rmoffitt2018

August 27, 2018August 27, 2018

Roy Moffitt: Headed Home, Cruise Summary, August 25-26, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Roy Moffitt

Aboard USCGC Healy

August 7 – 25, 2018

Mission: Healy 1801 – Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory

Geographic Area: Arctic Ocean (Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea)

Date: August 25-26, 2018

Past – Current – Future locations/conditions:

72.5 North latitude: This past week we had 3-4 days of below freezing temperatures (27) with snow showers

Nome, Alaska: (8/25/18) Departing temperature 51 and cloudy

Contoocook/Hopkinton, NH: First day of school Tuesday (8/28/18)- Forecast 94 degrees Mostly Sunny (did I mention we don’t have air conditioning in New Hampshire?)

Ashore and I am headed back to NH

After completing our work in our most Northern point stop, we steamed back to Nome with just one more set of measurements on the way back, then had one final day of travel. It was sunny on the first day back but rougher seas than we had experienced thus far.

There were estimated 8-12 ft waves and some even larger that crashed over the Healy. To the right is a picture that I captured of the bow during this portion of our trip and the rocky seas. Keep in mind that for most of the day we were lucky enough to be on the front deck of the boat! After the waves calmed we were in the fog for most of the way home so spotting more whales and seals was difficult.

Cruise Summary

In short, the trip was a success with the tremendous amount of data collected. This data will now be analyzed by scientists and students and I hope to see some scientific papers on this research in the future. Here is a list of what was done on this trip:

31 mooring deployments and 24 mooring recoveries

(To review what the work involved in this see my blog: Moorings all day

142 CTDs (that’s a lot of up and downs!)

(To review what a CTD see my blog: Measuring Ocean Properties with the CTD)

51 Bongo samples

(To review what a bongo see my blog: Bring in the Bongos)

There were several Methot net tows.

To review what a Methot net tow is see my blog: Catching the Tiny Fish in the Big Sea

There was constant monitoring for birds and marine mammals with all sightings recorded. This experience was my personal favorite of the trip.

To review, see my blog: Walrus and Polar Bears on Ice

In addition to the above, there were many (I don’t have the exact count) Van Veen Grabs. I did not get to explain these in a blog so here is a quick overview. Scientists that study the sea floor, including the top layer of soil called the benthic zone, use a VanVeen Grab Sampler pictured below. It is lowered to the sea floor and then the scissor-like arms close the catch capturing a hunk of the sea floor and everything that was living on it. Once on shore the catch is rinsed through a sieve until all the clay is rinsed away leaving just the organisms that were living there (such as mollusks, clams, starfish, worms and more) and a few stones.

van veen process — Van Veen Grab Sampler process

The scientists on the team also took HAPS core samples. I did not get to explain these in a blog so here is a quick overview. The HAPS corer, pictured below, is a gravity corer. This is a device that is lowered to the sea floor and then the weight of the device settles into the sea floor. When the HAPS corer is lifted, the bottom of the tube containing the cut into sediment closes, trapping the sample. These samples are then stored in clear tubes as shown in the picture. Scientists can examine sentiment layers to gain a better understanding of the sea floor at that location by studying the sedimentary layers.

HAPS corer

HAPS core samples stored in tubes

All this above data has been copied and specimens are stored. The primary focus of this trip was to gather data and now the long process of analyzing and communicating the results will begin.

Cruise Reflections

This was such a great opportunity for me to meet so many different scientists and to both observe and assist the varied scientific studies occurring all at once. I needed all three weeks to get a handle on it all. I am looking forward to sharing what I have learned with my Maple Street School students back in New Hampshire and following the scientific studies as they move forward. Thanks to NOAA, Maple Street School, everyone else that allowed this learning opportunity to happen. It was a summer I will not forget experiencing a ship crash through ice in August! I leave you with some of the reflections of the birds I captured on those calmer days at sea.

The tufted puffin is not all that graceful at taking off. (below)

tufted puffin take off — The tufted puffin is not all that graceful at taking off.

The Common Murre (below)

Three male Eider Ducks

August 23, 2018

Roy Moffitt: Walrus and Polar Bears on Ice, August 20, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Roy Moffitt

Aboard USCGC Healy

August 7 – 25, 2018

Mission: Healy 1801 – Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory

Geographic Area: Arctic Ocean (Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea)

Date: August 20, 2018

Current location/conditions:

Evening of August 20 – North west of Barrow Canyons, Beaufort Sea

Air temp 28F, sea depth 1914 m, surface sea water temp 31F (72.5N are furthest point north)

Walrus and Polar Bears on Ice

In the last couple of days we have seen two of the Arctic’s most notable mammals on the ice, the walrus and the polar bear. Below is a picture that I took of a large group of walrus that floated near the ship on the evening of August 19th.

These walrus were just the beginning of an even larger group floating up on the ice. Walrus like to rest on the ice in between feedings off the ocean floor. Walrus will eat many items off the shallow sea floor, this location is about 60 meters deep. Their favorite foods are bivalve mollusks, including clams. The walrus will not break the clams’ shells but suck out the food with their powerful suction capabilities. More terrifying is that the walrus will occasionally do the same to some sea birds and seals. Walrus have relatively few teeth besides their tusks. If they catch larger prey such as a bird or seal, they will suck out the good parts just like a clam. Male walrus can grow up to be over 4,000 lbs. Add these facts together and these cute animals become a little more frightening.

Walrus on Ice — Walrus resting on sea ice

Walrus are common in the northern Chukchi Sea this time of year and typically have been known to migrate south in the winter. In a science presentation held onboard our ship, marine mammal scientist, Catherine Berchok, shared acoustic data from her moorings that documented recordings of walrus in the northern Chukchi Sea in the winter. Previous surveys have not typically recorded a presence of walrus in this region as usually these mammals need a mix of ice and open water for feeding, though they can break through winter ice for breathing. Scientists now have additional questions for further investigation. Why are these walrus here in the winter? Have the walrus changed to a seal diet? These are questions that are still unanswered.

