Vessel/Laboratory – Page 77 – Marine Technical Internship Blog

My third and longest trip

On July 27, 2015

In MATE Blog Archive, Moss Landing Marine Laboratory, R/V Point Sur

Well I am back from my longest trip of this internship. We were out to sea for 11 days. This trip was very interesting to me, mostly because we were using a ROV on it. After an 18 hour trip to our first deployment location we deployed wave gliders and other gear that we would eventually pick up on our return. The instruments we deployed were set in water that was over 2000 meters deep. We then moved to an area that was about 600 meters deep and deployed more gear. That is where we used the ROV. The ROV was recently reconfigured to operate at those depths but was never tested until we deployed it. During our first dive with it we had some video issues, the thrusters were causing noise in the line. After descending all the way to the bottom to view a package to make sure everything was going good with it we were bringing it back up. At about 150 feet the GFI on the deck box kept tripping.

Eventually we were able to retrieve it and bring it back on board. In between dives we were working on fixing the video. It never really got any better. The next day we made a second dive with it. We made it down to 575 meters, completed that mission and brought it back to the surface. At about 150 feet we started blowing the GFI again but was able to bring it back on board. The third dive was also to 575 meters. Once again we were able to complete the mission but on the way back up we had the same problems. The next morning I woke up to find out that at least one of the vertical thrusters was full of water. We spent the next day and a half tearing apart the ROV to check the rest of the thrusters. Come to find out that both of our vertical thrusters had water in them. After drying them out and cleaning them we hooked them back up to test to see if they worked. We were only able to get one back to working order. We had to reconfigure the ROV to accommodate only one vertical thruster before our fourth and final dive. The decent on the fourth dive was slower and the seas were the roughest that it has been the whole trip. It made for a huge challenge but eventually we made it to the bottom, viewed the package, and made the scientist happy and brought the ROV back to the surface safely. Over the next couple days we assisted the scientist deploy and recover their gear. It was an amazing learning experience for me. I will be taking back a great deal of knowledge back to my classmates to share with them. As for me, I am getting ready to head over the R/V Pelican for my final trip of this internship. We will be conducting a study of hypoxia zones from the flow of the Mississippi River into the Gulf of Mexico using a CTD sensor array.

New England Mud Patch

By Amber Batts

On July 23, 2015

In MATE Blog Archive, R/V Hugh R. Sharp, University of Delaware, College of Earth, Ocean and Environment

We arrived in Lewes, Delaware last Saturday and had a few days at dock preparing for the next deployment. Three separate winches had to be added to the back deck. We also added a side frame, combustion chamber and CHIRP to be used on the cruise.

First 12 days on the Point Sur

By Ken McQuarrie

On July 17, 2015

In MATE Blog Archive, Moss Landing Marine Laboratory, R/V Point Sur

Well it has been twelve days since I arrived in Gulfport Mississippi and boarded the R/V Point Sur. Over these past days I have had many great experiences and have learned a lot. The first trip that we went on involved working with the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). After leaving port we had a 40 hour transit to Galveston Texas where we picked up more scientists then an 18 hour trip down the coast to the Corpus Christi area. During the transit I was able to learn about the CTD, help change out the control bottle on it, troubleshoot why it wouldn’t talk to the computer and fixed the issue. I also had time to do some networking of computers on the boat. When we finally arrived at the testing site we took sediment samples, dredged for worms and clams, and photographed cross sectional views of the bottom.

We arrived back in port and the next day we took out a group of students from the University of Southern Mississippi out to do some research.

The crew on the Point Sur are wonderful to work with. The food is amazing.

This was my first time on a boat in the ocean. It is not much different than being on the Great Lakes. I did not realize how many oil rigs were really out in the Gulf of Mexico. At night it looks like a city on the water.

Right now we are getting ready to head back out for 11 days. The boat is being loaded with a bunch of gear. There is a rov and two big wave gliders and a few smaller ones. This trip is going to be exciting, it is geared toward what I want to do when I get out of school. When I get back from this next trip I will give another update.

