Drifting Buoy – NOAA Teacher at Sea Blog

August 20, 2025August 20, 2025

Joshua Gonzalez: T2 – I’ll Be Back: August 20, 2025

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Joshua Gonzalez

Aboard NOAA Ship Bell M. Shimada

August 11 – August 23, 2025

Mission: Integrated West Coast Pelagics Survey (Leg 4)

Geographic Area of Cruise: Pacific Ocean, California Coast

Today’s Date: August 20, 2025

Weather Data from the Bridge:

Latitude: 42° 37.1’N

Longitude: 125° 02.4′ W

Wind speed: 22.6 kts.

Wave height: 3-4 ft.

Air temp.: 16.1° C (61° F)

Sky: Fog

Science and Technology Log

Today I had the opportunity to participate in science in a new way than I have before on this mission. I was able to deploy a drifter as a part of the NOAA Adopt-a-Drifter Program. A drifter is a tool that NOAA uses to acquire data from all over the ocean to aid with weather forecasting.

According to NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorology Laboratory,

“The modern drifter is a high-tech version of the “message in a bottle.” It consists of a surface float and a drogue (sea anchor), which are connected by a long tether. Drifters average their data over a window (typically 90 seconds), and transmit ocean data to an orbiting satellite. Each drifter transmitter is assigned a unique code, referred to as the drifter ID, which makes the identification of each drifter possible.”

Josh, wearing a life vest and hard hat, holds the drifter (buoy plus folded up drogue) near the railing, ready to deploy. He smiles for the photo. it is nighttime. — Ready to deploy the drifter. If you look closely, it’s labeled with my school’s name: River Trail School of Agricultural Science.

The drifters collect data on ocean surface temperature, wind speed and direction, salinity and barometric pressure.

The Adopt-a-Drifter Program offers schools, scientists, and other interested parties the opportunity to follow a specific drifter’s trajectory and sea surface conditions. While there are many schools that participate in the program, there are not many teachers that have the unique opportunity to deploy the drifter themselves. It is a lot of fun for students to follow along with their drifter, but having deployed the drifters myself will make it even more exciting for my students.

There is an expression that applies to how I like to teach and to how I will incorporate this experience into my classroom that goes, “Tell me and I may forget. Show me, and I might remember. Involve me, and I’ll learn.” Bringing this experience into my class and having the students follow along as the drifter does its job will provide a learning opportunity that will stick with them for years to come as well as foster a love for science that may inspire them for a lifetime.

Deploying the drifter

Earlier today I also had the opportunity to help collect water from different depths to get eDNA (Environmental DNA). We used a CTD rosette (Conductivity, Temperature, and Depth) to take samples of water from various depths of the water column. Each of the tubes is open when it is dropped in the water. Then when it reaches the desired depth, a button is pushed to trigger magnets to shut the tube. This can be done individually for up to twelve tubes on the rosette. When it is brought to the surface the water can be collected and analyzed. We took 2.5 liters of water from each sample and ran them individually through a special filter that collected the DNA from the water. I think collecting eDNA is genius. Fish leave all sorts of DNA in the water. By taking the DNA out of the water, it is possible to tell what types of fish were in the various depths of the samples taken even though we did not see or catch them. It reminds me of a detective searching for clues.

Josh, wearing a life vest, gloves, work boots, and a hard hat, crouches on deck near the CTD rosette. he holds a bag out to collect a water sample from one of the filter bottles in the rosette. it is nighttime. — Collecting water from the CTD rosette.

Josh stands at a workbench in the wet lab, wearing blue gloves. with his left hand, he reaches for a filter paper set up in a water filtration apparatus. — Collecting water from the CTD rosette.

We also had a haul of hake fish with a few rockfish mixed in. We even got some lampreys. In many people’s opinion, hake are not the most beautiful fish, but they are very important. We eat hake in imitation crab, fish sandwiches, and fish patties. It is also used in some cat foods. It is important that we have good data about hake populations to keep them healthy and bountiful. We separate the fish into different groups, identify what they are, weigh and measure the catch, and record the data. We have computer programs to enter the data. There are a number of procedures we have to follow to record the data properly. Once you have the hang of it, the processing can move pretty quickly.

