Category: R/V Neil Armstrong Page 4 of 5

Just because our cruise doesn’t require any deployments of the rosette sampler, doesn’t mean we haven’t had the chance to learn about it. This instrument is the bread and butter of chemical and physical oceanographic sampling. The most basic of its type collect seawater samples and measure the water column temperature, salinity, oxygen, and pressure (depth) with more sophisticated models like WHOI’s having additional sensors measuring water column turbidity, chlorophyll, and light, and the rosette’s depth from the seafloor. During our free time this first week, Lila and Jacob, the other two MATE interns aboard the R/V Neil Armstrong, and I have dismantled all of the instruments from the rosette, serviced them, and reattached them along with all 24 Niskin bottles. 

In past jobs and educational cruises, I’ve been responsible for filling samples from the Niskin bottles and monitoring the water column data as it is being collected, but I never felt confident in my understanding of the instrument operation. Now that I’ve held each sensor in my hand, connected their wiring and tubing, and scripted their operational files, I look forward to a cruise where I’ll be able to make use of my knowledge in action.

Although this cruise is bathymetry data focused, it has given us the opportunity to hone our data cleaning intuition. Much of this process includes repeatedly rejecting ridiculous data points from the multibeam that result from the imperfection of the instrument – often times due to simply the pitching and rolling of the ship – which can make the task seem mundane at times. When this happens I have to take a step back and remind myself where I am: on one of the most technologically advanced oceanographic research ships in the world, with scientists from all over the planet, mapping the ocean floor. This reminder humbles me back to reality, but losing touch of the uniqueness of these seagoing opportunities is not uncommon, especially when everyone surrounding you is operating business as usual.

Photo: Ella cleaning bathymetric data using the Caris software package.

Photographer: Maria Repczynska, Icelandic Student

            It’s hard to believe it’s only been a week! It feels like both so much and so little has happened. Once offshore from Iceland and within our permitted range, the marine tech team and MATE interns (Ella, Jacob, and I) started off this week by turning on the EM710 multibeam sonar and 3.5 kHz Knudsen CHIRP sub-bottom profiler. We then launched the magnetometer, and got all associated software properly running and collecting data. Once our depth increased beyond ~1000 meters, we switched from the EM710 to the EM122 multibeam sonar system, which we have been using ever since. Our first day or so involved minor troubleshooting of these systems as we became familiar with how to properly operate and monitor them.

            As a MATE intern on a geophysical remote sensing cruise, my on-watch tasks have primarily consisted of routine monitoring of the multibeam, sub-bottom, magnetometer, and gravimeter systems. Off-watch, the other Armstrong MATE interns and I have been making a point to learn as much as we can about the diverse technology and protocols that are central to most UNOLS research cruises, despite the fact that this one is limited in scope. The majority of our instruction has been under the lead marine technician aboard this cruise, known here as the lead member of the Shipboard Scientific Support Group. However, we also learn additional relevant skills from other crew members including the Mates. This week, our training has included: 

• Learning about the pCO­₂sensor, turning it on, and properly adjusting flow rates through the system
• Fully disassembling and reassembling the CTD and Rosette (Conductivity, Temperature, and Depth probe with other optional additional sensors and the Niskin bottle carousel)
• Gaining an understanding of how power and data are transmitted between the CTD deck box and CTD sensors, and properly entering our CTD configuration into the associated software so as to enable this flow of power and data
• Creating hypothetical deck plans with the Chief Mate and entering them into DELFTload, a program which enables one to calculate the effects of different loads and their positioning on the ship. We also then utilized this program to balance these loads using the ship’s various ballasts.
• Processing and cleaning multibeam data using two common programs: Qimera and CARIS
• How to properly launch an XBT, upload the cast data into SSM (Sound Speed Manager) for processing, and incorporate the updated sound velocity data into SIS (the EM122 software).

