel. It was a little unnerving to watch the little orange boat be rocked around in the cold waves, but they reached the sailboat safely twice to bring them about 50 gallons of fuel. The rest of the deck crew contributed to a successful deployment and recovery of the fast rescue boat.

Our excitement for Friday was crossing the Arctic Circle!! And it was Larkin’s (our awesome videographer/photographer/science communicator on board) birthday! We also had a meeting for planning demobilization once we reach port, which includes arranging for shipping containers, cranes, and forklifts.

We are expecting some big seas in the next few days and hopeful we still be able to find a weather window to get station 7 done before heading to Reykjavik. Home stretch!

Pod of pilot whales, photo by Lexi!

View from the bridge as the orange fast rescue boat crosses our bow.

Fast rescue boat just after it was deployed from its davit on port side.

Duva Week 5 R/V Langseth

By Eleanor Duva

On July 19, 2024

In Columbia University, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, MATE Blog Archive, R/V Marcus G. Langseth

We started week 5 by arriving to station 5, located in the central Labrador Sea between Greenland and Labrador. We sent multi-core casts all day on Monday and Tuesday, and finished up station 5 with a CTD cast on Wednesday. Sunset is getting later as we continue northward.

Scores of northern fulmars and gulls kept us company at station 5, floating and flying near the ship. Fulmars spend almost all their days at sea, so they are not typically seen from land. Another lift to ship morale were two incredible nights of having Haagen Dazs ice cream bars for dessert.

During transit on Thursday, a group of us got a tour of the engine room. We saw the massive air compressors for seismic work, as well as the engines, shaft generators, aux generator, and air conditioning systems. In addition to catching up on projects and reading, I spent some time in the bridge while transiting.

By Saturday we were on station at station 6, east of Greenland. We resumed sample collection in about 2600 meters of water.

The multicore has two cameras on it, one of which is helpful for landing the corer on the seafloor and the other for troubleshooting sampling. One of the cameras we can view images from during the cast via the winch’s sea cable. Mounted near this camera is a light which we have the ability to turn off and on during the cast. The light is kept off for most of the cast, because it draws the most power and we don’t want to drain the batteries. All of the power for the cameras and light come from two batteries mounted to the frame of the corer, which get charged up overnight with a trickle charger. The second camera records the whole cast (which is mostly darkness) because it is a GoPro in a special metal housing. So we start the video recording then pack the GoPronto the housing and mount it on the multicore frame. The housing also has a highly specialized lens that corrects for distortion from the water.

Screenshot of a video from GoPro of a bottom landing

Techs attaching the GoPro camera inside its housing to multicore frame

Multi-core being recovered. Orange boxes on sides are batteries to power camera and light. Small white birds in background are fulmars

Introduction: Athena Abrahamsen

By Athena Abrahamsen

On July 18, 2024

In Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium, MATE Blog Archive, R/V Pelican

Hello!

My name is Athena Abrahamsen. This fall, I will be entering my senior year of my undergraduate degree. I am working towards obtaining a B.S. in Oceanography from the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences (CEOAS) of Oregon State University.

I am incredibly excited to have been selected to be the MATE Intern aboard the R/V Pelican. This opportunity has been on my radar for quite some time, and I am honored to be chosen for this position.

My interest in participating in sea-going research began my first year of college when I completed the Introduction to Field Oceanography course series at Oregon State. In this course series, students learn about various ways that oceanographic data is collected, and then get to go out on a multi-day cruise aboard a research vessel to see these data collection techniques in action!

When completing this course series, I participated on a four day cruise aboard the R/V Sally Ride and absolutely loved every second of it – I definitely caught the “I-really-like-going-to-sea” bug. I am beyond grateful that I had the chance to participate in an experience like this, it is an incredible privilege that donors make this possible.

