Tag: Alaska

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Christy Garvin, June 1, 2005

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Christy Garvin
Onboard NOAA Ship Rainier
June 1 – 8, 2005

Mission: Hydrographic Survey
Geographical Area: Aleutian Islands, AK
Date: June 1, 2005

Christy Garvin, learning the ropes
Christy Garvin, learning the ropes

Weather from the Bridge

Latitude:  56 deg 59 min N
Longitude: 135 deg 17 min W
Visibility:  12 nautical miles
Wind Direction: 285 deg
Wind Speed:  15 kts
Sea Wave Height:  1-2 ft
Swell Wave Height:  0 ft (we are in a protected bay)
Sea Water Temperature:  51deg F
Sea Level Pressure: 1022.5 mb

Science and Technology Log 

Due to the Memorial Day weekend, today was the RAINIER’s first operational day since I arrived in Sitka, Alaska. Sitka is located off the western coast of Baranof Island and is surrounded by snow-covered mountains.  The weather has been sunny with temperatures around 55 deg F. Currently, the RAINIER is anchored in the Aleutkina Bay, which is just south of Sitka.

Because several interns and new hands joined the crew for this leg of the journey, the CO, or Commanding Officer, declared today a stand down day.  Basically, this meant that normal work operations were suspended so that the entire day could be devoted to training. A large part of our training was concerned with the deployment and recovery of small boats called launches.

The launches are stored on a system called the gravity falls davit.  The system was originally designed for emergency boat deployment and is capable of working without any electricity; by lifting a lever and removing a small pin, the weight of the boat will cause the davit to slide down the track and drop the boat in the water.  Although this works well in emergency situations, it causes a great amount of stress and strain on the equipment.  Therefore, this method is not used for the daily deployment of the launches.  Instead, a somewhat more complicated process requiring a team of ten or more people is used to safely put the boats in and out of the water.

The first step in deploying the boats is to unplug the boats from the main ship and loosen the gripes that secure the boat.  Once the boat is no longer constrained, a team of four people standing on the deck below grabs ropes called frapping lines and helps stabilize the boat as it is lowered down to the deck level by a controller allowing the davit to slowly descend. Once the launch has reached the main deck level, a survey team boards the launch with all of their equipment.

At that point, one member of the survey team sits on the bow of the boat while another stands on the stern. Their job is to help detach the chain falls (a hook with an attached shackle) from the padeyes (a horseshoe shaped attachment bolted to the deck).  This detachment occurs after the boat is slowly lowered into the water by a controller using a winch drum.  Throughout the entire process, the boat is continually stabilized by the four linesmen who provide or remove slack from the frapping lines.  The deck crew and survey teams have practiced this process many times, and the process is quick and efficient when run by an experienced crew.

However, it was much less graceful as all of the new hands took their turns on deck; ropes ended up in the water, the launches bumped the ship a few times, and hooks didn’t quite catch the padeyes; but by the end of the day all of the new hands were feeling much more confident in deployment and recovery of launches.  It was an excellent opportunity to learn and practice new skills that will be used each day as survey teams are sent forth to accomplish the hydrography mission of the RAINIER.

Personal Log 

I really enjoyed learning how to tie different types of knots and handle line today.  Working as a linesman is very intense because someone could be seriously injured if you fail to do your job properly. The teamwork aspect is so important to safety as the launches are deployed, and I am having a great time actually being involved in the procedures that take place on the ship.

Question of the day: What is hydrography and why is it necessary? 

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Jillian Worssam, August 9, 2004

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Jillian Worssam
Aboard NOAA Ship Miller Freeman
July 5 – August 1, 2004

Jillian Worssam aboard the Miller Freeman
Jillian Worssam aboard the Miller Freeman

Hello All, This will be my final visit from Alaska, The voyage on the ship is over, but I am far from done with this journey. It is amazing how much life can be packed into a month, and I feel ever so fortunate to have had this opportunity. My heart is full, my mind has been challenged. I am a bit sad as I miss the camaraderie and new friendships, thank goodness for e-mail. Thank you all for your support this past month, my goodness has it ONLY been a month!….hope you enjoy this last entry. Jillian I have attached a photo, hope it works….Also one of my last poems! As the humpback breaches I see a splash, a tail and then nothing. In the blink of an eye this mighty creature has defied gravity. I am in awe! Again and again the aerobatics continue for what reason I do not know, only that as witness I have been given a gift. A tufted puffin paddles by and I am inspired, so glad to have this moment, and so aware of the fragility of life. Seals lay upon floating pieces of ice, their guards down as they relax in pure abandon. I too am relaxed, enjoying the breeze as it plays against my skin. Loving the boats motion, as swell upon swell try to breach our hull. My heart beats to a new rhythm and I am humbled by the grandeur of this place!