Other than training, I’ve been eating amazing food (including daily cheese and charcuterie at cheese o’clock), making up for it at the gym, getting other work done, and hanging out with the crew, science party, and other MATE interns. Most of our free time has been spent chatting about life, playing endless card games, enjoying the deck when it’s not too cold and wet out, watching the FIFA Women’s World Cup, playing assassin, and talking about the gnarly weather ahead. Speaking of the weather, things are looking pretty rough for Wednesday! To prepare, we’ve been steaming toward a more optimal location, securing anything we don’t want flying, taking sea sickness meds, and being dramatic. Luckily, I haven’t had any need for sea sickness meds so far, so let’s hope it stays that way!

So far we’ve learned a great deal of information in a short time. It’s a bit like trying to take a drink from a fire hose. But, overall it is great exposure to the Marine Tech way of life. We got the fundamental training on breaking down the CTD, cleaning all connector pins, and reassembly. The CTD has been described to us as the “bread and butter” of research cruises which is true in my experience. We also built the CTD software from scratch. This exposure will be vital in any future position as a tech. Techs are a liaison between science and crew so we also got some time in on the bridge discussing communications and load plans of scientific equipment. In general, it has been a week of life at sea where there is a lot to do and not enough time to do it. I tend to ask myself “Am I learning?” And if the answer is yes then all is well at sea! I am learning out here.

With 20 crew members, 14 scientists, 2 SSSG techs (marine technicians), and 3 MATE interns aboard, we exit the Reykjavík port with rare, beautiful, Icelandic weather. The first 24 hours consist of exploring the layout of the boat, learning everyone’s names, safety trainings, an abandon ship drill, and indulging in fresh fruits and vegetables like avocados, berries, cantaloupe, starfruit, pineapple, sprouts, the list goes on and on. With 35 days straight at sea, they won’t last long.

The R/V Neil Armstrong is a more modern boat than I’ve ever sailed on. If it wasn’t for the pitching and rolling of the waves, the inside would feel no different from any given science building at my alma mater, the University of New Hampshire (UNH). In my time onboard UNH’s R/V Gulf Challenger and the Sea Education Association’s SSV Robert C. Seamans, I spent most of my time on deck, collecting samples and adjusting sails, with the horizon constantly in sight. On the R/V Neil Armstrong, however, with few portholes for viewing the horizon, the ship’s movement is disorienting and stomach upsetting (at least until my sea legs grow).

Most of our time is spent inside due to the nature of the sampling plan. Unlike chemical, biological or physical oceanography cruises which include deployments several times a day, this geophysical research cruise focuses on data collected from instruments attached to the bottom of the hull. So, on top of learning deck operations, and the many duties of a marine technician, I am also responsible for monitoring the bathymetric, gravitational, and magnetic data on screens in the science lab as they come in.

The magnetometer is one of the only instruments we will deploy. We tow it behind the ship during the entire cruise, with plenty of pay out to ensure the metal ship doesn’t influence its measurements. It measures the magnetic field of the earth. By looking at the anomalies from the earth’s overall magnetic field, we can distinguish slight changes due to the presence or absence of rocky lava flows (which preserve the earth’s magnetic field at their time of formation), even if they’re beneath sediment. This data, combined with the bathymetric data from the multibeam sonar (which is limited to mapping only the sediment or rocky surface layers) and the gravity data from the gravitometer, help us reconstruct the history of fractures formed from the spreading of the Eurasian and North American plates – the main goal of this cruise.

Photo: Ella and Lila observing while shipboard science support group members Cris and Becca prepare for deploying the magnetometer.

Photographer: Jacob Cooper, MATE Intern

MATE Test Blog 

After a wonderful, but hectic few days of visiting family and packing, I am certainly looking forward to the next month at sea aboard the R/V Neil Armstrong. Although not always calm, weather-wise or work-wise, I enjoy the simplicity of shipboard life. Since graduating from Eckerd College in May of 2018 with a degree in Marine Science, I’ve been fortunate enough to partake in three cruises aboard the E/V Nautilus as a member of the Science Management team. As a member of this team, I was able to gain familiarity with diverse marine technological equipment, but was not responsible for operating or maintaining it. 

