Fly in to Gulfport, MS on Thursday, June 1. Stay the night.
Head to the Oregon II in Pascagoula, MS on Friday, June 2 and stay the night aboard.
Sail out on Saturday, June 3 and be at sea for 2 weeks working on a groundfish survey.
And here’s what really happened:
Fly in to Gulfport, MS on Thursday, June 1. Stay the night.
Get an email on Friday that essential personnel were unable to sail and that we were in a “holding pattern” until the staffing shortage was resolved.
Hang out in Biloxi, MS until Tuesday, June 6 waiting to hear if there is any good news (unfortunately not).
Fly out of Mobile, AL on Tuesday night, with a layover in Atlanta. However, my first flight was delayed, which made me miss my connection, so I spent the night in Atlanta until flying back to the DC area on Wednesday, June 7.
Picture off the Gulf Coast, directly across the street from my hotel.
I have to say, the MVP in this was Emily Susko, the Program Support Specialist for NOAA’s Teacher at Sea Program. She was pulling in her connections, rebooking flights, walking me through different options at ALL hours of the day. Emily was feeling bad for the whole situation and shared that she has never had a vessel delayed for this precise reason before. But I reassured her, I am the poster child for Murphy’s Law when it comes to traveling. For example, last summer I did a 3 week camping trip to the National Parks out west. Here’s a sampling of the things that want wrong:
Flight out there was cancelled, had to fly out the next day
About 4 days in, our campsite in Glacier (which was the ending of the trip) had been cancelled due to bad flooding. We weren’t able to rebook due to full campsites.
Spent 2 out of 5 nights in Yellowstone, as we got kicked out because the park was shut down due to insane flooding.
Got COVID and spent quarantine in a hotel.
Rearranged entire trip and went to Bryce Canyon, which had a thick layer of smoke because of nearby wildfires .
Went to Capital Reef NP, where I was stuck in a flash flood in a small overhang for over 4 hours.
So needless to say, a delay on when I will get to ship out is no problem. Plus, the Teacher at Sea Program really stressed being flexible , so while the situation wasn’t ideal, I know to expect the unexpected! While admittedly, I did spend a good chunk of time in the hotel as I needed the cooldown from the end of the semester, I did some exploring and learned a lot as well!
A male and female osprey guarding their nest.
My first couple days were spent in the Biloxi area, trying to soak in as much sun, wildlife, and food as possible. The hotel I was staying at was right across the street from the beach. When walking on the beach, I heard an incessant screeching and birds were dive bombing me! This is when I realized I was in a Least Tern colony. Terns are a shorebird that lay their eggs right on the sand. This colony had over 300 adults and was cordoned off by the Audubon Society to protect the nest (and probably, the passersby from the tern attacks). Also along the beach was an Osprey nest . Many conservation societies will purposefully create artificial platforms for Osprey to use, but these guys were nested atop the USS Biloxi memorial.
Can you spot the alligator in this “alligator pond”?
I spent a morning in the Gulf Islands National Seashore, which is protected by the National Park Service. Here I contributed to citizen science by completing three eBird checklists. eBird is run by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and is a way for anyone, anywhere around the world to submit a checklist of all the birds they saw and heard. Then, scientists globally can use the data to answer ecological questions. To give you the scale of eBird, in May 2023, over 2 million checklists were submitted worldwide! One of the ponds that went through the marsh land was named “Alligator Pond”, and after looking in, I understand why!
On my last day in the area, I headed to the Southeast Fisheries Science Center in Pascagoula, MS. Here I met Brandi Noble who is the Vessel/Environmental Compliance Coordinator for the Southeast fleet. While she stays on land, she has been with NOAA for over two decades and has done every type of cruise NOAA conducts! Brandi was also instrumental in juggling me around. She was also kind enough to give me a tour of the Gordon Gunter so that I at least got on some sort of boat and also a tour of the Science Center. The Science Center houses scientists in many different fields (ecologists, microbiologists, chemists) who analyze water and organismal samples when cruises return. They also have an engineering department who creates technologies to be used by fisherman in the US (and around the world) that helps conservation efforts. It’s said that the engineering team at the Southeast Fisheries Science Center is the reason why sea turtle populations have bounced back as much as they have — they are the ones who invented the turtle exclusion devices for fishing nets!