Personal Log

I am off the dock and officially back at sea again. In a way, I am a Teacher at Sea twice. 🙂 My body definitely adjusted much more quickly this time around. Just as I suspected, everyone is eager to get going. The hauls are coming in and business has picked up. Even though the processing of each haul is moving efficiently, extracting the otoliths takes a developed feel. I’m getting there, but don’t quite have the hang of it yet. My hands are definitely starting to smell a little fishy no matter how many times I wash them.

Everyone has been very helpful, and I am learning a lot of new things. It feels a little weird though, because while it seems like we are just getting started, the finish line is just around the corner. We return to Newport on the 23rd. I’ve already done my last load of laundry onboard. The last few dirty things I’ll do at home. I hope the person who sits next to me on the plane doesn’t mind a faint smell of fish though, because I’m not sure it’s fully coming off for a little while.

Even though we still have two full days of science work to be done, I have started reflecting a little on everything that has transpired on this mission. I think the key takeaway so far has been to be flexible and stay ready. We have plans in life, but they do not always happen how we expect them to go. You have to be able to adapt and keep a positive attitude to make the most out of whatever opportunity you have.

I played a lot of sports growing up. One thing I could not control is playing time. I learned though, that while you may not always get as much playing time as you think you deserve, you just have to make the most out of the opportunities you do have. For example if you are only put in for five plays in a particular game, during those five plays you can still be the best player on the field. No matter what you do, give glory by giving your best. Vince Lombardi once said, “The quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.”

I wonder how the mission would have been different without the obstacles we had to overcome. Who knows? But in the end, the what ifs don’t really matter. With the opportunities we’ve had, we’ve gotten a lot done and made great experiences. While we’ve been busy, last night and this morning I had a chance to see the stars at night and the sunrise in the morning. I couldn’t help but feel reminded of Psalm 19. I know a lot can happen in the final two-plus days, so I shouldn’t close the book quite yet. I am excited to see what is still to come as we get to the end of the mission.

incredible photo of the night sky showing some lighter areas - the milky way - and a short streak of light with a tail — Caught a glimpse (and a photo!) of a shooting star and the Milky Way.

dramatic view of an orange sunrise over mountains beyond calm ocean waters. the sun is reflected in the ocean. — Caught a glimpse (and a photo!) of a shooting star and the Milky Way.

Did You Know?

During the daytime many CPS (coastal pelagic species) fish swim about on their own in search of food, but at night they tend to school together for defense.

Can you identify this specices?

close-up view of one hake fish in a pile of hake fish

If you guessed Pacific Hake also known as Pacific Whiting, way to go! Some key identifiers are the hake’s round body and silvery color with black speckles on their back. Their average size is up to 3 feet in length.

August 5, 2025August 5, 2025

Cheryl Milliken: Sharks off South Carolina, August 3, 2025

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Cheryl Milliken

Aboard NOAA Ship Oregon II

July 25 – August 10, 2025

Mission: Bottom Longline Survey, Leg 1

Geographic Area of Cruise: Atlantic Coast of Florida

Date: August 3, 2025

Weather Data from the Bridge (3:00 PM)

Latitude: 32° 54.4’ N

Longitude: 079° 00.3’ W

Wind speed: 18 kts.

Wave height: 1-2’

Air temp.: 28.1 C

Sky: Clouds

Science and Technology Log

To date, we have caught, tagged, and fin-clipped silky, sharpnose, sandbar, tiger, great hammerhead, blacknose, nurse, and scalloped hammerhead sharks. We have also brought up red snappers, a pale spotted eel, and a blunt-nose lizardfish. I have never seen any of these fishes before, so it has opened a whole new world of sea creatures for me. I am grateful to have this opportunity to explore a region of the ocean with which I am unfamiliar.

view of a scalloped hammerhead shark lying on it ventral side (belly) in a teal mesh shark cradle suspended over the water. a crewmember, mostly out of frame, reaches two arms over the ship's railing to steady the shark.

top-down view from an upper deck of crewmembers standing near the rail as a teal mesh shark cradle rises out of the water, holding a large tiger shark

a man wearing blue gloves, standing on deck and facing away from the camera, holds out a large red-orange fish by the operculum (opening behind the jaw)

straight on view of a hammerhead shark's head; the shark is suspended in the teal mesh cradle, and two gloved hands hold up its head to prepare to remove the hook

Cheryl, wearing a sunhat, a hard hat on top of the sunhat, and a life vest, kneels on deck. with two gloved hands, she holds up a small sharpnose shark and smiles for a photo.