Between the Sally Ride experience and now, I have tried to grasp where within the realm of oceanography my interest lies. Working as a Research Assistant in a lab that analyzed the Organic Carbon and Nitrogen contents of water and sediment samples, completing and internship with the goal of developing educational materials surrounding the concept of Ocean Acidification, and my current role as Student Technical Assistant for the Ocean Observatories Initiative’s Endurance Array have all provided clarity about the path I hope to pursue. Your undergraduate experience is meant to help you guide and form your understanding of your area of study. This comes through trial and error– you’re not going to know right away (spoiler alert: I didn’t).

For all of those reading, something that has stuck with me as I’ve searched for my place within the realm of ocean science is wisdom my internship mentor shared after a data exploration project. It was along the lines of ‘finding out that something didn’t work is equally as valuable as something that does work.’ Don’t be afraid to try something just because you’re scared that you won’t be good at it or absolutely love it on the first go. If you don’t even try, how are you going to learn and grow? Embrace the uncertainty and unpredictability!

With the Endurance Array project and team, I have learned so much about what goes into oceanographic data collection, and have had the chance to go on multiple day-cruises, as well as two of their multi-day research cruises (so far). I was aboard the R/V Sikuliaq in Spring of 2023 for 15 nights, and the R/V Atlantis for four nights in the Fall of that same year. The cruises took place off of the coasts of Oregon and Washington. The picture above was taken in front of the R/V Atlantis as we were loading some of our moorings onto the vessel!

The hands-on experience I’ve been able to accrue due to the support and mentorship of my colleagues and the crews aboard the vessels has been invaluable in supporting and solidifying the path I want to follow as a Marine Technician. The MATE Internship will allow me to further my understanding of the intricacies of this role and how I, personally, can best fit the role to support the completion of science missions. I have found the dynamic environment of this work incredibly rewarding. The situational awareness and problem solving that come with this field ensure that I’m always learning and seeing the results of the scientific work being completed. As I am in my final days of prepping to go aboard the R/V Pelican, I am looking forward to beginning this internship and I’m excited for all of the knowledge that will come with it (I peli-can’t wait)! So far, I have never been on a cruise outside of the Northeast Pacific, so being in the Gulf of Mexico on top of this new role within the sea-going science world will be super cool.

I look forward to keeping everyone updated on my journey as I get to experience the role I have dreamed so long about obtaining. Thank you to all who have supported me to get to this step. Your contributions are what have gotten me here.

Week 5 aboard the Langseth

By Chaii Layne-Neubauer

On July 18, 2024

In Columbia University, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, MATE Blog Archive, R/V Marcus G. Langseth

This marks the end of 5 weeks aboard the R/V Marcus G. Langseth. It is hard to believe that we have but a few weeks left on our cruise. This week has been quite productive in regards to our primary mission of collecting sediment cores. Most of the days we were able to do 4-6 deployments of the multi core with decent returns on average. I say on average because we have had several deployments with perfect returns and a few with none at all. It certainly is a practice in patience when we spend three or so hours on a deployment to only end up with no mud. The more challenging aspects of deck operations, such as running taglines and operating the winch, have also began to come easier and smoother. I still have much to learn but am worlds better than I was at the beginning of the cruise. Our work hasn’t only been on deck though as we also have been doing work around the shop on small projects as well as organizing all the copious data files from our instrumentation. Excel can at times be just as challenging as operating heavy machinery.

Luckily we have collected all the samples we needed for that station and are now headed towards our last intended station, north of the arctic circle! I am antsy to reach such a northern location especially with these extremely long summer days. By the time I head in for bed the morning light is already beginning to show even at midnight. Looking forward to our transit further north and beginning at our last station.

USCGC Healy Week 2

By Gabby Rodezno Wilson

On July 17, 2024

In MATE Blog Archive, US Coast Guard, USCGC Healy

Hello 🙂

The past week we have been doing many CTD casts. We did our deepest cast the other day that reached about 2800m. We colored some styrofoam cups and sent them down on the rosette to shrink; they were all very creative and turned out so nice. After each cast, we secure the deck unit and take water samples for the scientists. We first need to ensure the bottles did not leak and were properly closed when fired. At each collection depth, we fire two bottles in case one of them leaks. After we have all of our samples, we flood the floor by emptying the Nisking bottles. Then reattach the strings to the top and bottom to leave the bottles open for the next cast. The sensors are then covered with caps and the seawater pumps are flushed with DI water. They did an NSF livestream in which Lorelei and I are in the background of the video doing our CTD maintenance haha.