During this cruise aboard the Armstrong, we will be focused on acquiring geophysical data along the Reykjanes Ridge, a tectonic feature extending about 1000 km southwest of Iceland. We will primarily be utilizing multibeam sonar, sub-bottom profiler, gravitometer, and magnetometer equipment. So while not new to working aboard research vessels, I’m excited for the opportunity my time aboard the Armstrong will provide me to further diversify and expand my experience with marine technology. I’m also looking forward to sailing in the Atlantic for the first time and experiencing the midnight sun!

Wish me safe seas and black-out curtains!

After a wonderful, but hectic few days of visiting family and packing at home in NYC, I am certainly looking forward to the next month at sea aboard the R/V Neil Armstrong. Although not always calm, weather-wise or work-wise, I enjoy the simplicity of shipboard life. Since graduating from Eckerd College in May of 2018 with a degree in Marine Science, I’ve been fortunate enough to partake in three cruises aboard the E/V Nautilus as a member of the Science Management team. As a member of this team, I was able to gain familiarity with diverse marine technological equipment, but was not responsible for operating or maintaining it. 

During this cruise aboard the Armstrong, we will be focused on acquiring geophysical data along the Reykjanes Ridge, a tectonic feature extending approximately 1000 km southwest of Iceland. We will primarily be utilizing multibeam sonar, sub-bottom profiler, gravitometer, and magnetometer equipment. So while not new to working aboard research vessels, I’m excited for this opportunity to further diversify and expand my experience managing and operating marine technology aboard the Armstrong. I’m also looking forward to sailing in the Atlantic for the first time and experiencing the midnight sun.

Wish me safe seas and good black-out curtains!

I spent some time before on the R/V Roger Revelle and it was an amazing experience. I recall thinking that the Marine Techs have a “pretty sweet gig”. I am thrilled to dust off my prior SONAR equioment knowledge from having been a SONAR Technician in the Navy and apply it to this sweet gig. Also, highly excited for 5 weeks of delicious cuisine on one of the newest research vessels. I feel like I have all of the luck right now and I’m grateful. 

0800 Local Time

Goðan dag!

Today is our last day at sea on the Iceland transit, hence my Icelandic greeting. We were originally meant to be in Reykjavik yesterday afternoon, but two days of really rough seas set us back.

Despite the weather and sea conditions, we did still manage to deploy 3 wave buoys as well as a glider over the side. Tina was our lone scientist on board and was fun to work with to get these things deployed. The round, orange, surface float is designed so that the drifting buoy will move on the surface with the currents, helped along by an attached, underwater drogue. A variety of sensors are also enclosed in the float, and an onboard antenna transmits the sensor data and buoy position. I have no doubt that those little surface buoys picked up some interesting climate and weather data.

The glider was the last to get deployed this week and was a challenging operation as the weather had once again turned against us. The Bosun thought it would be safest to attach a tag line to one of the starboard side winches and jib the glider out as far away from the ship as possible. Even then, it still drifted dangerously close to the hull and the Chief Mate had to engage the bow thruster to move us away from it. The danger was that the sensors on the nose of the glider are incredibly sensitive and could not come in contact with the vessel at all. Even rubbing against a shirt sleeve could destroy them.

This past week also provided a lot of opportunities for troubleshooting instrumentation and working on new projects. I think Amy and I totaled a solid work day worth of time trying to troubleshoot connectivity issues with the EM710 multibeam (offshore, shallow water unit). We inspected the transceiver unit and ethernet connections, swapped TX boards, bypassed the remote switch (which also seemed to have issues), and even pulled out the remote switch to inspect the connections inside. We got some good transmissions for a time, but it is not consistent, which remains a real head scratcher! Once we were in deep enough waters, we tried booting up the EM122 multibeam, and then found out that the database for it was missing. So that was another day of problem solving and configuration on that particular unit that, thankfully, ended in success. Go, Amy!