Back to Corvallis

By Sonia Brugger

On July 14, 2015

In MATE Blog Archive, Oregon State University, CEOAS, R/V Oceanus

It’s been approximately a month since I left for San Diego. Since then I have completed a mooring deployment cruise and a sediment coring/imaging cruise. I must say it’s been a busy month and It feels rather strange to be back on shore.

While I am back I will have to head to our Newport storage facility to pick up some items for my next cruise (spare PMI grips, sensors, etc) and I will continue to try and solve my Triaxus problem.

Searching for Deep Sea Prey

By Amber Batts

On July 9, 2015

In MATE Blog Archive, R/V Hugh R. Sharp, University of Delaware, College of Earth, Ocean and Environment

I am one week into cruise 1 of 3 that I will be on during my internship. This cruise began in Nassau, Bahamas where we picked up the science crew. From there we have spent the last seven days traveling up and down the islands at a Navy base (AUTEC) with an AUV (autonomous underwater vehicle) collecting acoustic data. The AUV is deployed at 0600 and goes underwater along a pre programmed route that we follow so we can pick it up in the afternoon.

At the same location we deploy the AUV, a CTD scan is done at 600 meters to collect data about the water profile such as water temperature and salinity. Immediately after, a trawl is put out and pulled behind the vessel at a depth of about 1700 meters. The catch is used to determine the deep sea prey of whales. A hydrophone is also dropped into the water and pulled along behind the stern to pick up any sounds of whales. We do this entire process twice a day, putting the AUV back on board just before sunset (we tried once in the dark; QUITE difficult).

So far things have been operating smoothly. There was an issue with the CTD cable which was producing 9 modulo errors on a single cast, so the technician and I went up and pulled out the slip ring to the sea cable termination and soldered several wires and everything worked perfectly afterwards. Definitely a good learning experience for me. Other than that, the days are going by without any problems. I’ve also been learning a little bit from the engineers whenever I have a chance. I watched them fill up the hydraulic oil reservoir and operated the winch for the A frame today. I figure anything I can learn will be useful.

All together I have been on this boat for 15 days straight and still haven’t lost my mind or gotten sea sick so I think all is well! I still love it and I have so much more to learn. There are two people on this cruise that are former MATE interns. The Chief Scientist, Chad Waluk and the Marine Science Technician, Kenneth Fairbarn.

RV Langseth: Last blog post

By Tyler Hackett

On July 8, 2015

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

The image above is a picture of myself (far left) and a few other people onboard. In this picture I am in a harness just after we brought the seismic source up the slip.

So tomorrow my last day onboard the RV Langseth and I head back home. The past 6 weeks have been a very challenging and life changing experience for me. We encountered both smooth and rough seas while off the coast of New Jersey. I’ve learned everything from spicing rope and air gun mechanics to p-cable operations, seismic operations, and life long people skills. I met people aboard that are now lifelong friends and people that I hope to work with in the future. The technicians and navigators on board helped to make me feel right at home and welcomed me into their family without question.

The past week of operating was very hectic and busy. We were able to successfully be in production for several days straight. Even though the entire prospect was not filled in, we were able to complete over 90% of it. This is a miracle considering the difficulties the Langseth faced a year ago trying to complete the same project. Once we made it to port we had to pack up everything to be sent back to Geometrics and NCS Subsea. The two days at the dock were filled with crane operations and preparations for the next cruise. Even though I will not be joining them on the next cruise I wish them smooth seas and safe travels.

This is the last blog I will be writing, if anyone would like to know more information about my cruise and my experience feel free to email me at thackett2012@my.fit.edu

Dreams do come true

By Ken McQuarrie

On July 5, 2015

In MATE Blog Archive, Moss Landing Marine Laboratory, R/V Point Sur

Hello everyone, my name is Ken McQuarrie. I am a student at Alpena Community College which is located in Northeast Michigan on the shore of Lake Huron. I am enrolled in the Marine Technology program specializing in ROVs.