Counting Walrus

On the evening of August 17th, we came across a large group of walrus (see image above). Scientists specializing in mammal and bird observation were estimating the amount of walrus we observed. Each of the dark blotches on the ice in the fog were all groups of walrus. The larger groups contained 50-80 walrus while the smaller ones were around 20. Standing high up on the bridge with cameras and powerful binoculars mammal observers, Jessica Lindsay and Jennifer Stern, estimated the total number to be around 1200 walrus!

Finding Polar Bears

From high up on the ship’s bridge (shown in the above picture), mammal observers and bird observers armed with binoculars are always present in daylight hours when the ship is moving. Bird observer Charlie Wright has quite the trained eye for spotting birds and also polar bears. A couple days ago he spotted a polar bear approximately 4-5 miles away. While looking through binoculars, all I could see was a tuft of fur, and then only when I was told where to look. To me it was like, finding a polar bear in a snowstorm. Last night Charlie spotted another one. The polar bear pictured above was much closer, perhaps a mile away. At first, we observed the bear curled up on the ice, but then it stood up and walked around. The light was dim and the weather was foggy during my observation, but if you look closely at the picture you will see that the bear looks quite plump after a spring and summer of feeding.

Today’s Wildlife Sightings

Snow on Healy — Snow on the bow of the Healy

Normally I would focus on a bird, fish, or mammal in this section, but since I focused the entire blog on mammals I want to take this opportunity focus on snow sightings. We are now actually in one of the drier places on earth. Even though it seems like it is always cloudy and foggy usually only small amounts of precipitation fall here. Temperatures have been below freezing for a couple days and we have experienced some snow showers but they do not last for long. Overnight it was enough to dust the Healy with snow as shown below. Either way I cannot say I experienced snow in mid August before!

Now and Looking forward

We will be leaving the deep Arctic shortly and heading south through shallow seas towards our last study area. Along the way the number of whales, walrus, and birds may increase along with the increased food supply from the shallow sea floor.

On a sad note that means we are leaving the ice and headed south. So I leave the ice by sharing with you this picture. Though it was dim light and a bit fuzzy I saw a walrus on its back soaking in the Arctic weather by its ice beach umbrella.

Walrus Ice Umbrella — Walrus relaxing on its back beneath an ice “umbrella”

August 22, 2018

Roy Moffitt: Measuring Ocean Properties with the CTD, August 19, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Roy Moffitt

Aboard USCGC Healy

August 7 – 25, 2018

Mission: Healy 1801 – Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory

Geographic Area: Arctic Ocean (Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea)

Date: August 19, 2018

Current location/conditions:

Evening of August 19 – Edge of the Barrow Canyons in the Beaufort Sea

Air temp 32F, sea depth 185m , surface sea water temp 32F

Measuring Ocean Properties with the CTD

Scientists have a tendency to use acronyms to refer to select processes and measures. The acronym heard the most, if not constant, on this trip has been CTD. So here is my best attempt to give you a brief overview of what that “CTD” means and some of the measurements scientists are taking.

CTD Deployment — Deploying the CTD (Conductivity, Temperature, and Depth) probe, which is suspended in a metal “package” with Niskin water bottles

The acronym CTD stands for conductivity, temperature, and depth of the ocean water. This instrument, which takes a measurement 24 times a second, is attached to a large frame that includes big plastic bottles know as Niskin bottles. Nearly every time we stop the ship the CTD package (shown in the image above) is slowly lowered to just above the sea floor (or less depending upon the scientific interest at the site). On the way back up, the Niskin bottles are filled with seawater from different pre-determined depths. An electronic switch is triggered for each bottle at different depths so that the containers are sealed closed trapping water from that depth. Once the package is back on board the scientists measure various properties of the water, including its salinity and oxygen content which will be used to verify and calibrate the electronic sensors on the CTD.

The three main measurements of the CTD represent fundamental characteristics of seawater. Conductivity (C) determines the salinity or the amount of salt in the water. Electrical conductivity or how well an electric current can flow through the water gives an instant real time measurement of water salinity. When combined with temperature (T) and depth (D) this gives a measure of the density of the water, and even tells us something about how the water is moving.

In addition to these physical properties, other sensors attached to the CTD provide information on the underwater marine life. Phytoplankton is the base of the underwater food web and is an important indicator for the overall health of the local marine environment. Phytoplankton is too small to be seen individually without the aid of a microscope; however, scientists have found a way to test for its presence in water. Phytoplankton gets its energy, as all plants do, from the sun using the process of photosynthesis. One of the sensors on the CTD tests for chlorophyll fluorescence, a light re-emitted during the process of photosynthesis. The amount of fluorescence measured can be used to determine the amount of living phytoplankton at different depths in the ocean. Another sensor measures the levels of sunlight in the water.

The water samples from the Niskin bottles are used to determine many other properties of the water. One such property is dissolved carbon dioxide. Just like the atmosphere, the ocean has its own carbon cycle. We might hear of increased atmosphere CO2 levels associated with global warming. Some of this CO2 is absorbed from the atmosphere at the surface of the ocean and some of the carbon from the ocean is also exchanged into the atmosphere. This carbon exchange rate between the air and sea helps regulate the pH of the ocean. Tracking dissolved carbon dioxide measurements over time gives scientists additional physical measurements to track the overall health of the marine environment. Scientists have been seeing increasing amounts of dissolved carbon dioxide in the ocean which can decrease pH levels making the ocean more acidic. Small changes in the ocean pH can affect some marine life more than others upsetting the balance in the marine ecosystems.

