Category: Mike Laird

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Mike Laird
Onboard NOAA Ship Rainier
July 24 – August 13, 2005

Mission: Hydrographic Survey
Geographical Area: North Pacific
Date: August 2, 2005

Weather Data

Time: 13:00
Latitude: 55° 53.4 ̍ N
Longitude: 158˚ 50.4 ̍ W
Visibility: 10 nautical miles (nm)
Wind Direction: 225˚
Wind Speed: 10kts
Sea Wave Height: 0-1΄
Swell Wave Height: 0-1΄
Sea Water Temperature: 11.7˚ C
Sea Level Pressure: 1009.5 mb
Cloud Cover: Sky 8/8 covered; Lower level: cumulus Mid-level: altostratus High level: cirrus

Deck Crew for a Day – Part I 

One evening late last week, I checked the Plan of the Day (POD) — a schedule listing the following day’s launch assignments and ship movements.  I found that I was scheduled for an on-ship day. Teacher at Sea participants onboard the RAINIER generally follow a routine alternating between fieldwork out in the launches and days onboard the ship.  The on-ship days are intended to give us time to interview crewmembers, research areas of interest, and prepare logs detailing our experiences and learning.

So when I saw that I would be onboard the following day, I made arrangements with Jim Kruger the Deck Chief to be a member of the deck crew for a day.  While anchored in the work area, the deck crew’s typical day begins with the responsibility of getting all launches scheduled for fieldwork prepared and deployed.  For each boat going out this entails:

• removal of the tie-downs securing the launch in its berth
• lowering the launch (done with a piece of equipment called a gravity davit – a system of pulleys, cables, and hooks operated by a motor)
• securing the launch for the safe loading of:
  1. personnel,
  2. equipment: the CTD sensor used in taking a cast of the water column (see log for Day 3, Wednesday, July 27) and personal gear,
  3. and – maybe most important – the food and drinks prepared by the galley for lunch and snacks
• releasing the launch from the hooks (one on the bow – “For clear!” and one on the stern – “Aft clear!”) used to raise and lower it with the gravity davit
• starting the boat’s motor
• and finally, releasing the launch’s bow and stern lines, so the coxswain can  radio in and declare, “We are away!”

The deck crew must work as a team to ensure that all of this happens safely, quickly, and efficiently.  It is pretty impressive to see four to five launches mobilized and away from the ship in less than thirty minutes!  On my first day (actually my only day) on the job, I was given the job of manning the stern line.  Of course I had a “real” deck crewmember by my side giving me instructions and pointers and ready to step in if things reached a crisis point.

The stern line actually serves two purposes: 1) to make sure the launch does not swing back and forth too much while it is being lowered into the water, and 2) to work with the bowline to hold the boat securely alongside the RAINIER until it is ready to cast off. It takes quick, nimble hands (along with a few pointers on useful techniques from my partner and the Captain) to quickly release and secure the lines to the cleats along the ship’s railing. It is also encouraged that one perform these tasks without getting hands and fingers caught or getting the line all tangled up.  I preformed my duties as a rookie would and successfully helped get all the launches on their way!  It seems like we have done a lot already this morning it must be getting late.  What?  It’s only 8:27!

To be continued.

Personal Log 

Hey all you sun junkies out there! Alaska in the summer is the place to be!  We are currently enjoying almost seventeen hours of sunlight a day – sunrise 6:43 and sunset

10:38. This provides a lot of time for outdoor activities – we were out fishing at 10:30 last night. Finally had to turn the deck lights on at about 11:30, so we could finish cleaning our fish. Of course, all this fun in the sun depends on cooperation from the weather. Heavy clouds, fog and rain – not uncommon in our current location – tend to put a damper on the sunshine.  So we’ll live large and enjoy every moment we have for as long as it lasts!