This week we have also done two mooring deployments. I soldered a new cable for Jim’s deck unit because he needed a five prong pin out as opposed to the three prong that was connected to the Knudsen. The Knudsen is a sub-bottom profiler that performs seismic profiling of the seafloor to indicate water depth below the ship. Jim’s deck unit allows him to send a ping to communicate with the acoustic releases on the bottom of the mooring cable. The moorings are a rather complicated set up because they are anchored at the seafloor and each device on the cable needs to float at certain depths. To set up the mooring correctly, there is a lot of communication going on between those on deck, those on the bridge, the winch operator, and the A frame operator. I learned about the hand signals used between the deck and operators, as well as safety procedures on deck. They had two successful mooring deployments but were not able to recover the older mooring because of the thick ice in the area.

We have also been conducting XCTD casts which are small expendable CTDs. They are released through a canister and connected to a copper wire that transmits depth, temperature, conductivity, and salinity information. For one of the casts I was on the radio communicating with the bridge and aft con. We need to ask for permission to stage the cast, give the serial numbers on the device, load the probe, aft con tells us we can launch, then we cut the wire once we reach the seafloor or terminal depth.

My 3D printing knowledge has also been expanded upon. The printer is capable of making really cool objects, but there are sometimes limitations based on the settings used before printing. I have learned to use supports and a brim to help the printer follow the correct path, stagger the seams for more strength, use alpha infill for an exposed roof so the part does not implode under pressure, and to minimize the size as much as possible so the print does not take too long. My fluorometer mount design is finally working and we will test it out on a CTD cast soon.

I have spent some time on the bridge/ upper decks to get a good view of the ice breaking. It’s pretty incredible to watch and I am impressed with the ship’s capabilities. I’m glad to be here and have definitely been enjoying my internship on the Healy.

Will post another update soon.

-Gabby

week 4 Ayse M. On the Langseth

By Ayse Macknight

On July 11, 2024

In Columbia University, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, MATE Blog Archive, R/V Marcus G. Langseth

Week Four 6/30-7/6

The team began the week traveling to station 03 at Orphan Knoll, 320 nautical miles off northern Newfoundland. Upon arrival on Tuesday, they successfully obtained 6 usable cores from the first cast. However, the sediment from the second cast was unsuitable for their project due to its coarse-grained. The team then moved to a new site, station 4, just east of Orphan Knoll. This location had deeper waters, resulting in longer days. On Wednesday and Thursday, they performed four casts per day. By Friday, they had collected enough mud after the third cast and deployed an Argo float.

This week the weather took a noticeable change. The days were longer, colder and with frequent fog. We’re planning to head further north along the eastern coast of Greenland. I also spent a good chunk of time on our transit, relabeling all shuttles for the multicorer. I did this because many of the shuttles had different numbers from old attempts at labeling. And the inner plastic tube had no label. This made it difficult to track which shuttles were actually collecting usable cores. Additionally, I made a data sheet to record the sampling data that allowed us to see if the location on the multiorder had any impact on sample success. I was a bit nervous about showing the data sheet to the science crew because no one had actually asked me to do any of this but I had asked one of the senior techs if I could do this in my off time but I am happy to say that my efforts seem to be a appreciated!

week 3 Ayse M. On the Langseth

By Ayse Macknight

On July 10, 2024

In Columbia University, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, MATE Blog Archive, R/V Marcus G. Langseth

6/23-6/29

The days are really blending together now. I feel like I was just in New York a week ago but I also feel like I’ve been working on the boat for a year. Overall, I’m still having a blast, and everyday I’m excited to be on shift. Deployments have been going well, but we are having difficulties with the samples. At one point we were all really really excited that 5 out of 8 samples were usable. The ocean conditions were not the best but we were also dealing with issues with the shuttles. There’s a lot of discussion on how we can improve them. We’ve been adding wooden blocks to the bottom to help the shuttles not penetrate the bottom too deeply.