This is a medium-sized trawl net, mainly used for catching shrimp. On the left, where the white buoy is, is the TED — a turtle exclusion device. The metal bars allow smaller organisms to go through, but turtles (and other organisms like sharks) hit the bars and are pushed downwards out of the net through the green mesh at the bottom. The next section to the right, in green, has some pockets where fish can swim out (but shrimp likely wouldn’t). The blue mesh at the far right also helps to “push” undesirable fish out because they are afraid of it and will swim backwards (towards the pockets). Some fish, like menhaden, try to escape by swimming upwards. The orange mesh at the far right end allows them to do so. Meanwhile, all the shrimp are being pushed into a mesh bag at the far right end (not attached in this picture).
With my trip to the Science Center, I learned about the importance of the commanding officer (CO) role. While all roles on a vessel are important, the CO is essentially the captain. Now, captain is an official rank, so a CO may not actually be a captain, but to the layman, they are. In the NOAA corps, a CO is assigned to a ship for a two year post. They direct every cruise, which can be hundreds of days at sea each year. I attended the Change of Command Ceremony for the Gordon Gunter. During this ceremony, the current CO is recognized for their hard work during their tour and a new CO is welcomed aboard. COs have a pin on their uniform recognizing their command. It’s interesting as they pin the new CO first, then change the position of the pin on the old CO so that there is never a moment that the vessel lacks a commanding officer.
Well, this is goodbye for now! I hope I will be able to be placed in another cruise this summer, but if not, I’ll be back next year!
I at least got to check out and board the Gordon Gunter!
Geographic Area of Cruise: Northeast Atlantic Ocean
Date: August 29, 2018
Weather Data from the Bridge
Latitude:39.115 N
Longitude:74.442 W
Water Temperature: 26.4◦C
Wind Speed:11.7 knots
Wind Direction: SW
Air Temperature: 28.2◦C
Atmospheric Pressure:1017.03 millibars
Depth:22 meters
Science and Technology Log
Today I was excited to learn more about the work of Charles Kovach, Support Scientist with Global Science and Technology, a contractor to NOAA Center for Satellite Applications and Research (STAR).
Charles’s work may sound familiar.It is a bit similar to the work I wrote about yesterday that Audrey and Kyle are doing with the University of Rhode Island.He wants to match what satellite pictures are seeing to what is really here in the ocean.
Charles has another cool tool called a “hyperspectral profiler” or hyperpro for short.He can put this tool into the water to measure light at the surface, light coming down through the water, and light bouncing back up from the deep.He wants to know how the sunlight changes as it goes down into the deep and back up through the water.The hyperpro measures thousands of different colors as they travel through the water.Seeing what colors bounce back from the water can help you understand what is IN the water.For example, you can see some of this with your own eyes.Blue water is usually clean and clear, green water has a lot of algae, and brown water has a lot of particles like sand or dirt. But the hyperpro gets A LOT more detail than just our eyes.
Me assisting with the hyperpro deployment. I had to read the computer program and alert Charles regarding the depth of the instrument.
Charles deploying the hyperpro
The main purpose of this is to understand what satellites are seeing.We can get images from satellites out in space, like a picture of the ocean.But the satellite is outside of our atmosphere so it is seeing light that has gone through a lot of air and gases as well as the ocean.So when scientists can measure the light in the ocean at the same time that the satellite is taking a picture, they can use MATH to find a relationship between what the satellite sees and what is really happening on Earth.In this way, Charles can calibrate (make more accurate) and validate (make sure it is right) the satellite images.
This is helpful information for A LOT of people all over the world.Scientists are pretty good at collaborating because they know how important it is to share information with everyone so we can all be more aware of what is happening in our natural world.Charles collaborates with other countries and their satellites, as well as NOAA’s satellites.