The Exiting Pacific Ocean

At the moment scientists are doing even more CTD casts with a focus on ocean currents. We are at the edge of the Chukchi Sea where the Pacific-origin water exits the shelf into the deep Arctic Ocean. Much of this happens at Barrow Canyon, which acts as a drain for the water to flow northward. Scientists are still uncertain what happens to the water after it leaves the canyon, so the survey we are doing now is designed to track water as it spreads seaward into the interior Arctic.

The Pressure of the Deep Sea

Most of the CTD casts during our time on the Healy have not exceeded 300 meters. Lowering and raising the CTD from deeper depths takes a lot of precious time, and on this cruise the emphasis is on the upper part of the water column. However, on August 18, we completed a cast 1000 meters deep. In addition to collecting data, we were able to demonstrate the crushing effects of the deep ocean pressure by placing a net of styrofoam cups on the CTD to the depth of 1000 meters. Styrofoam cups contain significant amounts of air. This is why the styrofoam cup is such a good insulator for a hot drink. At 1000 meters deep, much of the air is crushed out of the cup. Since the pressure is equivalent around the cup, it is crushed in a uniform way causing the cup to shrink. Here are some images demonstrating the crushing power of the sea. *Note: The big cup with no drawing is the original size. This will be a great visual tool to bring back to the classroom.

shrunk cups — Styrofoam cups shrunken by the increased pressure of the deep ocean

Today’s Wildlife Sightings

A highlight today was not seeing but hearing. I was able to listen in live on Beluga whales with the help of deployed sonobuoys. The sonobuoys are floating hydrophones that transmit back what they hear with their underwater microphones. Today they picked up the Beluga whales and their short songs. I thought their calls sound like the songbirds from home and little did I know, this is why they are called the canaries of the sea!

Now and Looking forward

Tonight we saw 100s of Walruses mostly on the ice. On Monday we will have a presentation about walrus from one of the scientists on board. I look forward to sharing pictures and what I learned in the next blog.

August 20, 2018

Roy Moffitt: Viewing Sea Ice on an Icebreaker, August 17-18, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Roy Moffitt

Aboard USCGC Healy

August 7 – 25, 2018

Mission: Healy 1801 – Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory

Geographic Area: Arctic Ocean (Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea)

Date: August 17-18, 2018

Current location/conditions:

Evening of August 17 – North East of Point Barrow, Alaska

Air temp 27F, sea depth 60m , surface sea water temp 30.6F

Viewing Sea Ice on an Icebreaker

breaking the ice — USCGC Healy breaking through sea ice

The USCGS Healy was designed to break through ice and it has had that opportunity to do so on this trip. Breaking into the ice is a first time experience for myself and for many of the science crew and USCG crew who are pictured above. It’s an amazing experience.

We are now entering the edge of the polar ice cap in the Beaufort Sea. The polar ice cap is an area of the world around the North Pole where the sea surface stays mostly frozen year round. The sun angle here is low in the summer with endless nights in the winter. This spring and summer, the ice off the shore of Barrow, Alaska was thicker than normal. Thicker ice is multi-year ice where the freezing has exceeded the melting over successive years causing the ice to progressively thicken. This thicker ice was not formed here; it drifted from farther north where it broke off the pack ice and traveled south to where we are now.

Pack ice is primarily a continuous piece of ice with little open water. Pictured here and above with the Healy is drift ice. The drift ice is broken up into large pieces due to warming seasonal temperatures and rough seas. The drift ice in the second image has reconnected with a thin clear layer of ice made possible by the calm seas and cold temperatures that we experienced on August 17th.

The ice is not normally flat. Wind and internal forces cause the ice to collide and create ridges both above and below the water line. In the winter, the snow that falls can also drift into piles. The image below shows where two pieces of ice once collided on a small scale. When pack ice builds over time these processes create a variable landscape with protruding ice ridges. When ice breaks off from the pack ice the thickest ice will take the longest to melt and will eventually float alone. These pieces of ice are called “growlers”.

These have been amazing to observe popping up along the seascape. The first one I saw had birds flying overhead in the distance. The birds were using the using the growler as a place to land. To me it looked like a big white whale. Another piece looked like a sea dragon. See these growlers in the images below.

This growler looks like a whale…

…and this growler looks like a dragon!

Today’s Wildlife Sightings

Above is an image of a bearded seal seen on the morning of August 17. The water was very calm and the seal popped up right in the front of the bow of the ship. Later in the evening I saw one sitting on a piece of drift ice. Bearded seals like to eat clams and fish and are a favorite prey of the polar bear. Polar bears also live in the area we are sailing through now. Both walrus and seals use ice for resting places. In the spring, the bearded seal will use drift ice as a place to give birth to their young (called pups). Polar bears will then hunt on the ice for its prey.

Now and Looking forward

As Healy sails in this area with a daily satellite image showing ice coverage, it’s easy to forget what a dangerous place the Arctic can be for ships. When ice first appeared during this trip, we were north of Wainwright, Alaska–a location not far from a historic whaling disaster in 1871. During August of 1871, the wind changed direction and blew pack ice towards the shore trapping 33 whaling ships. All of the ships had to be abandoned and most were eventually crushed by the ice. On the morning of August 17, 2018, we were also sailing between ice and land. There was an eerie calm sea with both fog and some larger pieces of ice. At times the sun, ice, and fog created an illusion that appeared as if we could sail off the end of the world. Below are some pictures that I thought captured the eerie calm Arctic of August 17th.

Picture below: Clouds on a calm sea off Healy‘s bow as we travel north. I call this picture “going off the edge of the world”.

Picture below: Glaucous gull on the edge of a fog bow. A rainbow formed from a thin fog layer of suspended water droplets at the surface. The calm Arctic Ocean feels like a mystical place.