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Mike Laird
Onboard NOAA Ship Rainier
July 24 – August 13, 2005

Mission: Hydrographic Survey
Geographical Area: North Pacific
Date: August 1, 2005

Weather Data

Time: 13:00
Latitude: 55° 53.4 ̍ N
Longitude: 158˚ 50.4 ̍ W
Visibility: 10 nautical miles (nm)
Wind Direction: 225˚
Wind Speed: 10kts
Sea Wave Height: 0-1΄
Swell Wave Height: 0-1΄
Sea Water Temperature: 11.7˚ C
Sea Level Pressure: 1009.5 mb
Cloud Cover: Sky 8/8 covered; Lower level: cumulus Mid-level: altostratus High level: cirrus

Science and Technology Log 

Operating the RAINIER in port—as she transits from site to site, and as she lies at anchor acting as home base for the survey operations—requires that each of the ship’s “departments” functions efficiently with a small margin for error.  When things do go wrong, they must be handled using the resources available on the ship so that operations continue with as little down time as possible.  Perhaps the greatest resource onboard the RAINIER is her personnel.  Situations, like those listed below, continually arise and require those involved to demonstrate patience, innovation, problem solving abilities and determination:

• A cable getting caught in one of the pulleys on a gravity davit just after it has been used to lower a survey launch at 8:00 to begin its day of echo sounding. The cable must be replaced and the davit operational by the time the launch returns at 16:30.
• A crack in the hull of a launch (welded and “fixed” while the RAINIER was in port for three days in Kodiak) is allowing water into the launch at the rate of about a gallon an hour. The engineering people use some magic red goop to temporarily stop the leak until a permanent solution can be devised.
• Electronic equipment is very temperamental (cables jiggle loose during transits through rough seas, components can overheat, software glitches rear their heads, etc.) and continually requires TLC to keep it happy and functioning.
• Established, recognized Differential Global Positioning Systems (latitude and longitude data) and primary control stations (tide data) may not provide data that meets required specifications (because of their distance from the work area, topographic features, etc) necessitating the installation of temporary DGPS and tide station sites.

As a crew member, you never know what is going to come up and must always be willing and prepared to meet unforeseen challenges!

Personal Log 

Last night, after a day of recording data on one of the survey launches, six of us had a chance to take one of the skiffs and go do a little fishing.  Our primary target was halibut.  We motored out to a site scouted earlier in the day during our survey ops, dropped our lines and began jigging right on the bottom.  It wasn’t long before I felt a tugging on my line, began reeling in, and pulled up a baby halibut (or “but” as my companions more versed in these matters call them).  Not wanting to be accused as a cradle robber, I released it. I dropped my line again and after a few minutes of jigging, felt the tug, and reeled in a larger halibut (maybe a 15 pounder – I know technically still a baby).  I released it also, because my companions assure me, “It’s still early you’ll get a bigger one.” I didn’t – of course. However, I did have success (a silver salmon, and four sea cod – I kept these). I also hooked a pea cod, an Irish Lord and two other small halibut – I didn’t keep these. Fun times!

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Mike Laird
Onboard NOAA Ship Rainier
July 24 – August 13, 2005

Mission: Hydrographic Survey
Geographical Area: North Pacific
Date: July 31, 2005

Weather Data

Time: 13:00
Latitude: 55° 53.4 ̍ N
Longitude: 158˚ 50.4 ̍ W
Visibility: 10 nautical miles (nm)
Wind Direction: 225˚
Wind Speed: 10kts
Sea Wave Height: 0-1΄
Swell Wave Height: 0-1΄
Sea Water Temperature: 11.7˚ C
Sea Level Pressure: 1009.5 mb
Cloud Cover: Sky 8/8 covered; Lower level: cumulus Mid-level: altostratus High level: cirrus

Science and Technology Log 

The RAINIER’s crew of forty-nine (men (40) and women (9)) is divided into six work groups:

I) Officers and junior officers:  Responsible for overall ship operations including: navigation, horizontal and vertical control, damage control (ship safety), medical services, field  operations, etc.

II) Survey operations: Responsibilities include: data collection and analysis

III) Deck operations:  Responsibilities include: launch and de-launch of small boats (launches and skiffs), operation of the small boats, manning equipment and lines used during anchoring and mooring of the ship, maintenance (cleaning, rust removal, painting) and operation of the deck and deck equipment (cranes, gravity davits, hydraulic davit, the anchor windlass), etc.

IV) Engineering operations: Responsibilities include: maintenance and operation of the ships electrical and mechanical systems

V) Yeoman and Electronics: Yeoman – responsibilities similar to those of a business manager  (personnel, payroll, ship’s budget, etc.).  This position is slowly being  eliminated from the ships in NOAA’s fleet.