Charles also collaborates with other scientists on the ship and in NOAA’s laboratories.This way he can compare his light data to other measurements such as chlorophyll (remember?It’s from phytoplankton!), turbidity, and even specific species of plankton.Then he can find relationships between things like the light and the plankton or turbidity.He can use MATH to write an equation for this relationship (we call that an algorithm).And you know what that means?We can use a satellite picture to tell what kind of plankton is in the water!We can see tiny plankton from space!WOW.
Collecting and Analyzing Data
When Charles uses his hyperpro, the machine automatically records the light data and we can see it on a computer screen.Then he uses special computer software to analyze the data to better understand what it means and how it relates to the satellite.He creates line graphs to understand the colors of light that are coming down into and up out of the water.
Charles’s data after it’s been processed or analyzed. He ends up with line graphs, satellite images, and photos as scientific evidence.
One thing I have noticed with all of the scientist on the ship is the importance of data collection!I have entered some of the data and have noticed data sheets around the wet lab.If we do not write or type every bit of data, then it can’t teach us anything.Scientists write data into a data table of columns and rows.This keeps it organized and easy to understand.When they analyze the data, they will often create a graph from the data table.This helps them to see a picture of relationships between the measurements.
Audrey and Kyle’s data sheet
A Few Questions for Charles
Me – How did you become interested in your field of study?
Charles – I worked in Florida as a water quality manager.It became obvious that we needed to see the bigger picture to truly understand what was happening in the water.Satellites are the best way to try to get a picture of what is happening over a large space at the same time.
Me – What would you recommend to a young person exploring ocean and science career options?
Charles – Work hard in MATH!I use math every day and would not be able to do this work without it.It is very important!Computer coding is also important in the work I do.
Charles surrounded by his work.
Personal Log
Wow, I cannot believe how much I am learning during this experience.It is truly fascinating.
In my past blogs, I mentioned spending some down time on the fly bridge.I wanted to share more about that part of the ship because it is a truly peaceful place and really allows you to feel that you are in the middle of the ocean!
The fly bridge is the uppermost deck
The fly bridge is the highest of the decks on the ship.It is above the “bridge deck” (where NOAA Corps operates the ship) and just under the radar sensors.At any given time during the day, you can find some of the science team and sometimes the NOAA Corps team up on the fly bridge.We might be checking with the seabird observers to see what animals have been spotted, taking a nap in the sun at the picnic table, staring out at the water with binoculars, or getting cozy with a good book.It’s a great place to soak it all in and my favorite place on the ship.
The view from the fly bridge
One level below the fly bridge is the bridge deck where the ship is operated.NOAA Corps Officers are happy to answer questions and it’s also a fun and interesting place to visit.It’s a great place to see the charts that officers use to navigate, radar screens, and other cool ship operating tools.They even let me take control of the ship!JUST KIDDING!That would never happen, unless I trained to become an officer myself and was authorized to control the ship.Maybe one day!
Me driving the ship. Just kidding. But I could pose for a photo just for fun.
Did You Know?
The largest species of plankton is called a Mola mola.It is a large fish that looks like it had its tail cut off!It’s flat, rounded shape allows it to flow with the currents along with its food source, other plankton!Because the Mola mola is a living thing that drifts with currents, it is plankton!The seabird observers have seen several Mola mola on this trip.Maybe I’ll see one tomorrow…
A mola mola at the surface. Photo courtesy of NOAA.
Mystery Photo
Can you guess what this photo is?Add your guess to the comments below!
Mission: Spring Ecosystem Monitoring (EcoMon) Survey (Plankton and Hydrographic Data)
Geographic Area of Cruise: Atlantic Ocean
Date: June 1, 2017
Weather Data from the Bridge:
Latitude: 40°58’N
Longitude: -67°03.9’W
Sky: Patchy Fog
Visibility: 2-5 Nautical Miles
Wind Direction: 215°SW
Wind Speed: 6 Knots
Sea Wave Height: 1-2 Feet
Swell Wave: 2-5 Feet
Barometric Pressure: 1012.5 Millibars
Sea Water Temperature: 11.2°C
Air Temperature: 11.2°C
Science and Technology Log
Approximate location of our first oceanography station [Source — Marine Traffic]
The J-Frame is used to deploy equipment into the water.