August 19, 2018

Roy Moffitt: Bring in the Bongos, August 16, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Roy Moffitt

Aboard USCGC Healy

August 7 – 25, 2018

Mission: Healy 1801 – Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory

Geographic Area: Arctic Ocean (Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea)

Date: August 16, 2018

Current location/conditions:

Evening August 16 – Due west of Barrow, Alaska within sight of the coast

Air temp 35F, sea depth 40m , surface sea water temp 41

Bring in the Bongos

In a previous blog I showed the Methot net that catches very small (1-5cm) fish. However, if we want to catch sea life even smaller, we bring in something called a “bongo net.” The bongo nets have very small openings–the larger nets are 500 micron (1/2 a millimeter) and the smaller nets are 150 micron. In the picture below, you will see the back tail fin of the Healy with the bongo nets suspended from the hydraulic A-frame. The A-frame supports a system of pulleys that are used to deploy and retrieve equipment (such as nets and moorings).

bongo canister — Organisms caught in the bongo net are washed down into this canister attached at the end.

The net looks and feels more like a tough nylon fabric, however, the water freely flows through the opening trapping the tiny organisms of the sea. These organisms are pushed into the canister at the end of the net as shown in the picture on the right. While most of them are pushed into the canisters, many are stuck on the side of the net in a sticky goop. The gelatin like goop is sprayed off the net with seawater by using a hose. The process takes just a few minutes. Since I was the net holder and stretcher I got little wet!

The main organisms that we caught today were copepods. They are shown in the jar appearing pink. Copepods are small crustaceans only 1-2mm in size that drift in the sea and feed on phytoplankton. Copepods are an important bottom of the food chain member of the ecosystem and serve as prey for fish, whales, and seabirds.

On the front of each net there is a flow meter as shown in the picture. It looks like a little torpedo with a propeller. When the net trawls behind the ship, water flows through the net. The amount of water that passes through the net can be calculated. Using this calculation and the amount of organisms in the net, scientists can calculate the density of living microorganisms at a certain heights in the water column. With annual samples scientists will be able to determine any changes over time including changes to the overall health of the regional ecosystem. Today’s samples will also be sent out to a lab for further analysis.

Today’s Wildlife Sightings

Today I had unique experience– listening to wildlife. This was a highlight. Marine mammal acoustic scientists, Katherine Berchok and Stephanie Grassia, released an acoustic buoy this afternoon. On top of the ship they put up an antennae and listened in for whales and walrus. They were able to hear the constant underwater chatter between walruses. As I wore the headphones and listened in, I was in awe at the grumbles and the ping sounds the animals were making back and forth underwater. While we don’t know what the walrus were communicating back and forth to each other, to eavesdrop on these conversations, miles away, in real-time, was a pretty special experience.

Now and Looking forward

We did not see any ice today. I am looking forward to getting out of the fog and rain and returning back to the ice in the coming days.

August 19, 2018August 19, 2018

Roy Moffitt: Life on a LEGO, August 14-15, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Roy Moffitt

Aboard USCGC Healy

August 7 – 25, 2018

Mission: Healy 1801 – Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory

Geographic Area: Arctic Ocean (Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea)

Date: August 14-15, 2018

Current location/conditions:

Evening August 15 – North- Northwest of Wainwright, Alaska

Air temp 35F, sea depth 47m , surface sea water temp 32.2F

Life on a LEGO

The LEGO is a nickname given to the large green plastic pallet-like mooring. Their retrieval from the sea floor is pictured here. This equipment was retrieved after being deployed for a year on the sea floor in about 40 meters of water. The mooring is called a DAFT (Direction Acoustic Fish Tracker). On the DAFT there are instruments that measure ocean temperature, salinity, and pressure. The primary instrument is an echo sounder that records any schools of fish that may pass overhead.

Lego Retrieval — Retrieval of the “Lego,” a large plastic mooring that has spent the past year collecting data at the ocean bottom

What the DAFT was not designed to do, but does well, is catch sea life. The fiberglass pallet has 1 1/2″ square holes in it that allow water to pass through on retrieval and it also catches sea life as if it were a net. Yesterday we pulled two of these “Legos” from the sea and they were covered with marine life. The most remarkable sight were the large blue king crabs, (around half dozen on one pallet). Here I am holding one of the bigger ones– such awesome looking creatures!

Roy and crab — TAS Roy Moffitt holding a blue king crab

On the smaller size, we found a hermit crab (shown here hiding in a shell).

Also on board were many sea stars. Most were the Brittle Stars. This is the picture of the sea star with the small legs. I think they are called the Brittle Stars because when I tried to gently remove them from the mooring, sadly their legs kept breaking off. There were dozens of these on the mooring.

There was another sea star with nine legs. It was very pretty and looks like a drawing of the sun. Not surprising, I found out this one is called the “Sun Star.”

Some not-so-pretty items on the moorings I like to call “mooring acne” are called tunicates. These are filter feeders and come in many different forms.

Tunicate

Sea Squirt

The one on my hand looks like a giant pimple and when you try to take it off the mooring it squirts you in the face. Not surprisingly this tunicate is called the “Sea Squirt.”

Think about it…

All of the life on the Lego mooring was sent back to the sea to hopefully find a new home. The Lego pallet mooring mentioned above is not large, about 4 ft by 6ft. The mooring in this story was only in the ocean one year and became the home of the above mentioned marine animals – crabs, sea stars, tunicates, and also thousands of barnacles! One tiny piece of the sea floor contained all this life! Imagine how rich in life the entire unseen ecosystem is in the Chukchi Sea!

Today’s Wildlife Sightings

For the last two days, I saw several walruses. Pictured below is one that popped up by a piece of ice. Teaser – look for a future blog focusing on walrus and their habitat.