One of the days, the main block (the pulley that the winch wire is run through) on the A-frame was making an awful sound. Turns out the bolts used were too small and some had snapped. It was a really great example of how amazing the engineers on the ship are because they erected scaffolding and had it fixed within the hour. I wish I knew his last name but Sam, the Chief Engineer, has literally fixed every problem that comes up in record time. I am beyond amazed by him and his team.

I also got to see an ARGO float! Which is something I’ve learned about in college and have used their data for projects. The deployment was pretty straight forward but it was amazing to have that hands-on experience with something i’ve only read about.

USCGC Healy Week 1

By Gabby Rodezno Wilson

On July 10, 2024

In MATE Blog Archive, US Coast Guard, USCGC Healy

Hello!

Over the past two weeks I have done a lot of traveling. My journey started on June 26 by flying to Seattle then to Anchorage. My thrid plane was much smaller, and I arrived in Dutch Harbor on June 27. I made my way to the Grand Aleutian Hotel and had a nice meal in their Margaret Bay Café. The next day, I met Kristen who had just finished her internship on the Healy. I also met a few of the other marine techs (Brandon, Bowman, and Max). During our few days in Dutch, we explored all that the small town has to offer including the famous Alaska Ship Supply, LFS, the abandoned underground hosptial, Safeway, Amelia’s, and last but not least the Norweigan Rat to play some pool. We did some hiking on Mt. Ballyhoo and enjoyed a beautiful view over the harbor; we saw about a dozen eagles. We did another hike behind the shipping supply; we had an amazing view of the coast and saw many old WWII bunkers. We also got a tour of the labs on the NOAA ship next to us in port. They are mainly studying pollock to monitor the health of fisheries in the area. After I moved onto the Healy, it remained in port for a few days while the engineers and technicians were troubleshooting some issues to ensure that we were ready for a long voyage.

Once the ship was underway, I spent a few days becoming familiar with the different routes to get where I need to go, and the equipment that we would use during the trip. This expedition is very CTD focused, so I spent a while talking with the other techs about each sensor and configuring ways to install the devices onto the rosette frame. Nick and I added a camera to the rosette; we had to find a good way to mount it without other devices blocking the view of the light and lens. The camera detects organisms underwater by interacting with their fluorescent pigments and illuinating them. One of my tasks was to create a mount for the fluorometer so that we can fasten it horizontally as opposed to vertically. This orientation would reduce interference between the multiple devices that are emitting light. I spent some time taking measurements of the rosette and fluorometer. I learned a new CAD software to design a mount that is 3D printing now, I’m excited to see how it turns out.

I was working with Maria-Christina to understand her mass spectrometry instrument that was analyzing oxygen and argon concentrations in the underway seawater. We have to make sure there are no bubbles entering the mass spec and we need to take samples of seawater every few days.

I worked with Chrisitina to disassemble, clean, and reassemble the port side and BioLab waterwalls. The waterwalls have a number of sensors including the debubbler, flow meter, fluorometer, eco-triplet, thermosalinograph, TDGP (total dissolved gas pressure), transmissometer, dissolved oxygen sensors, and the WetStar. All of these devices measure various properties of the underway seawater such as the flow rate, temperature, conductivity, concentration of matter in seawater, flourescence, and more. It is important to do regular maintenance on these systems to ensure the received data is accurate. Another one of my tasks was to use LucidChart to complete a wire diagram that shows how everything is connected on the waterwall. I traced the wires from the Adam boxes and mapped out where the devices were connected.