Never in my life has a month passed so quickly, literally in the blink of an eye I have had the experience of a lifetime. So much has happened and I am a different woman. Thirty days ago I was prepared to walk in the shoes of another, to taste a different career and learn. Now that time has passed, and the shoes fit so well that I am tempted, so tempted to change the patterns of a life time. NOAA provides an amazing opportunity for teachers and I urge all educators to take advantage of their generosity, for they have enhanced my world beyond merewords.

One week ago I caught my first Halibut, over 50 pounds, and it was quite a challenge to land. I was then taught how to bleed the fish to improve the quality of the meat prior to my lesson on how to fillet. The tender pieces of flesh have been vacuumed packed and will be sent to me for shared consumption. Two weeks ago I hung from the gantry, thirty feet above the deck removing the cotter pin from the block holding the third wire (scientific equipment that sent data back to the ship while we were fishing).My safety was in the hands of men whom I had not previously known, and I had no fear. The pin was tricky, the pliers slippery in my hand, failure was not an option. I was trusted with a job, so there was no hesitation, I would succeed.

Three weeks ago I gutted my first fish, checked its gender, and measured it for scientific purposes. The stomach contents were preserved for further study and the otoliths removed so that the age could be determined. I saw thousands of pollock, and many other species, and have learned to truly appreciate a new ecosystem.

Four weeks ago I stood in Dutch Harbor, Alaska about to board a 215 foot NOAA research vessel with no idea of what was about to unfold. Here I was a teacher from Arizona, about to spend thirty days on the Bering Sea, to study walleye pollock, a fish I had never previously heard of.

Today I am a new person, I have an enhanced understanding of life, of career and the dedication these men and women have to both. I was the student, eager to learn and wanted to be a part of everything.

I was denied nothing for 30 days.  You want to paint Jillian, here are the brushes. What, you really want to clean the heads, go for it.  Ok, I will explain it to you one more time, the line needs to be taught, then you bring the left over the right, through the hole and there is the lover’s knot. (I never did master any knots, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t an eager study) Once the data is recorded and analyzed, fishing quotas can be established and the Bering Sea can continue to be a viable and healthy ecosystem.

This was my life, and with some melancholy I am sorry to leave. I have made friends expanded my mind, and had an amazing adventure. For many, their days hold no passion, no daily happiness. I have been reminded that life is tenuous, and not to be taken for granted. I want to get up every morning and be pleased with all that I have, and all that I can gain. I want to work with my peers and realize that the little things are not important, the big picture, the smile on my face, the spirit I hold, these are what count.

NOAA, the seventh branch, and least recognized of our military system, has given me a present beyond words, and it is with my every breath that I hope to share this gift with others. Little do my students know what is in store for them this year…as for me the adventure will surely continue!

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Jillian Worssam, July 10, 2004

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Jillian Worssam
Aboard NOAA Ship Miller Freeman
July 5 – August 1, 2004

Day: Five
Saturday July 10th, 2004 1:20

Longitude: 59° 50 Sea Wave Height: 1-2′
Latitude: 173° 14 Swell Wave Height: 0′

Visibility: 2.1miles fog Sea Water Temperature: 9.4C
Wind Direction: 121.6 Barometric Pressure: 1019 high pressure
Wind Speed: 11.3 kts Cloud Cover: complete 100%

Haul Data – Methot
Depth of haul: 20 meters
Temperature at depth: 7° C approximate
Species breakdown: walleye pollock year 0, Amphipod- type of crustacean, Chrysora jellyfish

Science and Technology Log:

The Methot haul is when the nets are set out, but at the end there is a cylindrical tube of PVC. It is this tube in which the sample will be taken. Holes are drilled in the side to let the water run through, but there is a mesh screen which prevents the specimens from escape. The purpose of the Methot trawl is to collect younger samples of fish, and as the younger pollock tend to stay higher in the water, and this device is perfect for sampling. Most of the pollock were year zero meaning that they spawned this past April. There is also a relationship between the juvenile pollock and the jellyfish as the Jellies (common term) provide shelter for the young fish. Walleye pollock are cannibalistic and will eat younger smaller fish that could well be their own children.