Top row: Scallloped hammerhead shark in mesh cradle; Large tiger shark being hoisted by crane and cradle to be processed alongside the ship (photo courtesy NOAA Corps officer on the bridge); Field Party Chief and PI Trey Driggers lifting red snapper onto cutting table to remove otoliths and eye lenses. Bottom row: Face of scalloped hammerhead shark prior to removal of circle hook; I am holding a sharpnose shark after measuring and fin-clipping it. (Photo by Gretchen Kruizenga).

Personal Log

Living on a ship is much different than living on land. Obviously, we’re on a moving vessel, so the scenery and location are different every time we wake up. As soon as the mooring lines were cast off, we had no access to shopping for anything that we might have forgotten…

One major change from when I was last aboard a ship 25 years ago is the internet. Thanks to a satellite connection through Starlink, I can now stream movies, call my husband, and scroll through Facebook — even miles from shore. It’s strange but comforting to feel connected to the outside world while being so physically remote.

Our living quarters are compact and communal. On the main deck where we fish, there’s a toilet and sink, while the lower deck — where we sleep — has two water closets with an adjacent sink. Each stateroom also has a small sink, which makes washing up and brushing teeth a bit easier. For showers, we have two shared ones for the entire crew, so we limit ourselves to ten-minute showers to make sure everyone gets a turn and can get to bed soon after their shift.

Before leaving port, the crew was split into two watches: day watch (12 noon to midnight) and night watch (midnight to noon). Most staterooms house two people on opposite watches, so the person off duty has the room to themselves while the other works. Unfortunately, our bunks are located just below the deck where the fishing line is hauled in, so it gets quite noisy. Sleep is something we grab when we can, knowing it may be disrupted by the sound of the winch or the motion of high seas. I’m on day watch, so my schedule feels more natural — but for those on night watch, sleeping during daylight and staying alert all night is a real challenge.

Yesterday we also launched the second drifter. This one had Falmouth High School stickers, of course, but also the crew of NOAA Ship Oregon II wrote their names, drew, or wrote favorite quotes. It was fun to get everyone on the ship involved in this project! The track of Drifter #1 appears to be keeping up with the ship!

close up view of the buoy, shaped like a large fiberglass beach ball. the bottom half is blue and the top half is white, and decorated. We see a sticker of a lobster (mvyradio.org), a school sticker (for Falmouth Clippers), and some handwritten quotes and signatures. — Drifter #2 with quotes from crew

close up view of the buoy, shaped like a large fiberglass beach ball. the bottom half is blue and the top half is white, and decorated. We see some school stickers (for Falmouth Clippers), and some handwritten quotes and signatures, and a drawing of a shark near the seabed. — Drifter #2 with quotes from crew

Cheryl, wearing her Teacher at Sea t shirt, a life vest, and sunglasses, poses for a photo on deck next to the drifting buoy, currently curled up and resting on a table surface. — I am preparing to launch Drifter #2 from fantail

map of sea surface temperature by geographic location as measured by the first drifting buoy. measurements are depicted as squares, color coded by temperature, ranging from 28 degrees Celsius (purple) to 32 degrees Celsius (red); most of the readings are green, which corresponds to 30 degrees C. the measurements start east of Florida and extend north along the Gulf Stream toward North Carolina. — I am preparing to launch Drifter #2 from fantail

Interview with Trey Driggers

Trey, wearing a life vest and work gloves, stands on deck with his right hand on the rail of the ship and his left resting on a white barrel lined with circle hooks. Behind him, the sky is blue with many gray clouds, and the water is blue-gray with some chop. — Dr. Trey Driggers hauling in hooks during our longline survey.

Trey Driggers is the PI, or principal investigator, of the Southeast Fisheries Science Center Bottom Longline (BLL) Survey. He originally wanted to be a musician playing guitar, but his father said that if he went to military school first, he would pay for college. That seemed like a good deal, so he completed an associate’s degree at Valley Forge Military Academy in Wayne, PA, then continued for a BA in History from Clemson University.