En route to our first oceanography station just past Nantucket, Electronics Technician Tony VanCampen and my fellow day watch scientist Leann Conlon gave me an overview on how each sampling is conducted. This is where the pieces of equipment I described in my previous blog post (bongo nets and CTD) come into play.
Science is very much a team effort. I learned that a deck crew will be in charge of maneuvering the winch and the J-frame. Attached to the cable will be the bongo nets and the CTD which are carefully lowered into the ocean.
Bongo nets allow scientists to strain plankton and other samples from the water using the bongo’s mesh net. At each station the bongo will be sent down to within 5 meters of the bottom or no more than 200 meters. After the bongo has reached its maximum depth for a particular station, the net is methodically brought back to the surface—all the while collecting plankton and sometimes other small organisms like tiny shrimp. It usually takes about 20 minutes for the bongo nets to be cast out and returned on board with the samples.
Here I am in my gear preparing to launch the first bongo nets.
Once the bongo nets have returned from the water to the aft (back) deck, our work begins. As a part of the Science Party, it is my job to rinse the entire sample into containers, place the plankton into jars, add formalin to jars that came from the big bongos and ethanol to jars that came from the small bongos. These substances help preserve the specimens for further analysis.
At the conclusion of the cruise, our plankton samples will be sent to the Sea Fisheries Institute in Poland where scientists and lab crew sort and identify the plankton samples which gives NOAA scientist an idea of the marine environment in the areas in which we collected samples.
Flowmeter
Our Chief Scientist is David Richardson. Dave has been with NOAA since 2008. He keeps track of the digits on the flowmeter (resembles a small propeller) inside the bongo. The beginning and ending numbers are input into the computer which factors in the ship’s towing speed to give us the total volume of water sampled and the distance the bongo net traveled.
CTD (Conductivity, Temperature, & Depth)
At various oceanography stations we perform a CTD cast which determines the conductivity, temperature, and depth of the ocean. The CTD is attached to the bongo nets or the CTD is mounted within a frame, which also holds several bottles for sampling seawater along with a mechanism that allows scientists on board the ship to control when individual bottles are closed. The CTD is connected to the ship by means of a conducting cable and data are sent electronically through this cable, in real-time, to the scientists on the ship. The scientists closely monitor the data, looking for temperature and particle anomalies that identify hydrothermal plumes. As the CTD is sinking to the desired depth (usually 5-10 meters from the bottom), the device measures the ocean’s density, chlorophyll presence, salinity (the amount of salt in the water), temperature, and several other variables. The CTD’s computer system is able to determine the depth of the water by measuring the atmospheric pressure as the device descends from the surface by a certain number of meters. There is a great deal scientists can learn from launching a CTD in the sea. The data tells us about dissolved inorganic carbon, ocean water nutrients, the levels of chlorophyll, and more. From the information gathered during CTD casts, researchers can investigate how factors of the ocean are related as well as the variation of organisms that live in the ocean.
The highlighted lines are stations completed in the first leg. The circle indicates the stations for my leg of the survey.
It is fascinating to see the communication between the scientists and the NOAA Corps crew who operate the ship. For instance, NOAA officers inform the scientists about the expected time of arrival for each station and scientists will often call the bridge to inquire about Gordon Gunter’s current speed and the weather conditions. Even computer programs are connected and shared between NOAA Corps crew and the scientists. There is a navigation chart on the monitor in the bridge which is also displayed in the science lab so everyone knows exactly where we are and how close we are to the next station. The bridge must always approve the deployments and recovery of all equipment. There are closed circuit video cameras in various places around the ship that can be viewed on any of the monitors. The scientists and crew can see everything that is going on as equipment gets deployed over the side. Everyone on Gordon Gunter is very much in sync.