One of the scientists on board Taina Honkalehton has just returned from Tasmania where she was contracted by the Australian government to study orange roughy, a species that has been over harvested that they are now trying to save as a viable harvest species. Pollock on the other had is a well managed species, where at this time approximately 20% of the population is being utilized for commercial ventures. Pollock are the fish of fish sticks, a very important economic product on a global scale, with pollock as the largest single species fishery in the world making oceanic ecosystem management very important. Approximately 1.8 million tons of Pollock are harvested annually. Part of the management plan for pollock is based in part to their relationship to the stellar sea lion. As an endangered species management needs to look at fish harvesting and see if there is a relationship between the decline of the sea lion and changes in fish numbers.

Personal Log:

Running late tonight, having too much fun gutting fish, measuring jelly fish and cleaning. I have often wondered the purpose of jelly fish. As an Easterner by birth my only experience has been the Portuguese Man of War, the stinging variety that invariably closed our local beach. The jellyfish we have been seeing not only provide habitat for many other aquatic species, but that are also a nutritious food source. Monterey Bay Aquarium has a wonderful display of jelly fish. An amazing species, so beautiful in their basic simplicity.

I promised I would talk about the spinner, which no one has been able to give me a scientific designation for. This amazing piece of technology is a circular window approximately two feet in diameter, the ships windshield. During winter months the entire window of the bridge often freezes up, and this device, through the use of centrifugal motion, manages to keep an area clear for viewing. The glass of the spinner, you guessed it, spins at a very fast rate thus keeping the viewing surface clear.  It is a funky tool, and so far my favorite on the bridge.

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Dr. Laura Brezinsky, April 18, 2004

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Laura Brezinsky
Aboard NOAA Ship Miller Freeman
April 8 – April 22, 2004

Day 8: Sunday, April 18, 2004

Latitude: 52.28.03N
Longitude: 171 10.7

Weather: continuous clear
Visibility: 29.5-49.5 ft (Very High)
Wind direction: 285 degrees
Wind speed: 35 (m/s)
Sea wave height :up to 16 feet
Sea water temperature: 4.1 Degrees
Sea level pressure: 1007.5

Science and Technology Log

The above data is from 0800 this morning. Last night the weather came up but we continued out to Amukta pass to try and recover 4 buoys. Unfortunately the waves and wind were too big for operations. This morning we are hiding on the lee of a small Aleutian island tucked in between 3 volcanoes (see attached photo) waiting to see if the weather subsides. We are scheduled to arrive in Dutch Harbor on April 21 or 22 so we can wait here for a couple days in the hopes we can grab those buoys because that is our priority at this point. So, no CTD’s were done and no buoys recovered

Personal Log

Right before bed last night I made my nightly visit up to the bridge. The waves were pretty big and it was fun riding them way up high on the bridge with the knowledge that this boat has been in much worse conditions during is decades of service. After I left the bridge the captain did report seeing “green” water which happens when the waves get so big that they hit the windshield of the bridge so far down from the peak that you see green water.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Laura

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Dr. Laura Brezinsky, April 17, 2004

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Laura Brezinsky
Aboard NOAA Ship Miller Freeman
April 8 – April 22, 2004

Day 9: Saturday, April 17, 2004

Latitude: 54.58.615
Longitude: 162.27.117

Weather: continuous clouds with drizzle
Visibility: 29.5-49.5 ft (Very High)
Wind direction: 181ees
Wind speed: 30m/s
Sea wave height: up to 20 feet
Sea level pressure: 996

Science and Technology Log

Last night we spent the entire night steaming south west down the Aleutian island chain, through the Unimak pass to the western side of the islands and past Dutch Harbor. Tonight we plan on picking up 4 moorings at Amukta pass and no new buoys will be deployed. The decision to move to the west side of the chain was made due to a small storm with 5 knot winds on the east side of the chain. If the weather improves we will move back over to the east side of the chain in a day or 2.

Personal Log

Last night I was awoken at 2:00 AM by some large waves that were tossing the boat (and me) back and forth. I kept thinking…”this boat has no centerboard” and “should I wake

up my roommate?” In the morning I discovered that my roommate was already awake and…this boat can take a lot more than what we saw last night. All of the tests are done with the centerboard up so we are still well within the limits of this boat. This journey has been an invaluable experience but I am very much looking forward to arriving in Dutch Harbor and seeing the wild horses that live there.

Question of the day: What are the factors that effect the formation of waves? How do the weather patterns differ between the Gulf of Alaska and the Bearing Sea

Laura