Trey imagined being a lawyer, but he was always interested in sharks. His fascination with large predators was driven after his childhood dog was eaten by an alligator in his grandparents’ yard in Florida. He was 8 years old when the movie Jaws came out, and although he was too young to see it, he was intrigued by all the shark-related merchandise that was on the shelves at that time. During his senior year in college, scientists from the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History released a book entitled, Sharks in Question: The Smithsonian Answer Book. The last section was entitled, “How Do I Become a Shark Specialist?” He read that and thought, “That’s a job?” His career goals dramatically changed; now he realized that he could be a shark biologist. After graduating from Clemson, he enrolled in the courses needed to earn another degree in Marine Science. Once Trey had this focus, he became a straight A student. He finished that program in two years.

After finishing his coursework in marine science, Trey applied for graduate school and was accepted into Dr. John Dean’s lab at the University of South Carolina. Dr. Dean was very supportive of his students and is considered one of the godfathers of otoliths, studying ear stones of finfish to determine their age. Trey’s master’s thesis was on the age and growth of yellowfin tuna. Dr. Dean convinced him to stay in that lab to complete his PhD, as well. Part of his research on blacknose sharks required him to collect fin clips from sharks for a genetic study which was done in part on the Southeast Fisheries Science Center’s Bottom Longline Survey, which solidified his desire to work for the National Marine Fisheries Service. He has been participating in this survey since 1999. The rest is history!

Tell me about your family:

“We live in Ocean Springs, MS. My wife is a biology teacher in middle school. We met at USC and are both Clemson Tigers. We’ve been married for 26 years and have three children: Amelia is a biomedical engineer; Boyd is a junior at Ole Miss; and Max is a senior in high school. We have a malinois dog named Lilah and a chihuahua named Oliver.”

How did you get your position at NOAA Fisheries?

“In 2002 I was still a post-doc, but I went to the Resource Surveys Branch Chief at the Pascagoula lab three separate times to ask for a job. I think I finally wore him down and was hired in 2003. In 2012, I became the Shark Unit Leader. Kristin Hannan is my right-hand partner, and Will Tilley complements us both to make a solid team.”

What is the most fun part of your job?

“There are many fun parts of my job. My coworkers and I are very close, and it’s great being around people who have the same interests. I get to see things very few people get to see and I feel very fortunate to have access to the resources that allow me to conduct broad scale research. When I retire, I will know I did exactly what I set out to do and will have achieved my professional goals.”

What is the most difficult part of your job?

“I miss important family events such as birthdays, first days of school, etc. The good definitely outweighs the bad, though. Our work helps conservation and fishermen. I feel it’s critical to have boots on the ground when conducting research and in my field there is only one place to do that and that is on the water.”

What part of your job with NOAA did you least expect to be doing?

“I least expected the Deepwater Horizon disaster. When that happened, we were told, ‘You’re now forensic biologists,’ and our jobs changed significantly for a time. It was a big adjustment, and a massive effort by many, many people.”

What would you be doing if you didn’t work for NOAA?

“I’ve thought about that a lot and don’t have a good answer. I do play my guitar 3-4 hours per day, though, and would try to do something with that.”

Did You Know?

Scientists have identified ten different species of hammerhead sharks. We are fortunate to have caught two different species so far!

New Animals Seen:

Scalloped hammerhead shark
Pale spotted eel
Decorator crab
Semipalmated plover

out of focus view of a small shorebird walking on a gray surface — Semipalmated plover
(courtesy of Lila Xenakis)

a decorated crab photographed splayed out against a blue surface; we can see some seaweed stuck to it — Decorator crab

June 5, 2017June 8, 2017

Sam Northern: 3… 2… 1… Deploy the Drifting Buoy!, June 5, 2017

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Sam Northern

Aboard NOAA ship Gordon Gunter

May 28 – June 7, 2017

Mission: Spring Ecosystem Monitoring (EcoMon) Survey (Plankton and Hydrographic Data)

Geographic Area of Cruise: Atlantic Ocean

Date: June 5, 2017

Weather Data from the Bridge:

Latitude: 42°22.4’N

Longitude: -70°38.2W

Sky: Foggy

Visibility: ≥ 1 Nautical Mile

Wind Direction: 090°E

Wind Speed: 20 Knots

Sea Wave Height: 2-4 Feet

Barometric Pressure: 1008.3 Millibars

Sea Water Temperature: 13.3°C

Air Temperature: 12.1°C

Science and Technology Log

Drifting Buoy

3… 2… 1… deploy the drifting buoy! The NOAA Office of Climate Observation established the Adopt a Drifter Program in 2004 for K-16 teachers. The program’s mission is “to establish scientific partnerships between schools around the world and engage students in activities and communication about ocean climate science.” By adopting a drifter I am provided the unique opportunity of infusing ocean observing system data into my library media curriculum. A drifter, or drifting buoy, is a floating ocean buoy that collects data on the ocean’s surface. They tend to last approximately 400 days in the water. Drifters allow scientists to track ocean currents, changes in temperature, salinity, and other important components of the ocean’s surface as they float freely and transmit information.

The buoy is equipped with a thermistor, a drogue and a transmitter so that it can send out daily surface water temperatures and its position to an Argos satellite while it is being moved by surface currents pulling on the drogue. Soon I will receive the WMO number of my drifting buoy to access data online from the drifter. My students and I will receive a drifter tracking chart to plot the coordinates of the drifter as it moves freely in the surface ocean currents. Students will be able to make connections between the data accessed online and other maps showing currents, winds, and surface conditions.

Representing my alma mater WKU, NOAA Ship Gordon Gunter, PBS LearningMedia, & paw prints for Simpson Elementary.

Respresenting the Kentucky state flag, Simpson Elementary School’s logo, & my school district Franklin-Simpson.

How to Deploy a Drifter:

Remove the plastic covering (shrink-wrapped) from the buoy on the ship.
Record the five-digit ID number of the drifter inscribed on the surface float.
A magnet is then removed from the buoy, which starts a transmitter (located in the upper dome) to allow data from the buoy to be sent to a satellite and then to a ground-based station so we can retrieve the data.
Throw the unpacked drifter from the lowest possible deck of the ship into the sea. The tether (cable) and drogue (long tail that is 15 meters long) will unwrap and extend below the sea surface where it will allow the drifter to float and move in the ocean currents.
Record the date, time, and location of the deployment as well as the five-digit ID.

GoPro footage of the drifter’s deployment

My drifter buoy was launched at 8:01 PM (20:01) on June 3rd, 2017. Its official position is 43 degrees 32.9 minutes North, 067 degrees 40.5 minutes West.

Buoy Trajectory.png — This image shows where we deployed the buoy in the Gulf of Maine. The red and blue symbols are the buoy’s trajectory, confirming that the drifter is being tracked via satellite in real-time.

Chief Scientist, David Richardson and I on the ship’s stern ready to deploy the drifter.

The WMO # associated with my drifter is 44907. To track the buoy and view data, please visit the GDP Drifter Data Assembly Center website. There, you will find instructions on how to access data via the NOAA Observing System Monitoring Center (OSMC) webpage or Quality Control Tools Buoy Location and Trajectory website. My students will have full access to our drifting buoy data (e.g., latitude/longitude coordinates, time, date) in near real-time for their adopted drifting buoy as well as all drifting buoys deployed as part of the Global Drifter Program. Students can access, retrieve, and plot various subsets of data as a time series for specified time periods for any drifting buoy and track and map their adopted drifting buoy for short and long time periods (e.g., one day, one month, one year). My students are going to be thrilled when learn they get to be active participants in NOAA’s oceanography research.

drifter_annimation — Drifter Diagram [Source — NOAA/AOML/PhOD]

Below is a 2-minute video from NOAA’s National Ocean Service to learn more about drifting buoys.

Deploying my drifting buoy in 360-degress

Nautical Navigation

*NOAA Ship Gordon Gunter’s* Navigational Bridge

Understanding where you are on the grid is essential when navigating a ship of any size. NOAA Ship Gordon Gunter houses a major operation with 30 personnel on board. The safety of each individual is a primary concern for Commanding Officer, Lindsay Kurelja. She knows all there it is to know about navigating a marine vessel. Early mariners heavily relied on the stars and landmarks to determine their position in the sea. While celestial and terrestrial navigation techniques are still effective and used often by contemporary sailors, modern ships have GPS. GPS stands for Global Positioning System, and it lets us know where we are and where we are going anywhere on Earth. GPS is quickly becoming an integrative part of our society. It is a worldwide radio-navigation system formed from a constellation of 24 satellites and their ground stations.