Electronics – responsible for the maintenance and operation of the electronic equipment onboard ship (computers, radios, GPS units, etc).

VI) Steward: Responsibilities include: operation of the galley, preparing three meals a day for the crew, preparing snacks for the morning and afternoon breaks, and preparing a picnic lunch and drinks to send with the three to four launch crews who are sent out on survey assignments.

I was able to work with the deck crew the other day, and I’ll share the experience in a future log!

Personal Log 

Today I did a lot of housekeeping kind of stuff.  I was getting pretty low on clean clothes, so I went down and used the ship’s laundry – three washing machines and three driers.  The only difficulty is trying to find open machines.  Either I hit it on a busy day or 49 crewmembers and four guests keep the machines busy.  I also caught up on my logs and did some background reading on tides and tidal datum.  Think I will try a little fishing tonight – still haven’t managed to pull one over the ship’s side.  Last night Jon, one of the crew, somehow caught a skate (looks like a ray).  He hooked it in one of the fins. We pulled it up took a look at it and then released it back over the side.  Very interesting!

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Mike Laird
Onboard NOAA Ship Rainier
July 24 – August 13, 2005

Mission: Hydrographic Survey
Geographical Area: North Pacific
Date: July 29, 2005

Weather Data

Latitude: 55° 53.36 ̍ N
Longitude: 158˚ 58.4 ̍ W
Visibility: 10 nautical miles (nm)
Wind Direction: Light Airs
Wind Speed: Light Airs
Sea Wave Height: 0΄
Swell Wave Height: 0΄
Sea Water Temperature: 12.2˚ C
Sea Level Pressure: 1013.5 mb
Cloud Cover: Sky 8/8 covered;
Lower-level: cumulus, stratocumulus
Mid-level: altostratus

Science and Technology Log 

Today I am on a team that is going ashore to set up two horizontal control-data collection stations. The horizontal control team is responsible for establishing accurate latitude and longitude coordinates for the location of the survey soundings. The RAINIER uses a Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) to acquire precise readings for every collected depth sounding. The remote location of the Mitrofania Island work area has introduced an infrequently encountered challenge for the horizontal control team.  The two Coast Guard operated DGPS Beacon Stations that are closest to the work area (one on Kodiak Island and one in Cold Bay) are too far away (we are on the outer fringe of their transmitting capability) for the signal to reach the launches in some of the more isolated, shielded areas. As a result, we are out setting up the horizontal control data collection stations.

The first station is set up over an existing benchmark and will record data transmitted directly from a GPS satellite.  The receiver will record readings for six hours, shut down for twenty-four hours, and resume recording for a final six-hour time period. Finished with the first station, we travel across the bay to a point that extends out into the ocean. We will set up the second horizontal control data collection station at this location. However, there is not an existing benchmark, so we must establish one.  First, we drive three-foot sections of metal rod into the ground (normally benchmarks are fixed in rock but there is none at this site).  We sink two sections and decide that is enough to hold the benchmark in place for the two months that it will be in use (for a permanent benchmark the rod is driven until it can go no further).  The brass cap is then stamped with a name (SPIT) and date (2005) and affixed to the top of the rod.  We are now able to set up the second station. The receiver will follow the same collection pattern: collecting signals for six hours, resting for twenty-four hours, and collecting for another six hours.

At the end of the collection period, the data from the sensors will be uploaded to an onboard computer and transmitted to the National Geodetic Survey in Washington D.C. where corrections to account for error introduced by things such as the atmosphere are applied. The corrected data, returned to the ship, will establish very accurately (within cm) the latitude and longitude for the site.  One final correction is made to the data before the site can be used. This error source is the satellite itself and comes from the satellite’s perceived position (where it thinks it is in the sky) as compared to its actual position.  The precise location is monitored by the United States Air Force.  Final corrections using this information will provide pinpoint accuracy (within mm) of the benchmark’s location. A temporary, or “fly-away”, DGPS station can now be placed at this benchmark and transmit signals easily received by the launches.

Personal Log 

Yet another beautiful day! Once on shore the mosquitoes were terrible – swarming in clouds around our heads.  A little bug dope, the warm sun, and cool breeze soon took care of this problem.  A great day to be out working!