NOAA Teacher at Sea
Jeff Grevert
Onboard NOAA Ship Delaware II
June 8 – 16, 2005
Mission: Surf Clam Survey
Geographical Area: New England
Date: June 8, 2005
Weather Data
Latitude: 41° 22′ N
Longitude: 070° 53′ W
Visibility: 5 nm
Wind Direction: 220°
Wind Speed: 11 kts
Sea Wave Height: 1′
Swell Wave Height: 2′
Sea Water Temp: 14.3° C
Sea Level Pressure: 1041.8 mb
Cloud Cover: 1/8; Altocumulus, Cirrus
Science and Technology Log
0900 – DELAWARE II changed docks; I assisted with lashing the cargo net beneath the gangway.
1200 – Participated in an interview conducted by an intern at the National Marine Fisheries Service Ecosystems Surveys Branch. The objective is to create an interactive DVD to promote NOAA programs.
1300 – Embarked from Woods Hole Mass.
1400 – All hands aboard the DELAWARE II participated in ship drills for fire and abandoning ship. All hands onboard had to report with a life jacket, a survival immersion suit, a hat, long pants and a long sleeve shirt. My station was the stern at life raft # 2. On the stern, we all learned how to don our survival immersion suits.
1500 – The scientific crew and I participated in a practice bottom trawl to learn how to conduct clam surveys. The clam survey is the primary scientific objective of this cruise. I was briefed on deck safety, chain of command and research protocol. After the trawl (~5 minutes), the scientific crew on watch and I sorted the catch. The organism collected in the greatest abundance was the Surf Clam (Spisula soldissima). Other organisms collected included sea stars of the genus Asterias. The Surf Clams were sorted into three categories: live, clappers (a specimen where the bivalve shell and hinge are intact but with no meat) and dead (a bare half shell). One of the scientists from the national marine fisheries service gave me training on entering data into the Fisheries Science Computer System. This is a software application designed specifically for fisheries research. Parameters recorded included: shell length, overall mass and meat mass.
1900 – The first officer of the DELAWARE II gave me instruction on understanding nautical codes from the ships log for recording cloud cover, cloud type and other meteorological conditions. A nautical day starts at 1200 noon. Since we were still in port at that time, I recorded the first entry into the ship’s weather log.