Commanding Officer Kurelja and her crew use a GPS receiver to chart Gordon Gunter’s position in the ocean. The ship receives signals from 10 satellites that are in lower orbit. Once the ship’s receiver calculates its distance from four or more satellites, it knows exactly where we are.

Within seconds, from thousands of miles up in space, our location can be determined with incredible precision, often within a few yards of your actual location. [Source — NOAA] The satellites’ signals give NOAA officers the ship’s positioning. Then, using a nautical chart of the area in which we are cruising, the Navigation bridge team plots the latitude position and the longitude position to determine the ship’s exact location.

Ship’s Internet

Since my expedition began you might have wondered, “How is he even sending these blog posts from so far out at sea?” That is a legitimate question. One I had been asking myself. So, I went to Tony VanCampen, Gordon Gunter’s Chief Electronics Technician for the answer. You may have guessed it; the answer has something to do with Earth’s satellites. Providing internet on ships is different than on land because, well, there is no land. We are surrounded by water; there are no towers or cables.

On the deck of the ship is a fixed installation antenna that provides broadband capability. It looks like a mini water tower. The antenna sends signals about the ship’s positioning to a geostationary satellite. A geostationary satellite is placed directly over the equator and revolves in the same direction the earth rotates (west to east). The ship’s computers use the connection made between the antenna and the satellite to transfer data which the satellite in turn sends to a ground site in Holmdel, New Jersey. The site in New Jersey connects the ship to the Internet.

Chief Electronics Technician, Tony VanCampen not only understands, installs, maintains, and repairs all the technology on board Gordon Gunter, he is an expert on all things nautical. Tony has been an asset to my Teacher at Sea experience. He takes the time to not only explain how equipment works, but he shows me where things are and then demonstrates their capabilities. Aboard Gordon Gunter, Tony runs all of the mission electronics, navigational electronics, and the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System. Tony has been working at sea since 1986 when he joined the NAVY and reported on board the USS Berkeley. He took a short break from work at sea when he became a physical security specialist for the NAVY at a weapons station. Tony has held several roles in the NAVY and with NOAA, all have given him a wealth of knowledge about ship operations. He is dedicated to the needs of the crew, scientists, and as of late, one Teacher at Sea. I owe Tony a debt of gratitude for his assistance and kindness.

Personal Log

Out to Sea (Saturday, June 3)

As I entered the dry lab this morning to report for duty, there was a lot of exciting chatter going on. I presumed a whale had been seen nearby or an unusual fish was caught in one of the bongo nets. While either of these situations would generate excitement, the lab’s enthusiasm was on the drifting buoy that was to be deployed today. I love how the scientists and volunteers get overwhelmed with joy for all things “science”. I had strong feelings after learning the news, as well. My emotions steered more toward worry than elation because I was the one to deploy the buoy! What if I deployed the drifting buoy incorrectly? What if it gets sucked under the ship? What if a whale eats it? Questions like these kept running through my mind all afternoon. Luckily, time spent rinsing bongo nets and preserving plankton samples kept my mind off the matter. But a voice in the back of my brain kept repeating, “What if…”

I finally laid my worries to rest. At sunset I deployed the drifting buoy without incident! The entire event was extremely special. My buoy is now floating atop the waves of the Gulf of Maine and soon to other parts of the sea. Yes, it will be all alone on the surface, but underneath and above will be a plethora of wildlife. Even when no one is there to witness it, ocean life carries on. For my students and me, we do not have to be with the drifting buoy physically to experience its journey. The transmitting equipment will give us the opportunity to go on the same adventure as the buoy while learning new things along the way.

A New Week (Sunday, June 4)

It has been one week, seven days since I first arrived on board NOAA Ship Gordon Gunter. Like the virga (an observable streak of precipitation falling from a cloud but evaporates or before reaching the surface) we experienced this morning, my time aboard the ship is fleeting, too. As the days dwindle until we disembark, I find myself attempting to soak in as much of the experience as I can. Suddenly, I am looking at the horizon a little longer; I pay closer attention to the sounds made by the ship; and I pause to think about how each sample will tell us more about the Earth’s mysterious oceans. Yes, a week has passed, but now it is the first day of a new week. With two days and a “wakeup” remaining, I intend to embrace each moment to its fullest.

