Happy (belated) Halloween!
After fighting some rough winds through the Bering Strait, the Sikuliaq has arrived in the operations area as planned! And the rumors are true: the arctic is very cold. The ocean is green and black and so cold that every wave hurls sleet up onto the deck. We all stay inside as much as possible, except for a few nights ago when everyone gathered on the bridge deck to view the northern lights.
This second week has been all about getting into a steady routine. The science team is busy monitoring the multibeam seafloor map and sub-bottom profiler in between casting CTDs, collecting samples, and servicing meteorological buoys. Up on the bridge, the mates and the captain have been fighting the wind and waves (up to 40 knots and 10 feet tall, respectively!) to keep us stable and on the correct heading. And the engineering crew runs the tightest ship I’ve ever seen- a ship like the Sikuliaq requires a labyrinth of machinery to operate in extreme climates like the arctic, and they keep it spotless and running smoothly every single day.
As a marine tech, my job is to collaborate with all of these groups and to help with operations in any capacity I can. I especially enjoyed helping the engineers service the A-frame hydraulics; machinery of that scale is fascinating to me, and I appreciated the chance to get some grease on my brand new work gloves! Another highlight was joining the crew in one of the small boats to recover a meteorological buoy. It’s hard to really appreciate the sheer size and power of the Sikuliaq until you’re sitting in a three-person raft and watching it bear down on you.
I’m excited to see what this coming week holds!
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