Personal Log
First Day at Sea (Tuesday, May 30)
Today, my shift began at 12 noon. It probably was not the best idea to have awakened at 6:00 a.m., but I am not yet adjusted to my new work schedule and I did not want to miss one of Margaret’s hearty breakfasts.
We cast out from the Naval Station Newport mid-morning. It was a clearer and warmer day compared to the day before—perfect for capturing pictures of the scenic harbor. I spent much of the morning videoing, photographing, and listening to the sounds of waves as they moved around the ship. I like to spend a lot of time on the bow as well as the flying bridge (the area at the top of the ship above the bridge where the captain operates the vessel). Before lunch, I was beginning to feel a little sea sick from the gentle swaying of the ship. I could only hope that I would find my sea legs during my first watch.
Gordon Gunter gracefully made its way alongside Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket—two islands off the coast of Cape Cod. Standing on the flying bridge and looking out at the horizon alleviated my sea sickness. At this position I was able to observe and photograph an abundance of wildlife. Seeing the sea birds in their natural habitat is a reminder that I am just a visitor on this vast ocean which so many animals call home. Watching birds fly seamlessly above the waves and rest atop the water gives me a yearning to discover all I can about this unique ecosystem and ways in which we can protect it.
Scroll around the video to see the view from the ship’s bow in all 360-degrees.
The phrase, “to find one’s sea legs” has a meaning much deeper than freedom from seasickness. Finding your sea legs is the ability to adjust to a new situation or difficult conditions. Everything on board Gordon Gunter was new and sometimes difficult for me. Luckily, I have help from the best group of scientists and NOAA Corps crew a Teacher at Sea could ask for.
At 8:00 p.m. I was part of the leg’s first oceanography station operation. I watched closely as the bongo nets were tied tightly at the end then raised into the air by the winch and J-Frame for deployments into the sea. While the bongo nets and CTD were sinking port side, I looked out at the horizon and much to my amazement, saw two humpback whales surfacing to the water. The mist from their blows lingered even after they descended into the water’s depths.
Phytoplankton
Once the bongo nets where recovered from the ocean, the crew and I worked quickly but with poise. We used a hose to spray the nets so that all the plankton would reach the bottom of the net when we dumped them into a container. I observed fellow scientist Leann pour each bongo’s sample into a jar, which she filled with water and then a small portion of formalin to preserve the samples. It began and was over so quickly that what took about an hour felt like ten minutes.
An hour later we reached our second station, and this time I was ready! Instead of mostly observing as I did during the first time, this time I was an active participant. Yes, I have a lot left to learn, but after my first day at sea and three stations under my belt, I feel like my sea legs are growing stronger.
Scroll around the 360-degree video to see the Science Party retrieve samples from bongo nets.
Becoming a Scientist (Wednesday, May 31)
I am not yet used to working until midnight. After all, the school where I teach dismisses students by 3:30 p.m. when the sun is still shining. Not to worry, I will adjust. It is actually exciting having a new schedule. I get to experience deploying the CTD and bongo nets during day light hours and a night time. The ocean is as mysterious as it is wide no matter the time of day.
You never quite know what the weather is going to be from one day to the next out at sea. Since my arrival at the ship in Newport, Rhode Island I have experiences overcast skies, sunshine, rain, and now dense fog. But that’s not all! The forecast expects a cold front will approach from the northwest Friday. Today’s fog made it difficult for the animal observers to spot many birds of whales in the area. Despite low visibility, there is still a lot to do on the ship. After our first bongo station in the early afternoon, we had a fire and abandon ship drills. Carrying out of these drills make all passengers acquainted with various procedures to be followed during emergency situations.
Fire drill
Muster station
Lifevest
Liferaft procedures
Immersion suit
I thoroughly enjoy doing the work at each station. Our sampling is interesting, meaningful, and keeps my mind off being sea sick. So far, I am doing much better than expected. The excitement generated by the science team is contagious. I now long for the ship to reach each oceanography station so I can help with the research.