Walrus by ice — A walrus pops its head up above water near a piece of ice

Now and Looking forward

We are now seeing small bands of pack ice and individual pieces of ice called “growlers”. Sea ice has not interrupted science operations, as of today. There is plenty of open water so far. We should see ice of different concentrations for the rest of the trip as we continue to head north. Look for future pictures and some of the science on sea ice coming soon. For now here are a couple pictures from August 15.

Growlers in fog — “Growlers” – the view looking from the deck of USCGC Healy down into the fog

Walrus broken ice — Another view of the walrus, swimming near broken up ice

August 14, 2018

Roy Moffitt: Calling in the Drones, August 13, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Roy Moffitt

Aboard USCGC Healy

August 7 – 25, 2018

Mission: Healy 1801 – Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory

Geographic Area: Arctic Ocean (Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea)

Date: August 13, 2018

Current location/conditions: Evening August 13 – northwest of Icy Point Alaska

Air temp 34F, sea depth 45 m , surface sea water temp 42F

Calling in the Drones

We have not seen another ship or any other sign of civilization since we left Nome, until today when NOAA scientists coordinated an at sea meeting between the Healy and two saildrones. Saildrones are remotely piloted sailboats that roam the seas without anyone on board. A given route is programmed for collecting data and changes to the sailboat’s survey area can be given directly by satellite through the Internet. After not seeing anything on the horizon for many days when the sail drone came into view it was quite eerie for me. It was like a random floating traffic cone dropped in the Arctic. I was amazed that it did not tip over. The saildrone has a relatively large keel (the fin part of the boat you cannot see under water) to help it from tipping over. The boat itself is about 7 m long (23 ft) x 5 m tall ( 16.3 ft) x 2.5 m wide (8.2 ft) with a traveling speed of 3 to 5 knots.

Saildrone on the ocean — The saildrone is a remotely piloted sailboat that contains many scientific instruments.

We collected surface water samples near the drone that will be tested to verify the accuracy of the drones reporting instruments.

The instruments on a saildrone measure weather conditions and ocean conditions and properties. The ocean data includes measurements for temperature, wave height, sea depth, currents, pH, salinity, oxygen, and carbon dioxide. Underwater microphones listen for marine mammals and an echosounder can keep track of fish that pass by. This is a wealth of information in an area of the world where there are so few ships to report back weather and sea observations to civilization.

Today’s Wildlife Sightings

We caught Thysanoessa inermis in the big Methot net today. I had to have Nissa Ferm, a fisheries biologist from Lynker Inc working under contract for NOAA, spell that word out for me. She wrote it down without hesitation. I found this amazing because even spell check doesn’t recognize those words. Nissa identifies many specimens we catch by eye and then verifies identification under a microscope. In general terms, Thysanoessa inermis is a type of organism often referred to as krill and is only about a centimeter in length.

Thysanoessa inermis is a vital member of the bottom of the food chain and an animal that eats phytoplankton. Phytoplankton is a microscopic plant that lives in the sunlit layers of the ocean and gets energy from the sun. As with all plants, this is done through the process of photosynthesis. In the case of phytoplankton being an underwater plant, it uses carbon dioxide dissolved in the water in its photosynthesis process. Thysanoessa inermis helps gather this energy in by eating the phytoplankton and then becomes the prey of much larger creatures in the marine food chain such as fish and whales.

Now and Looking Forward

Although it was short lived, we saw our first snow flurry today. It was incredible to see snowflakes in August! I am looking forward to more snowflakes and continued cool weather.

August 13, 2018

Roy Moffitt: Moorings All Day, August 12, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Roy Moffitt

Aboard USCGC Healy

August 7 – 25, 2018

Mission: Healy 1801 – Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory

Geographic Area: Arctic Ocean (Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea)

Date: August 12, 2018

Current location/conditions: mid day August 12 Northwest of Icy Point Alaska

Air temp 34F, sea depth 43 m , surface sea water temp 43F

Moorings all day

Moorings are essentially anything left tied to an anchor at sea. In this case, moorings hold many different types of scientific instruments that have been anchored at sea for a year. We are only here in the Arctic for a couple weeks. In order to monitor the ocean when people are not here, many different kinds of underwater instruments that have been designed to record ocean conditions are left under the ocean attached to moorings. To service these moorings they must be retrieved. This is one of the main tasks of this trip. When we arrive at a mooring station, one would not know it as the mooring is underneath the ocean, hidden from sight. A audio signal is sent to the underwater release and a buoy (a large yellow float) is deployed. Then, the Coast Guard steps into action. This picture below shows a Coast Guard crew fishing for a buoy in a not-so-calm sea. When they hook the buoy they will tie it to a rope that is hooked into the Healy‘s on board winch. The winch will pull in the buoy as the rope is wrapped around a turning spool.

Moffitt_Mooring Retrieval_small — The Coast Guard crew fish for a buoy in a not-so-calm sea

When the buoys and attached instruments come out of the ocean they can be covered with sea life, such as barnacles which you may be able to see as small white shell looking creatures in the picture below. The buoy in the picture is mostly covered in bryozoans. Although it looks like seaweed, bryozoans are not plants, but tiny sea filtering animals chained together. Either way it has got to go. This was my job today. I washed all the buoys and cleaned the instruments. For the sensitive parts on the instruments, this meant using a sponge and toothbrush. For the rest of the instrument, I used a power washer.

Mooring retrieved from the ocean — A mooring retrieved from the ocean, covered in marine life – mainly bryozoans.

cleaned instrument — A close-up of the mooring instrument, post-cleaning

Once this instrument is in the science lab, the sound recorder (as mentioned in the August 8th blog post) was taken apart and thoroughly cleaned. It will be reused at another station during this trip if all is functioning well. In the next picture, this equipment is now shown cleaned and sitting in the lab. Much of the cleaning was done with toothbrushes and a wire brush. So another important role for a scientist is spending a lot of time cleaning equipment! Not exactly glorious!

