All Floats Deployed

Scripps technician Megan Roadman deploys 'Aquaty.'

Apologies for the time between posts, but it's been very busy onboard Roger Revelle! We deployed six more SOCCOM floats since my last post and did dozens of CTD casts. There won't be any more deployments on this trip, but we still have nearly a month left onboard and I will post more about life at sea during that time. 

There's also a science writer onboard who is posting blogs about the work going on and the quirks of life at sea, especially during a pandemic. Check that out here.

We've been experiencing good weather, with relatively calm seas. All ten of the SOCCOM floats were deployed successfully and have reported profiles of the water column.

There was about a week where we didn't see the sun though, and as someone who lives in Southern California, I missed it! I could tell my mood was off. The sun reemerged a day or two ago and it was so exciting. Though it's still quite chilly out.

Scripps technician Matt Durham deploys 'Lizzy.'

We also saw a humpback whale, which came very close to the ship and hung out for awhile. Someone pointed out later that it was hump day, halfway through our time at sea. A humpback whale on hump day! There have been a collection of birds - albatross, petrels, and prions - following the ship.

As we headed to our most southern point, 60 degrees South, the bridge saw a few icebergs on the radar. But we didn't see any in person due to the fog. The ship slowed down to make sure we transited safely.

Morale onboard is good, we are enjoying a life without masks and social distancing while we can. Everyone has friends and family back home that are doing their best to stay safe and healthy. It's hard to be away, but thankfully our internet speeds have been conducive to keeping in touch. 

Thanks for following along. I'll be sure to post more often!

 

The Northern Floats

Since leaving Hawaii more than two weeks ago, we've made our way steadily south. Hawaii is 19 degrees North of the equator and we're now at 44 degrees South. We've deployed four of the SOCCOM floats so far. 

Chief Scientist Barney Balch and Scripps restech Charlie prepare to deploy SOCCOM float "Hawk-eye." Photo by Megan Roadman.

The other big news is that we were allowed to stop wearing masks on day 15. People onboard seem very grateful for the change, though it definitely takes some getting used to. I find myself touching my chin or reaching into my pocket at times, panicked that I'm not wearing a mask when I should be. We get to enjoy this time after spending two weeks in hotel isolation and then another two weeks social distancing once we got underway. I know I'll have to go back to it once the cruise is over, so I'm planning to enjoy the next six weeks of being relatively stress-free about the pandemic.

We're also able to serve ourselves buffet-style at meals. For the first two weeks, our cooks Richard and Ruth had been serving us. I'm sure they're happy for the change! We also had set meals windows and sat only two people to a table that could fit six. Sitting right next to and right across from people at meals feels like such a luxury!

It's only been a few days, but we're definitely missing the calm seas of the tropics. We're in the roaring 40s now and headed as far as 60 degrees South. With 6 more floats to go, we'll be busy. Check back for more updates!

Missing that blue water from the deployment at 30 degrees South.

Float Decorating Party!

 R/V Revelle left Honolulu the day after Christmas. We spent December 23-26 loading the ship and preparing everything onboard. I knew the loading days would be busy, but I hadn’t realized for how unprepared I was for them physically after two weeks in a hotel room. We should have been training! On day 10, stand for one hour and then steadily increase that each day. Even just wearing shoes felt different. 

We worked all day on Christmas, pausing to make phone calls and Zoom appearances with friends and family. The cooks, Richard and Ruth, made a great dinner. I brought a small Christmas tree and set it up in my lab. It was quickly surrounded by presents as our chief scientist / St. Nick brought chocolate bars for all of us and we did a white elephant gift exchange. Though the actual exchange was delayed a few days due to weather since we had to hold it outside due to the COVID protocols.

Christmas tree atop the SOCCOM floats, stored on the back deck.

 

We crossed into the Southern Hemisphere with only a few hours left in 2020. Again, because of COVID protocols, we are delaying any crossing ceremony until we are sure we’re all healthy and can do so safely. 

 

We’ve been at sea for 8 days and still have a few more before we start deploying SOCCOM floats. In the downtime, I got a bunch of the scientists to help out with decorating them based on their names and designs from the schools that adopted them. It was easy to find volunteers for a fun arts and crafts project on the sunny back deck in calm, tropical waters. It was only then they realized that it also came with some manual labor to unstack and restack the heavy crates.

 

Some of the floats are black and can only be decorated with metallic sharpies, while the yellow ones have a broader range of colors that will show up. It was fun to work within those restrictions though, and I think the floats all turned out beautifully. I was so grateful to have had help. I am not very artistic and usually only decorate a few at time before running out of ideas. This time around, all 13 floats were decorated inside of an hour.

 

Check back for posts about the floats as they get deployed and other exploits from aboard R/V Revelle!