NOAA Teacher at Sea
Amelia Black
Aboard NOAA Ship Oregon II
July 6-17, 2026
Mission: SEAMAP Summer Groundfish Survey
Geographic Area of Cruise: Gulf of America/Gulf of Mexico
Date: July 16, 2026
Weather Data from the Bridge:
Latitude: 30.00 N
Longitude: 87.30 W
Sea wave height: 2 ft
Wind Speed: 13 kt
Wind Direction: 270
Visibility: 10 miles
Sea Temperature: 84.02℉
Air Temperature: 85℉
Barometric Pressure: 30.08 inHg
Humidity: 72%
Sky: Clear
Science and Technology Log
“That, my dear, is a ‘horse of a different color.’” — Carriage Driver from The Wizard of Oz
We have caught a few seahorses (Hippocampus erectus) in our various trawls. I was surprised to see that seahorses come in many different colors. Check out this video of seahorses that we caught. They are kept in a bucket with a bubbler while we wait to measure and weigh them.
Did you know that seahorses are one of the few animals in which males become pregnant and give birth? Their close relatives, pipefish and seadragons, also belong to this unique family. https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/seahorse.html
Read more about Seahorses here https://oceanconservancy.org/blog/2022/09/01/cheers-pipefish/ or https://spo.nmfs.noaa.gov/Fishery%20Leaflets/leaflet495.pdf
One of these is not like the other… Can you tell which one doesn’t belong?
The odd one out is a Chain pipefish (Syngnathus louisianae). Pipefish are in the same family as the seahorse. Find out more about pipefish here. https://blogs.ifas.ufl.edu/escambiaco/2022/02/17/pipefish-of-the-florida-panhandle/
Speaking of horses. NOAA Ship Oregon II has two twin engines. Each engine produces 900 horsepower, giving Oregon II a total of 1,800 horsepower!
Oregon II is the oldest ship in the NOAA Fleet and was built in 1967 by Ingalls Shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi https://www.omao.noaa.gov/marine-operations/ships/oregon-ii
There are a lot of pieces that keep Oregon II moving. The engineering department keeps the ship moving, the lights on, and nearly every system aboard operating smoothly. On a typical day, the engines use about 1,200 gallons of fuel. That’s a lot of gas to keep things moving.
I had the opportunity to go below deck and check things out with the Chief Engineer. I had to wear hearing protection, and even then the engine was incredibly loud and there was only one engine running at that time. The deck below was not only loud but very hot. The engines are Caterpillar engines and with the amount of power they push out to keep the boat moving they produce a lot of heat.
The Chief Engineer has made it a fun work environment by adding a few robots.
He is working on this one. Can you guess what it will become?
It’s a minion!
The Chief Engineer said one of the best things about NOAA is the incredible people who work here. He likes what NOAA does and feels that a lot of the actual research that you look up comes from NOAA.
Another department that keeps Oregon II moving is the NOAA Corps. These are the officers that run the bridge. I have had several opportunities to go above deck and look out from the bridge. The bridge offers a beautiful view, and every time I have visited I have been lucky enough to see dolphins swimming alongside the ship. Here is a look at all the instruments the bridge uses to navigate.
Personal Log
Check out that Lawrence Sea Star! What a fun coincidence! Next week I’ll be attending a professional development at the Dole Institute in nearby Lawrence, Kansas.
I have had the opportunity to experience and learn many amazing things so far. Here are some videos I took about what I have been up to!
Here is a cute video of a shamed face crab spitting water. This is how they breathe and get oxygen out of the water. It is just too cute!
Video of a shame-faced crab spitting water.
Video of small octopus in the water and on my hand.
Video of Sea Urchin moving
I can’t believe this adventure is almost over! After this blog I will write one more blog to let everyone know the total number of Marine life that was cataloged by Leg 3 of SEAMAP Groundfish Survey.
Activity Corner
Here are a few activities about seahorse you can do with your children (or just for fun):
Preschool-1st grade
Practice the letter S
Draw a Seahorse with the Letter S from Art for Kids Hub https://youtu.be/UIfte0bmqFE
2nd and up
Check out these seahorse facts:
https://www.aoml.noaa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/C_seahorse_bubble.pdf
https://oceanconservancy.org/blog/2018/12/10/7-wild-facts-may-not-know-seahorses/
https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/facts/seahorse
Draw A Cute Baby Seahorse with Art for Kids Hub https://youtu.be/LgocsDWUjaM
Draw A Seahorse with Art for Kids Hub https://youtu.be/n8zJsprXCmk
Check out this activity from NOAA for a winter in July:
https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/new-paper-snowflake-crafts-help-you-celebrate-winter
Did You Know?
The actual number of species in the ocean is unknown. According to this article scientists estimate that over 90% of the ocean life has yet to be classified! https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/ocean-species.html
Check out my last blog to get the total number of marine life we surveyed.
Don’t forget that you can follow along on my journey through the gulf at https://www.windy.com/station/ship-wtdo?waves,27.501,-92.356,8,m:esbadxt
Adventure awaits!
Sources
https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/seahorse.html
https://spo.nmfs.noaa.gov/Fishery%20Leaflets/leaflet495.pdf
https://blogs.ifas.ufl.edu/escambiaco/2022/02/17/pipefish-of-the-florida-panhandle/
https://oceanconservancy.org/blog/2022/09/01/cheers-pipefish/
https://projectseahorse.org/saving-seahorses/supporting-seahorse-relatives/
https://www.omao.noaa.gov/marine-operations/ships/oregon-ii