The Mustang Suit

In my life, I have power washed many things, but aboard the Healy in the Arctic, for safety reasons, I have to wear a Mustang suit. Essentially the Mustang is an oversized orange snowsuit designed to save a life if anyone falls overboard into the near freezing Arctic waters. It has a light beacon and a whistle attached for rescuers to find you and it is designed to keep body heat in for a longer amount of time than plain clothes. This is to try to keep anyone from immediately getting hypothermia and hopefully provide the additional few minutes it would take to rescue a man overboard. I prefer to call the Mustang a big fluffy orange sweat suit– even though it was 34 degrees out I was sweating in it!

NH dudes — Teacher at Sea Roy Moffitt (left) and UNH researcher Anthony Lyons (right) wearing Mustang Suits

Here I am, in this picture, looking like an orange Pillsbury doughboy with fellow New Hampshire resident Anthony Lyons. Anthony is from the University of New Hampshire (UNH) and is a Research Professor at the Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping, School of Marine Science and Ocean Engineering. Anthony is retrieving and deploying moorings with passive acoustic devices that record animal sounds and rain from under the ice. The instruments also measure the density of plankton and fish in the water, both food sources for marine animals. With data over time, changes in density of these populations with changes of ice cover can be found.

Today’s Wildlife Sightings

Sometimes life clings on to the moorings. These basking starfish were attached to a mooring we pulled in yesterday. Then, the next picture is an Anemone curled up in a ball that was also attached to another mooring.

Basking Starfish

Anemone

Now and Looking Forward

Air temperature has dropped to 34 degrees F, and although the surface sea temperature is 43, lower in the water column the temperatures are actually near or below freezing. It looks like we may see some pieces of ice as soon as next mooring stations tomorrow. Those changing conditions will have to be monitored for mooring retrieval, as a buoy cannot pop up through ice!

August 12, 2018August 12, 2018

Roy Moffitt: Catching the Tiny Fish in the Big Sea, August 10, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Roy Moffitt

Aboard USCGC Healy

August 7 – 25, 2018

Mission: Healy 1801 – Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory

Geographic Area: Arctic Ocean (Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea)

Date: August 10, 2018

Current location/conditions: mid day August 10

Air temp 45F, sea depth 59 m , surface sea water temp 44F

Catching the Tiny Fish in the Big Sea

For the past two days, I helped out Robert Levine, PhD Student of Oceanography at the University of Washington, working with NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center. We sent out a Methot net to catch juvenile fish today. In the below picture, taken yesterday, I am helping Robert assemble the Methot net.

assembling Methot net — Teacher at Sea Roy Moffitt helps assemble the Methot net

For catching fish a centimeter or two long, the net seems huge. The opening of the net is approximately 2.2 meters by 2.2 meters or 5 square meters. The net itself is approximately 10 meters long. The holes in the net are only 2 mm. This means anything bigger than 2 mm will be caught up in the net.

Before sending the net into the sea Levine takes an echogram survey. He lowers the recorder overboard and the attached cable sends the results back to the computer on board. Two different wavelengths are sent out and bounce off anything in the sea column. The smaller wavelengths will show where any of the smaller fish are hanging out. The results give an accurate depth measurement of the ocean and shows small organisms at about 28 meters in depth. The net is then lowered into the sea and trawled at that depth for about 15 minutes.

My task during the net deployment was to measure the angle of the cable entering the water by using a hand held inclinometer. It is important to keep the angle around 45 degrees to keep the proper depth.

today's catch — Photos of today’s catch: at top left, a view of the unsorted bucket; top right, a petri dish with fish sorted by species; bottom, juvenile fish displayed on measuring tape

Today was not considered a high population area, but we were still able to catch some fish and more marine life. All contents end up in a canister at the end of the net in a big slurry of sloppy stew. In the picture of the bucket the fish are hidden within moon jellyfish and all the little black dots that are crab megalopa. Crab megalopa is the second life stage of a crab before transformation into juvenile crabs to start their life on the sea floor. For fish today what was caught in the net were juvenile Cod, juvenile flat fish, and Sculpin. (Shown in picture with the round dish.)

The goal of this fish collection is to verify the presence of juvenile fish and better understand the geographic range of fish during their life cycle. The exact identification of each will take some time and many of the tiny fish are frozen and sent out to labs for further identification. Levine will also be releasing several bottom-moored echo sounders during the trip. These instruments will be able to monitor the presence of fish and record that data over the year.

Now and Looking forward

Future specimen collections on this trip will be happening using the Methot net to verify distribution and seasonal movement of fish population in the Chukchi Sea.

August 12, 2018August 12, 2018

Roy Moffitt: The Globe Comes Alive with a Real World View on the USCGC Healy, August 9, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Roy Moffitt

Aboard USCGC Healy

August 7 – 25, 2018

Mission: Healy 1801 – Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory

Geographic Area: Arctic Ocean (Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea)

Date: August 9, 2018

Current location/conditions:
Evening of August 9th
North of the Bering Strait, North of the Arctic Circle

Air temp 49F, sea depth 35 m , surface water temp 52F

The Globe Comes Alive with a Real World View on the USCGC Healy

This morning was very exciting moment for me to share with students. We crossed through the Bering Strait coming right next to the International Date Line and then crossed over the Arctic Circle. In the classroom we often look at these features on a globe. For me to see what my students and I have only seen on a globe or map for so many years in front of us on a clear sunrise morning was awesome! Looking at the panoramic picture below was my best attempt to share the Bering Strait with all of you.