Just Another Manic Monday (Monday, June 5)

No matter the day or time, NOAA Ship Gordon Gunter runs like clockwork. Today, however, the ship seemed to be buzzing with a different kind of energy. NOAA Corps Officers and the crew have been moving around the ship with an ever greater sense of purpose. Believe me, there is never an idle hand aboard Gordon Gunter. One major factor that heavily influences the ship’s operations is the weather. The National Weather Service has issued a gale warning for the Gulf of Maine. Gale warnings mean maritime locations are expected to experience winds of Gale Force on the Beaufort scale.

Position Map June 5 — *Gordon Gunter’s* position at mid-morning of June 5th

Tonight’s weather forecast are winds reaching 20-30 Knots with seas building to 4 to 6 feet. Tuesday’s forecast is even grimmer: winds between 25-35 Knots and waves reaching 7-12 feet. [Source — National Weather Service] Even though the weather forecast is ominous, I fear not! Having witnessed the professionalism and expertise of every crew member on board the ship, I have full confidence in Gordon Gunter.

Chief Scientist and the Commanding Officer adjusted our course due to the imminent weather. We passed through the Cape Cod Canal, an artificial waterway in the state of Massachusetts connecting Cape Cod Bay in the north to Buzzards Bay in the south. The canal is used extensively by recreational and commercial vessels and people often just sit and watch ships and boats transiting the waterway. It was indeed a joyous occasion seeing land on the starboard and port sides of the ship. The passage provided many more sites to see compared to the open ocean. I thoroughly enjoyed the cruise through the Cape Cod Canal, but inside me was the desire to one day return to the deep, blue sea.

Animals Seen

As you can tell, this blog post’s theme revolves around positioning and tracking. So, I decided to ask the seabird and marine mammal observers about the technology and methods they use to identify the positioning of animals out on the open ocean. Our wildlife observers, Glen and Nicholas, have a military-grade cased computer they keep with them on the flying bridge while looking for signs of birds and whales. The GPS keeps track of the ship’s position every five minutes so that a log of their course exists for reference later. When Glen or Nicholas identify a bird or marine mammal, they enter the data into the computer system which records the time and their exact GPS position. To know how many meters out an animal is, observers use a range finder.

This pencil has been carefully designed according to their location above sea level which is 13.7 meters from the ship’s flying bridge where the observers keep a sharp lookout. The observers place the top of the pencil on the horizon to get accurate distances. If the bird falls between each carved line on the pencil, they know approximately how many meters away the animal is. Wildlife observers’ rule of thumb for tracking animals is called a strip transect. Strip transects are where observers define a strip of a certain width, and count all creatures within that strip. Glen and Nicholas input data on any animal they see that is within 300 meters of the ship. Providing as much information as possible about the positioning of each observed living thing helps researchers understand what is happening and where.

New Terms/Phrases

[Source — Marine Insight]

RADAR (RAdio Detection And Ranging): It is used to determine the distance and direction of the ship from land, other ships, or any floating object out at sea.
Gyro Compass: It is used for finding true direction. It is used to find correct North Position, which is also the earth’s rotational axis.
Auto Pilot: It is a combination of hydraulic, mechanical, and electrical system and is used to control the ship’s steering system from a remote location (Navigation Bridge).
Echo Sounder: This instrument is used to measure the depth of the water below the ship’s bottom using sound waves.
Speed & Distance Log Device: The device is used to measure the speed and the distance traveled by a ship from a set point.
Automatic Radar Plotting Aid: The radar displays the position of the ships in the vicinity and selects the course for the vessel by avoiding any kind of collision.
GPS Receiver: A Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver is a display system used to show the ship’s location with the help of Global positioning satellite in the earth’s orbit.
Record of Navigation Activities: All the navigational activities must be recorded and kept on board for ready reference. This is a mandatory and the most important log book.

Did You Know?

GPS satellites fly in medium Earth orbit at an altitude of approximately 12,550 miles. Each satellite circles the Earth twice a day. The satellites in the GPS constellation are arranged so that users can view at least four satellites from virtually any point on the planet. [Source — NOAA]

gps — GPS Block IIR(M) Satellite [Source — NOAA]