One project that I was excited to undertake was editing and reprinting a cylindrical coupler for the electrical slip ring on the CTD winch. The first print, unfortunately, did not quite fit the bolt pattern required and so I took some additional measurements and created a new, printable file in Autodesk Inventor. Thankfully, I worked with that program at Cal Maritime, but had yet to facilitate an actual print job. The ship has a LulzBot 3D printer, and I downloaded the printer software and slicing program for it. We did a test run of 3mm each of the top and bottom of the piece to check alignment and then, just 12 hours later, the part was successfully printed and is a good fit!

Now, just 4 hours out from Reykjavik, I am a bit amazed at just how quickly this month has passed by. I am so grateful to Amy, Joe, and Cris for their guidance and the multitude of learning opportunities and hands-on projects these past few weeks on the R/V Armstrong. They work really hard and need to be savvy with so many different systems and skillsets. Their services are vital, and I hope they know that they are appreciated!

Due to our delayed schedule, I will be staying in Reykjavik tonight and flying to San Diego tomorrow to board the R/V Roger Revelle at Scripps. Stay tuned for more as I head back to the West Coast!

– Emily

May 6, 2018

1730 local time

Greetings!

I am writing from our current position off the coast of Nova Scotia on our way to Iceland. We have a few stops planned during the 9-day transit in order to deploy a couple of gliders and a massive buoy, which is currently taking up quite a bit of prime real estate out on the fantail.

Getting ready for this cruise certainly made for a very busy week for everyone! The science teams from the previous cruise were all packed up and off the ship by Monday morning after a fun sendoff party at the local eatery in Woods Hole. We then spent a solid day cleaning up the lab and berthing spaces to make way for the new cruise, and the rest of the week was dedicated to maintenance projects and new installations.

One of the new additions is the work boat, which was left behind on the dock during the last cruise. Since it was laid up for a few weeks, the 3^rd Mate was tasked with refueling and running the engines. I was invited along for the journey and even trusted to drive for a while around the harbor. As you can see by the lack of wake, I took it easy out there, unlike the 3^rd Mate who really gunned it and managed to get us impressively wet out there. All around, quite a fun experience.

I thought the ship was impressively kitted out when I arrived, but there is new, shiny tech installed all over the place for this cruise. Earlier in the week, I tested my hardware skills by mounting and connecting 4 new monitors around the lab space as well as a new deck box for the expendable bathythermograph (XBT) probe. After being elbow deep in data cables in the main lab rack for over an hour, I actually got a chance to go out to the transom and use the XBT hand launcher. Though the look and feel of it suggests that the launcher could pack a punch, it is really just a means of keeping the probe cannister steady. Once the pin is released on the underside, the probe just sort of plops out undramatically and makes its long journey down as the conductor cables pay out smoothly to 1800 meters.

The start of a new cruise has also meant that I am finally able to work with Amy, the marine technician, on creating a new cruise data log and initializing the underway instrumentation, flow-thru systems, and echo sounders. I am finding it really beneficial to be able to get my hands on the control units, pumps, valves, and various software systems for the instruments. However, now that we are in Canadian waters, we are actually not allowed to record any data so I now have some experience in how to stop recording as well.

Another week at sea also means another safety drill. Instead of fire & emergency, the Chief Mate chose to have an informational session on hypothermia and on rescue procedures for pulling someone out of the water. Both the ship and work boat now have these scramble-nets to create a cradle and either roll someone up out of the water or have them scramble up to the deck. We watched a few videos and also demonstrated deploying the net on deck.

This week really flew by, and I am glad I got to spend a few days of it in Woods Hole. It is a really nice town, and I felt so at home there so quickly. It was great meeting people at WHOI, and I am excited to come back in October for the INMARTECH conference. My next update will be coming from Reykjavik!

– Emily

2330 local time

Hiya!

Another Sunday has arrived, bringing with it the end of this first cruise. Over the last two weeks I have lead over 85 CTD deployment and recoveries and the nutrient sample vials total out at 997! Some days it has been difficult to adjust to the 0000-1200 work schedule, but I was put on a great team and we powered through the early morning shifts and crazy water sampling transects together. 

