Amanda Peretich: A Community Afloat, June 30, 2012

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Amanda Peretich
Aboard Oscar Dyson
June 30, 2012 – July 18, 2012

Mission: Pollock Survey
Geographical area of cruise: Bering Sea
Date: June 30, 2012

Location Data
Latitude: 54ºN
Longitude: 166ºW
Ship speed: 11.5 knots (13.2 mph)

Weather Data from the Bridge
Air temperature: 6.5ºC (43.7ºF)
Surface water temperature: 6.9ºC (44.42ºF)
Wind speed: 7 knots (8.05 mph)
Wind direction: 265ºT
Barometric pressure: 1011 millibar (0.998 atm, 758 mmHg)

Science and Technology Log
Not much science to discuss yet since we just left port at 0900 and I won’t be working in the fish lab until my 0400-1600 shift tomorrow (that’s 4am-4pm for anyone unfamiliar with military time). More to come on the pollock survey in a later post.

However, I did have the opportunity to spend a few hours up in the bridge today and I learned A TON thanks to NOAA Corps Officers ENS (ensign) Libby Chase and LT (lieutenant) Matt Davis! The chemistry teacher in me was amazed by all of the conversions used. Just a few of the things I learned today on the bridge:

* During the majority of transiting time, the Beier Radio Dynamic Positioning System is used. This is like an auto-pilot that controls the rudder to keep the Oscar Dyson on course using a gyro compass. They have nicknamed her “Betty” because she talks to you in a female voice, kinda like Siri on the new iPhone.

* A gyro compass is different from the magnetic compass that I am more familiar with using. The wind direction is measured in degrees true, which is based on true north being at 0º. Magnetic compasses have about a 9º variation, but things on the ship can also influence the deviation in the magnetic compass reading, so it is much better to use the gyro compass.

* You can drive the ship from multiple locations on the bridge. The main location looks to the bow/forward (front) of the ship. The starboard (right) location is used when the CTD is deployed (more on this later) and also whenever the boat is docked. The aft/stern (back of the ship) location is used when setting and recovering nets during a trawl. And the port (left) location is a ghost town that is rarely used.

* I learned the distance equation used in determining something called DR, or dead reckoning. This allows you to notice any set and drift while going along your course and tells where the current may or may not be pushing you to allow you to correct the course. The equation is as follows:

D = S x T
D is distance (in nautical miles)
S is speed (in knots)
T is time (in hours)

For example, if we were traveling at 11.35 knots, after 30 mins (or 0.5 hours), we should travel a distance of 5.7 nautical miles (D = 11.35 x 0.5). The bridge officers will plot this and see after half an hour if the ship has stayed on course based on the DR and the new coordinates after 30 minutes. Also, in case you didn’t know, 1 nautical mile = 1.15 miles.

* There is no common set of units for any given measurement, so everyone has to be familiar with how to do conversions. For example, when determining barometric pressure, you can use millibar, atmospheres, millimeters of mercury, torr, etc. (1 atm = 1013.25 mbar = 760 mmHg = 760 torr). For speed, you can use knots or miles per hour (1 knot = 1.15 mph).

Personal Log
What an adventure this has already been. Long story short, it took an extra day to get to Dutch Harbor due to weather conditions, giving me an overnight stay in Anchorage. I have come to discover that this is not an uncommon occurrence. It did give me a chance to meet plenty of people from the ship at the airport before we even arrived since we were all sitting around the terminal waiting on standby for flights. But I finally made it, had an exit row seat (see photo) and all of my luggage arrived with me!

I had the entire day yesterday in Dutch Harbor to explore, so I ran the 3ish miles back to town, checked out the Museum of the Aleutians (history lesson!), did some shopping, and headed back to the Oscar Dyson.

DYK? (Did You Know?): Dutch Harbor was bombed by Japanese naval aircraft on June 3 & 4, 1942 during WWII (about six months after the attack on Pearl Harbor).

I was fortunate to be in the right place at the right time eating a late lunch when the opportunity to kayak in Captains Bay came up. Four of us unloaded the ocean kayaks from the ship into the water, made our way down to the kayaks, and enjoyed breathtaking views while paddling against the current (doing it this way made our return trip much easier). This was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me and the people I was with were amazing. I plan to introduce everyone on board in a later blog so you can get to know them a little as well. I can also now say that I have swum in the freezing Alaskan waters because at the end three of us jumped in!

I was able to watch as we left port from the flying bridge (the highest bridge on the ship). Since there isn’t much to do until we are farther out to sea, today I have just done a lot of exploring and talking to people. Basically this is a little community afloat for the next 17 days. There are two things you really need to successfully live on board in such close quarters: you need to be flexible and able to work with others and you need to do your part around the ship, both on and off your shift. Our staterooms are nice (the mattress is actually extremely comfy), the bathrooms are good, we can keep our clothes clean in the laundry room, read books in the library/conference room, watch movies in the theater/lounge (we already have the Hunger Games and other new movies), the galley (where we have food access 24/7 but meals are served at 0700, 1100, and 1700) is amazing thanks to our incredible chief steward, and there are two gym areas on board to work off all the delicious calories! Check out the photos of these areas below:

Animal Love
Before I arrived in Alaska, I thought of the bald eagle as a majestic creature that you rarely see in the wild and mostly see in zoos. Here, they have been fondly called “sky rats” by some people – they are EVERYWHERE: in the sky and on the ship. They are still gorgeous and I can’t help but take multiple photos every time I see them. Make sure to check out the link for the bald eagle and the root of its scientific name; it really makes a lot of sense! I’ve seen more eagles in the past two days than in my entire lifetime.