The Bering Strait

Picture below, the Bering Strait at sunrise facing northeast to the rising sun.

In this picture we are passing through the Bering Strait and this is a 180 degrees panoramic picture from the port side of the ship. The Cape Prince of Wales is the westernmost point on the mainland of the United States and the continent of North America. Cape Dezhnev, Russia is the easternmost mainland point of Russia and the continent of Asia. Only 51 miles (82 km) separate these two points. This close proximity, shallow sea depths, and historical findings of the native settlements in the area have led historians to believe this was the entry point to the America’s first human inhabitants. This shallow sea only average in the 30s to 50s meters in depth and is also one of the reasons for the rich sea life in the area. The continental shelf extends throughout the Bering Sea and Chukchi Sea to help create this vast area of shallow seas rich in marine life. This area that extends all the way to the Northern edge the continental shelf to north of Alaska will continue to be the study area on our trip.

Looking at Tomorrow Across the International Date Line

One of the imaginary lines humans have created on globe is the International Date Line. Today we traveled right next to that imaginary line and were able to see tomorrow. In this picture below is the island that sits in middle of the Bering Strait, the Russian island of Big Diomede.

Moffitt_Big Diomede_smalllpic — The Russian island of Big Diomede, looking south during sunrise, which is causing the island to appear red.

Between the ship and the island runs the International Date Line. So for us on the ship it was sunrise for Thursday Morning, but for the island of Big Diomede it was sunrise for Friday Morning. So yes, I saw tomorrow!

The Arctic Circle

The tilt of the earth on its axis is a topic we covered in my Science class this year. This tilt not only creates our seasons but the lands of 24 hours daylight in the summer and 24 hours of darkness in the winter. That line is just north of latitude 66°33′ and we have crossed that line. Its now August so we are headed to fall, but sun is out at midnight and is setting around 12:30 am and is up by 6am. In between these night time hours are still twilight, meaning never truly dark and typically you can still see the horizon.

Today’s Wildlife Sightings

Today a pair of Fin Whales swam by several hundred meters from the ship. Fin whales are the second largest animals on this planet second to the Blue Whale and are also endangered. So, it was special to see them. Fin Whales eat crustaceans, squid and small schools of fish and can grow up to 85 ft / 25 m.

Now and Looking forward

As we move forward in time the sun will rise 5 minutes later a day and set 5 minutes earlier. That means we lose 10 minutes of sun a day. In another 2 weeks towards the end of this trip in two weeks there will be 140 minutes less or two hours and 20 minutes of less day light!

August 10, 2018August 10, 2018

Roy Moffitt: Observing Whales Today and for the Next Year, August 8, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Roy Moffitt

Aboard USCGC Healy

August 7 – 25, 2018

Mission: Healy 1801 – Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory

Geographic Area: Arctic Ocean (Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea)

Date: August 8, 2018

Current location:/conditions Evening of August 8th: Near King Island, AK the most southern part of the trip – Air temp 49F, sea depth 50 ft, surface water temp 52F

Mammal and Bird Observations

Up on the observation deck formal bird and mammal observations are taking place for the extent of the trip. When recording sighting of birds, observers observe an approximate 300m square area in the front of the ship. Any seabird that flies or swims through that zone is counted and recorded. Doing these observations over time can give approximations on bird population trends. Here is a picture I took of a Crested Auklet who floated close by to the ship. Crested Auklets eat primarily plankton and breed in the number of millions in nearby islands of the Bering Sea.

The same can be done for whales. In this case the visible range is used. With the low angle sunlight, it is easy to see the whale spout from a whale on the horizon, however closer range views of whales is needed for identification. That’s most effectively done on the long range by taking pictures of the whale’s tail. Here is a picture I took today of a gray whale’s tail.

Gray whales frequent the area for its shallow sea and dive to the bottom to eat bottom dwelling sea life such as crustaceans by scooping up the bottom of the sea and filtering out the seabed leaving the food. But how do you observe whales when you are not in the Arctic? You eavesdrop on them…..

Observing whales acoustically for the next year.

Today I was observing with help of binoculars and a camera to see whales that were in view of the ship. But how do you know if a whale visited when you where gone? Record their voices.

Primary investigator Katherine Berchok assisted by Stephanie Grassia are retrieving and replacing acoustic (sound) monitoring devices suspended above the sea floor. Today one of these instruments that was placed on the sea floor a year ago is now being retrieved. Within the retrieved equipment is a recording of acoustics that have occurred in the last year. The sound waves were recorded in a pattern of 80 minutes every 5 hours for an entire year. That is a lot to listen to, so recordings will go through processing through different software to see if any sound wave patterns are close to those created by different whale species. Though this data cannot give an accurate count of how many whales are in an area at a particular time, it does allow scientist to verify what species of whales and also walruses visit the study area.

This picture here shows the new underwater microphone or hydrophone (the white tube) being prepared to be lowered into the sea to be retrieved next year. Once lowered in the area pictured here it will be covered in about 30 meters of ocean. So how will it be found next year? There is transmitter (the small gray tube) that will allow scientist to find it, send a signal and have the instruments released from the weight and float to the surface. This year’s instrument will be cleaned up and reused next year.

Looking forward

As we move northward the species of mammals (whales, walruses) and birds being observed will change, look for updates in the coming weeks!

