May 31st, 2021
Happy days! The weather cleared up enough for us to deploy Sentry today. The chiclet with bazookas was successfully deployed and we performed a short dive to quickly get a sample and be on our way. Once the sample was back on board, scientists eagerly rushed back to the scopes to explore the mysterious microworld just outside our portholes. Bowls swirled, scopes zoomed in an out, short dance parties were held, ice trays were filled, and larvae were sorted. All of this to assess different morphotypes of larvae to understand larval distribution within the water column. We finished this collection relatively quick, pleased with the lack of shrimp in these samples. We found a crab zoea, a shrimp zoea, a doliolarian, and some nectochaetes.
After sorting, the scientists got a well-deserved break with a 13-hour transit to the next site. Before our next science stop at Blake Ridge we are recovering some oceanographic moorings. These moorings are part of the PEACH Project under multiple institutions that collect data for storm analysis using ADCPs (Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers). Some of these moorings were lost at sea, they were supposed to surface on their own, and now we are retrieving them from the bottom of the ocean. There are two moorings at separate sites on our way, so we will spend tomorrow trying to find them and get them on board.
Meet a Scientist on Board
Hi, my name is Dexter Davis, and I’m a senior undergraduate from Western Washington University studying marine science and minoring in mathematics. I am also the one that has been writing these blog posts! I work for Dr. Shawn Arellano as an undergraduate research assistant and I’m incredibly excited to be back at sea. I was privileged to be on the RV Atlantis cruise with Alvin last spring, and looking forward to working with Sentry and Jason on this one. I’ll be graduating on June 12 while at sea, which I think is a spectacular way to end my undergraduate career. Post-graduation I’m hoping to work as a research assistant or a lab technician, to explore and hone my interests in marine science before returning to school for a master’s degree. I currently have interests in deep sea research and exploration, fisheries science, climate science, as well as species interactions. The ocean is so vast and full of things to discover, it creates a career full of excitement and unique experiences and I’m excited to get out into the marine science world.
On our day off the scientists spent the day scanning the horizon from the bow of the ship and had a late movie night. In hopes of seeing whales and dolphins, the scientists regularly perform the “cetacean dance”, beckoning the charismatic mammals to visit our ship. Sometimes there’s a lag and they don’t come immediately, but this time it worked quite well! Not only did we pass through a large pod of pilot whales, estimating around 100 individuals, but we also encountered a superpod of dolphins! These curious and playful dolphins swim right under the bow to play in the waves, and you could watch them seeking out the rest of the pod to join in on the fun. After the dolphins had left and the sun had set, the undergraduates had a movie night in the lounge on board. This room is full of all the movies and TV shows you could think of, with all genres for any taste. Candy was had, and the ice cream fridge was raided.
Tomorrow begins an exciting day for the undergraduates, will all of them taking over Jason shifts during the mooring recoveries. They will be on board to record and report on the progress of these lost instruments in an attempt to reunite them with their owners. A deep sea search party with some seafloor exploration is quite the experience to have under one’s belt! Very excited to see what awaits us!