As far as science operations go, this one seemed incredibly busy and ambitious. We had 175 CTD casts and water sampling for gases, DIC, chlorophyll, nutrients, as well as grazing experiments, two incubation chambers, VPR and MOCNESS tows, and lots of at-sea analysis going 24/7. The lab spaces are always hotbeds of activity and it is strange now to see instruments and sampling stations being broken down. It is going to feel really empty in here tonight once everything is gone.

This past week has gone by pretty quickly, likely owed to it being rather eventful. In addition to normal science operations, there was a rupture in the FW cooling water line to a forward SW supply pump, which created a lot of water that had to be pumped through a garden hose running through the length of the ship to the aft OWS system. We also had an early morning rendezvous with the M/V Warren Jr. to pick up a replacement part for the towed VPR. The 2^nd Mate took the fast rescue boat over with the documentary cameraman on board. Since this happened shortly after sunrise, the watch team could observe the boat being lowered and recovered from out on the deck.

I also got to expand my deck experience to include operating the main 30,000 lb. hydraulically driven A-frame controls to retrieve the MOCNESS and deploy the VPR. Moving the directional lever outboard or inboard with over 3,000 psi of accumulator pressure provides an interesting resistive feeling I haven’t experienced before. Though the control is a simple out or in, you also need to watch your speed and pressure, as well as the potential entanglement of the winch blocks while simultaneously watching and listening to the Bosun for instruction and keeping an eye out for safety hazards.

I am curious to see what the next few days are going to be like at the R/V Armstrong as one cruise offloads and another moves on. When I arrived two weeks ago, the science vans and large equipment were already onboard, so I missed that particular operation. In addition to helping with the transition this week while the ship is pier-side, I am also looking forward to spending more time on marine technician projects. This should also be my focus during the two-week transit to Iceland. There will be fewer science missions so that should, potentially, free me up to spend more time on the various shipboard instrumentation and networks with Amy, my new mentor. I am lucky to have the chance to learn from her as she has a wealth of knowledge and experience.

Tonight, I am going to try to go to bed at a more usual hour and wake up for the day shift to try to readjust to a new schedule. My next update will be a couple of days in on our transit to Iceland.

More soon!

– Emily

0330 Local Time

Hi there!

I’ve spent the last week on board the R/V Neil Armstrong on my first ever ocean-going research vessel. I am starry-eyed over the variety of instrumentation and technology that the ship is kitted out with. It’s so cool! This includes, of course, the 3 separate satellite ship-to-shore connections allowing me to be online and sharing my experiences with you.

The current mission objective is to complete 12 cross-shelf section transects of the Middle Atlantic Bight, which is an area of diverse productivity well known to local fisheries. Our first few days were dominated by heavy seas, which made for some difficult and uncomfortable working conditions for a majority of the science team (ie. wide-scale, debilitating seasickness). I was placed on the 0000 – 1200 hydrology watch with some truly delightful people and am gaining some good insight into field sampling methodologies and the herculean effort required to complete a study of this magnitude. The amount of water we constantly collect and filter through is on a scale I was previously unfamiliar with. It has been a week, and for nutrients alone, I count 400 individual sample vials now frozen and waiting for analysis.

My role as a nutrient sample collector has also given me the time during watch to get familiar with the deployment and recovery procedures for the CTD carousel. For our safety, we communicate with both the bridge and the winch operator during casts. The combined weight of the CTD, Niskin rosette, Video Plankton Recorder (VPR), and the frame is significant and so following safety procedures is paramount!

An added bonus of being on the 0000 – 1200 team is watching the sun rise out at sea, which is always a beautiful and welcomed sight.

When I am not working with the science team or sleeping, I am shadowing the two Shipboard Scientific Services Group (SSSG) technicians – Cris and Joe – to get a foundational understanding of their job duties. So far, I’d say this has been an incredibly eventful week and I have already absorbed so much. I look forward to more and will be back next Sunday with another update.

– Emily