August 9, 2018

Roy Moffitt, 40 Scientists Embark from Nome, August 7, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Roy Moffitt

Aboard USCGC Healy

August 7 – 25, 2018

Mission: Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory

Geographic Area: Arctic Ocean (Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea)

Date: August 6 – 7, 2018

All Gather in Nome for the Expedition Launch

August 6th:

All of the science party arrived in Nome and gathered for a science briefing before departure. In the evening there was a public presentation by Jackie Grebmeier the missions Co-Chief Scientist and Primary Investigator of the Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory – Northern Chukchi Integrated Study (DBO-NCIS). Jackie presented on what researchers have found. In brief, there is a shift northwards of the bottom dwelling Arctic ecosystems in the Bering Sea. This is due to the lack of winter ice in the southern Bering Sea causing a lack of a deep-sea cold pool of water during the rest of the year. This colder water is needed for some bottom dwelling organisms such as clams. Those clams are the favorite food choice of the Spectacled Eider Duck. When the bottom of the food chain moves north the higher in the food chain organisms such as the Spectacled Eider Duck need to adapt to a different food source or in this case move with north with it. The reason for the lacking cold pool of seawater is the lack ice being created at the surface during the winter, this process creates cold saltier water. Colder water that is also higher in salinity sinks and settles to the bottom of the ocean. So essentially the effects of less southern sea ice are from the bottom of the ocean to the top of the ocean. Grebmeier will be leading the DBO-NCS science team during this expedition so look for a future blogs focused on this research.

August 7th Evening:

We are currently anchored off the Nome Alaska Harbor and have only been on the ship for a few hours. Scientists are preparing their instruments for deployment. These instruments will measure a wide range of non-living and living members of the ecosystem. These scientific measurements will be taken from the sea floor into the atmosphere, the measurements will use a wide range of equipment. Stay tuned to future blogs with focus on different research groups, their data, specialized equipment, and their findings. We are off!

There is no place like Nome, Where the Land Meets the Sea

We are departing from Nome, Alaska. Here are some pictures around the city of Nome. Roadways to the rest of Alaska and beyond do not connect Nome. You must get here by boat or plane.

Healy anchored off Nome — The USCG Healy is anchored off the coast of Nome.

Healy at anchor — Another view of USCGC Healy anchored off of Nome

The Chum salmon were running in the Nome River, they leave the ocean and go up the river to spawn.

salmon jumping — Chum Salmon jumping up the Nome River

I found someone who traveled farther to get here than me: Arctic Terns who travel from the Antarctic to Arctic every year. In this picture, an Arctic Tern is seen with this year’s offspring. The juvenile here can now fly and will stay with its parent for the first 2 to 3 months.

Arctic Tern and offspring — Arctic Tern and its new offspring

This is the same variety of seagull that you see in New England, but in Alaska, this one was not so nice. As I was walking on busy road way, this gull caught me off guard and dive-bombed me, almost knocking me into incoming traffic. After several more passes, the gull decided I was not a threat to its offspring. This nest was over 200ft away. Many seabirds use the coast of Alaska to breed and raise the next generation. The common seagull, or Glaucous Gull, and Arctic Tern are only just two.

June 22, 2018June 22, 2018

Roy Moffitt: Last Day of School, Onward to Summer in the Arctic Ocean. June 21, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Roy Moffitt
Aboard Ship: USCGC Healy
Cruise Dates: 8/7/2018 – 8/25/2018

Mission: Arctic Distributed Biological Observatory

Geographic Area: Arctic Ocean (Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea)

Date: June 22, 2018

From New Hampshire and coming soon this August from the Arctic

Yesterday, June 21, 2018, was the last day of school for us at the Maple Street School in Hopkinton, New Hampshire. It was an appropriate day for the last day of school as summer vacation starts on the summer solstice this year. We ended the school year with a promotion of the NOAA research mission I will be taking part in this summer. Part of this unique learning opportunity is to bring the learning experience to students and the general public, not only in Hopkinton, NH but across the country. If you have found my blog, congratulations! Please follow the blog so you to can join me on this adventure.

Above are the students of Maple Street during the end of year assembly. The Maple Street School is located in the village of Contoocook in the town of Hopkinton New Hampshire. The school is composed of students in grades 4-6 grade and approximately 210 students. — Above are the students of Maple Street during the end of year assembly. The Maple Street School is located in the village of Contoocook in the town of Hopkinton, New Hampshire. The school is composed of students in grades 4-6 grade and approximately 210 students.

Overview of Mission

There will be over 40 scientists and I the Science teacher headed into the Arctic Ocean sailing out of Nome Alaska to the Barrow Canyon. The Barrow Canyon is an underwater gorge that runs East to North West of Barrow Alaska and is known for its rich marine life. Scientists will be conducting numerous studies and observations at many locations during the trip. The scientific studies taking place will have a common theme, how are the rapid changing Arctic Sea Ice conditions affecting the region?

This NOAA image from November shows the historically low ice in the study area this fall. Historically the Chukchi Sea has had sea ice at this time. This map is a good guide to orient you to the study area from Nome to the north-northwest of Barrow Alaska. — This NOAA image from November shows the historically low ice in the study area this fall. Historically the Chukchi Sea has had sea ice at this time. This map is a good guide to orient you to the study area from Nome to the north-northwest of Barrow, Alaska.

For the last two years, regional sea ice in the Bering Sea has been at a historic low. What changes does this have on the region’s ecosystem? This includes the microscopic plankton to fish, marine birds to larger marine mammals. These creatures live anywhere from the sea floor to the air, and all these areas will be observed. As we observed in my 6th-grade science class this year, in an ecosystem the living (biotic) is affected by the non-living (or abiotic). Non-living factors that will be measured will include the salinity of the water, the water temperature, and changes in ocean currents themselves. Changes in ocean currents have larger effects on local and regional climates, which include those on land.

This annual survey will allow for changes over time to monitored. What will scientists learn this year? Follow this blog to find out. To sign up to be notified of updates click the follow button on the bottom right of your screen and you will be notified when there is a new post to read. The blog will be updated at the start of and during the mission from the from one of the most remote areas of the world, north of the Arctic Circle in the Arctic Ocean. I look forward to talking to you again soon from the Arctic Ocean during the first week of August!