NOAA Teacher at Sea
Maggie Prevenas
Onboard US Coast Guard Ship Healy
April 20 – May 15, 2007
Mission: Bering Sea Ecosystem Survey
Geographic Region: Alaska
Date: April 16, 2007
Ship Tour
So what’s on board a scientific research vessel and Coast Guard Icebreaker? Come take a tour with Kolehe, my naughty monkey friend.
That’s how you get on the ship. You are looking at the PORT side of the ship. It faces the port. The other side, starboard, doesn’t. The gangplank enters at the 01 level. My stateroom (where I sleep) is located one floor above. You need to take very steep steps to get from one level to the next. Going up is easier than going down.
You get REALLY thirsty walking up and down steps, so there are lots of water fountains and the water is nice and cold.
My State Room: I share a nice room with a nice scientist, Ana Ajuilar-Islas. Scientists have to work for 12 hour shifts, sometimes even more. They sleep when they can. That means I need to be respectful of her. Look I’ve made myself right at home. My desk looks just like my teacher desk on Maui!
Science Conference Room: Just down the hall from me is the science conference room. That’s where many of the scientist go to use the public computers and talk story. Attached to it is the TV video entertainment area. There is a huge TV screen where everyone gathers to watch movies.
Opening up Doors: I have the hardest time opening up the water tight doors that lead to and from different areas of the ship. You have to crank them all the way open and then all the way closed. I am developing my arm muscles for sure!
Good Morale: The crew has a group of people who work on keeping the attitude of the ship very positive. They play bingo on some nights, have fun food entrees and on Saturday nights…
A movie in the helicopter hanger with free popcorn and soda! This past week it was a James Bond Movie, ‘Casino Royale.’
The Bridge I love to spend time on the bridge. That’s where you go if you want to see any wildlife. I spend as much time as I can up there because it is so interesting for me. I also get to take ice observations for the scientists, valuable data that they will use to help analyze the data they are getting right now.
The galley is five ladders down from the bridge.
Do you think he will burn off all those candy calories walking back up to the bridge?
Time for Bed… After a long hard day of experiments and data generation, we are ready for sleep. Did you know the sun sets at around 10:30 at night here? That’s right, it stays light very late. But that doesn’t stop us from getting a good night’s sleep! Hope you enjoyed this brief tour of the boat. Make sure you email any questions you might have to me!