Brendon also taught me how to solder, that was fun I first practiced by making some wire loops and performed continuity tests. Then we tested my new skill by replacing a float switch on the waterwall. The float switch lifts up when the sink is overflowing and activates a light on the computer to let us know there is overflow.

I worked with Lorelei during the CTD casts to understand the data collection process. Communication between the deck, winch operator, and person operating the data collection computer is important to receive useful data. This communication is also important to ensure the safety of those on deck and to prevent equipment damage.

Before the cast, the rosette needs to be prepped by cocking the Niskin bottles and making sure they are fully open so they do not implode underwater due to the difference in pressure. Brandon and I replaced some of the strings on the bottles that experienced some wear and tear. The camera is also turned on a few minutes before each cast and turned off after each cast. The CTD needs to be submerged about 10-15m below the surface to acclimate the sensors to the water. Then the CTD is lowered to about 10m above the bottom, and it is slowly brought up to specified depths where the Niskin bottles are fired and samples are collected. The data is then processed and a script is run so that the hex file can be interpreted as a cnv file. The scientists then use the data to plot graphs of the pressures, density, salinity, and temperature at each station.

The scientists are also doing seafloor grabs using the Smith-Mac to collect samples from the seafloor. They are studying the samples to check for harmful algal blooms and other toxins that can be identified in invertebrates.

We did an abandon ship drill in which every member onboard meets at the bridge and gathers with their designated raft number. Each person is assigned to bring certain items such as blankets or food. When the ship’s coordinates and heading are announced, we are supposed to write on our the backs of our hands so if we were to contact help they could locate us. They showed us where the abondon ship locker was then I got to try on the cold water mustang suit.

I have really enjoyed my experience on the Healy. I have met and talked with many technicians, scientists, and members of the Coast Guard. I have learned a lot about the roles of those working on the deck and those on the bridge in charge of steering the ship. I have attended a few Coast Guard Officer trainings to learn more about the Healy’s engineering design and ice breaking capabilities. I have been lucky enough to do some whale and bird watching too. After work, I’ve enjoyed going to the gym and have invited some of my friends to learn how to erg. It has been a unique trip and I will update with another post soon!

Thanks for reading 🙂

-Gabby

Duva Week 4 R/V Langseth

By Eleanor Duva

On July 9, 2024

In Columbia University, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, MATE Blog Archive, R/V Marcus G. Langseth

Week Four: 6/30-7/6

With our first three (00, 01, and 02) stations in the rearview, we started week four in transit to station 03 at Orphan Knoll, a feature of the ocean floor about 320nm off the coast of northern Newfoundland.

On Tuesday, we arrived to the site. The first core cast came up with 6 usable cores! Yay! However, by the time the second cast hit the deck, the science team has determined the structure of this sediment was not suitable for their project. It was too coarse-grained, which means it is advective sediment that water flows through rather than getting trapped in. Also, trying to centrifuge the water out of it doesn’t work as well.

We started steaming again and started fresh on Wednesday morning, now calling this site 4, just a little east of station 3/Orphan Knoll. The water is deeper here, which means more wire time and longer days, but hopefully better mud.

Wednesday and Thursday we cranked out four casts per day, pulling 5 or 6 cores off each of them. This sediment contained rocks! Which is exciting, if you like rocks. The rocks are all a sooty black color, until you crack one open to reveal granite or dolomite. This dark outer coating is manganese oxide. Dolomite is a very common bedrock where I live, so I got a nerdy little thrill out of holding pieces of it that we had pulled up through 4000 meters of seawater.

On Friday, we had collected enough mud after cast three of the day, yay! This site was our second of three designated places to deploy an Argo, so we sent that off the stern as we headed out. At first, the Argo laid flat in the water, but within a few seconds, it “came alive”, righted itself, and immediately began a “dive” to 2000m.

In the evening, we spent some time tracing wires and troubleshooting because our echosounder isn’t receiving data properly from the GPS. Then, we played some MarioKart. The following days in transit went similarly; projects and troubleshooting anything acting up, then MarioKart. On Monday we expect to be on station and coring.