So let me tell you about myself more. I am 38 years old. When I was young I always wanted to work on the ocean. I wanted to be a marine biologist. When I was 17 I ended up having a child. At that point I gave up on my dream of working on the ocean. I left the small town of Alpena at the age of 19 and moved to Lansing, Mi. While there I worked many jobs but mostly I worked at a photo lab and I painted houses. When I was 22 I had another child. I raised him his whole life by myself. Almost two years ago I came to Alpena to visit for the holidays. When I was there I was helping cut down a huge maple tree at my grandma’s house. I climbed a ladder to tie a cable around the limb that was hanging over her house. When I reached the top of the ladder it broke. I fell 18 feet and broke my leg. It changed the direction of my life. I was no longer a painter.

While I was recovering, I was trying to figure out what to do next in my life. That is when I found the Marine Tech program at ACC. After finding this program, a flood of memories and dreams came back to the forefront of my mind. I decided to give school a try again. Going back to school after 18 years was a little scary. Fortunately the second time around was much easier. It is amazing what that time away from school has taught me. All those life experiences really helped me excel in my classes. Over the past year I have had so many amazing experiences. I have learned how to scuba dive, piloted rovs on over a dozen shipwrecks, met and worked with many amazing people in the industry and now this internship through MATE.

Growing up in Michigan, I have been out on the Great Lakes numerous times. I absolutely love being out on the water. I have never been on the ocean though. This will be another dream of mine that will be marked off my checklist. I am excited and nervous at the same time. I am sure I will make the best of this opportunity as I have all the others over the past year. So my message to everyone reading this is: No matter what life throws at you and how far gone your dreams seem to be, everything happens for a reason. Don’t be afraid to chase your dream, even if you are older like me.

I look forward to this opportunity and will keep everyone posted on my travels when possible. Thank you MATE, ACC, friends and family for your support. I will make you all proud.

Ken McQuarrie

RV Langseth: Wrapping up Coverage

By Tyler Hackett

On July 3, 2015

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

The image above is me helping to deploy the head float for the cross cable. This is done just prior to the cross cable and GeoEels being put in the water.

This past week has been very busy and a lot of hard work. At the beginning of the week we noticed we were having some issues with the P-cable. The decision was made to pull everything in and finish the survey without the 3 Kilometer 2D streamer. We spent all day Monday on the back deck trying to repair the p-cable, which we were unable to do. Several attempts were made to replace parts on the cross cable but a decision was made to pull everything and run in towards the Manasquan inlet to pick up a Geometrics employee.

Tuesday morning we were close enough to shore that I was able to make a few calls. Once it was time for my shift to start I walked outside and found that we were replacing the entire signal cable. Finishing the signal cable and deploying the entire p-cable took most of the day but we were able to start shooting around 8pm that night. Ever since then we have been shooting and filling in the prospect. Like I have said before, boring seismic is good seismic. I also sat down with Dan from Geometrics and we started to design and draw up a few brackets that would fix several problems on the p-cable It has been decided that we will pick up the p-cable and head back to port on Monday. Next week will be my last blog post during my internship.

The image above is me helping to deploy the head float for the cross cable. This is done just prior to the cross cable and GeoEels being put in the water.

This past week has been very busy and a lot of hard work. At the beginning of the week we noticed we were having some issues with the P-cable. The decision was made to pull everything in and finish the survey without the 3 Kilometer 2D streamer. We spent all day Monday on the back deck trying to repair the p-cable, which we were unable to do. Several attempts were made to replace parts on the cross cable but a decision was made to pull everything and run in towards the Manasquan inlet to pick up a Geometrics employee.

Tuesday morning we were close enough to shore that I was able to make a few calls. Once it was time for my shift to start I walked outside and found that we were replacing the entire signal cable. Finishing the signal cable and deploying the entire p-cable took most of the day but we were able to start shooting around 8pm that night. Ever since then we have been shooting and filling in the prospect. Like I have said before, boring seismic is good seismic. I also sat down with Dan from Geometrics and we started to design and draw up a few brackets that would fix several problems on the p-cable It has been decided that we will pick up the p-cable and head back to port on Monday. Next week will be my last blog post during my internship.

