Been awhile since my last detailed post, but time flies and I’ve been way too busy to even muster the urge to type anything useful.
This last week I had the fortune to work aboard the USCGC Healy for a 4 day shakedown cruise. The goal of a shakedown cruise is to get all of the science and technical aspects working since the ship had been sitting essentially unused for a few months. Dusting off the cobwebs on computer based systems are always fun because they always seem to turn on with new issues. Overall our cruise went well, with the main exception being the 4 hour delay due to engine failure before we left the dock. Our main issues revolved around the Met System that displays the flow through information, the multibeam, and the CTD.
On the cruise I learned and practiced many useful techniques. Its amazing how every technician you meet has a different way of doing things, a prime example being CTD terminations. On the shakedown cruise my OSU tech coworker and I got to work with some awesome Scripps technicians since the Healy shipboard tech support group is made up of a collaboration of OSU and Scripps (STARC) and the Coast Guard’s MSTs and ESUs. Overall it was a great experience.
As for present day. I am currently back in Corvallis Oregon working in our office space. I am still inventorying the multiple boxes of Triaxus related gear before I can even think about piecing it together. However I only have till Sunday before I fly off to meet the R/V Oceanus for a month at sea. I am hoping my coworker starts to feel better otherwise I may be the lead marine tech running this upcoming cruise. It would be entertaining and fun to run the cruise for sure, but I still have to read over the cruise plan and expected science to be completed.