First Week at Sea

By Amber Batts

On July 2, 2015

In MATE Blog Archive, R/V Hugh R. Sharp, University of Delaware, College of Earth, Ocean and Environment

The first few days on board were typical sailing days and a good time for me to get familiar with the ship and the daily operations. Because the ship was in transit there were no technicians on board so I was able to learn and perform the duties on my own.

Friday through Monday were designated for getting the boat from Lewes, Delaware to Fort Pierce, Florida. We ran into some pretty nasty weather (winds at 57 knots and we pushed through about a dozen 20 foot waves) which pushed us back 24 hours so we didn’t actually arrive in Fort Pierce until late Tuesday afternoon. We switched out a few crew members and moved on to Nassau, Bahamas where we picked up 8 scientists. Over the next 15 days we will be working around the Bahamas at the Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center (AUTEC) which is controlled by the U.S. Navy.

There are a few things on this ship that were new to me. I’ve never seen a hydraulically operated keel that deploys sonar before and definitely didn’t know how to operate one until I learned on this vessel. I also have never seen a Caley system which is the equipment the CTD is housed within. Everything else I’ve had to do has basically been an extension of the marine technology program at CFCC. I have felt well prepared for what has come my way so far.

We have mobilized the vessel and are ready to begin science. Because of the international rates I can’t upload my pictures at this time but I have plenty! I will have more to report in the following week. Other than that, the weather is beautiful here and the water is warm!

Also, I can’t say enough about the crew. I have been the only female on board and they’ve welcomed me and made me feel comfortable from the first day on. I look forward to the following two months.

End of a Chapter

By Maia Garcia

On June 25, 2015

In MATE Blog Archive, R/V Hugh R. Sharp, University of Delaware, College of Earth, Ocean and Environment

The last week aboard the Sharp was a mix of light and hard days of work. The first two days of the week (Fri and Sat) were mostly Habcaming with the occasional light dredging. One dredge in particular though on Saturday had a huge boulder, one of the biggest I’ve ever seen. It had to be craned off the table. Other than the boulder, the days went quickly and had a light load of work. Sunday on the other hand was brutal. Science made the call to end the cruise early due to the weather and we had to offload everything while in Woods Hole Sunday. I was exhausted as I had to start the hard process of switching over to being diurnal. When we arrived in port at 5:20 am, the weather was overcast and very windy but it soon worsened into hard rain and the occasional lightning. We worked in our full foul weather gear to offload all the dredges, the keel pod, and all the wire cages filled with science’s equipment via crane. Loud Fuel arrived an hour and a half late and began refueling at around 8 am. It took several hours to offload and refuel but things in general went smoothly. By noon, the last the gear was off and it was time to begin the 30-hour steam back to Lewes. The rest of Sunday and the whole of Monday was spent heading home and cleaning the ship. The dry lab, wet lab, vestibule, staterooms, and the heads all had to be cleaned before arrival.

We docked in Lewes by early Tuesday morning. It was brutally hot that day but we worked hard in the morning to crane off the scallop table, scallop ramp, Habcam deck, Habcam ramp, and the two small hydraulic winches. A small boat was added to the deck for the upcoming cruise in the Bahamas. Wednesday was much nice in comparison. The weather cooled off after thunderstorms in the night. In the morning, the two keel pods were removed, the van was removed, and after lunch, a new van was installed. This was a slow process as it was difficult to crane such large and ungainly things while also staying safe. Max and I finished the day by installing three new fridges and freezers and a fume hood. Today, we finished off the rest of the work. I spent most of my time helping install the new keel pods before the crew had to attend an important staff meeting. While the crew was in the meeting, the new intern arrived, Amber. I got her settled and showed her around before it was time to get back to work. Right at the end of the workday at 3pm, the SMS computer decided to act up. The next couple of hours were spent collectively trying to troubleshoot the hardware for the setup. Finally at 5, the stars aligned and the computer was working. Amber and I ate dinner downtown before we headed back to the ship for the night.

Sadly, this will be the last post from me. These past weeks have been incredible and life changing. I will be sad leaving the ship tomorrow morning for the last time while heading to the airport. Thank you MATE so much for giving me this opportunity.

Signing off,

Maia

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