Approximate position of our last station on May 31 in Georges Bank.
Animals Seen
So far the animals seen have been mostly birds. I am grateful to the mammal and seabird observers, Glen Davis and Nicholas Metheny. These two are experts in their field and can ID a bird from a kilometer away with long distance viewing binoculars.
Glen and Nicholas on the lookout.
Wilson-Storm-Petrel
Sooty Shearwater
Northern Gannett
Manx Shearwater
Red-throated Loon
Herring Gull
Double-crested Cormorant
Roseate Tern
Common Loon
Common Tern
Humpback Whale
Sand Lance
New Terms/Phrases
[Source — Merriam-Webster Dictionary]
Barometer: an instrument for determining the pressure of the atmosphere and hence for assisting in forecasting weather and for determining altitude.
Altimeter: an instrument for measuring altitude; especially an aneroid barometer designed to register changes in atmospheric pressure accompanying changes in altitude.
Flowmeter: an instrument for measuring one or more properties (such as velocity or pressure) of a flow (as of a liquid in a pipe).
Salinity: consisting of or containing salt.
Conductivity: the quality or power of conducting or transmitting.
Chlorophyll Maximum: a subsurface maximum in the concentration of chlorophyll in the ocean or a lake which is where you usually find an abundance of phytoplankton.
Ethanol: a colorless flammable easily evaporated liquid that is used to dissolve things
Formalin: a clear, water like solution of formaldehyde and methanol used especially as a preservative.
Did You Know?
The average depth of the ocean is about 12,100 feet. The deepest part of the ocean is called the Challenger Deep and is located beneath the western Pacific Ocean in the southern end of the Mariana Trench. Challenger Deep is approximately 36,200 feet deep. It is named after the HMS Challenger, whose crew first sounded the depths of the trench in 1875. [Source — NOAA Official Website].
NOAA Teacher at Sea Kelly Dilliard
Onboard NOAA Ship Gordon Gunter May 15 – June 5, 2015
Mission: Right Whale Survey Geographical area of cruise: Northeast Atlantic Ocean Date: June 4, 2015
Weather Data from the Bridge:
Air Pressure: 1025.1 mb
Air Temperature: 13.3 degrees C
Relative Humidity: 64%
Wind Speed: 13 knots
Wind Direction: 63 degrees
Science and Technology Log:
The sounds marine mammals make are often used to study them. Dolphins make clicks and whistles whereas humpback whales mostly sing. North Atlantic right whales also make sounds with their signature sound being described as an up-call, a rising whoop that lasts for about a second. Sei whales, on the other hand make a down-call, a sinking whoop. Right whales also make a variety of other sounds including: 1) eerie moans, 2) shrill screams which often occur when gathered in groups, and 3) a gunshot sound that sounds like a very loud pop and is thought to be an aggressive call towards males. These sounds are not easily heard, but can be observed on a sound spectrogram. A sound spectrogram is a graph of frequency (the number of cycles in a second, given as hertz) on the vertical axis and time on the horizontal axis. Right whale up-calls range in the low hertz levels of 100-300 hertz, while dolphins are much higher in pitch. The darker the call on the spectrogram, the louder the call is. To listen to a variety of right whale calls go to the Right Whale Listening Network for examples.
Right whale up-call on a spectrogram posted on the Northeast Fisheries Protected Species Branch website. Go to link to actually hear the call of a right whale and several other whale species.
Whale acoustics can be recorded by a variety of methods. On this cruise we are using two methods: sonobuoys deployed from the ship and autonomous acoustic technology (aka “gliders”). Let’s talk about sonobuoys first. The sonobuoys used on this cruise were first designed for the military but have found a second use in scientific research. They are housed in an aluminum tube about a meter in length and 10 centimeters in diameter. When the tube hits salt water it starts a chain reaction starting with deployment of the bright orange float. The sonobouy, with hydrophones, then bobs freely in the ocean and sends radio signals to an antenna high on the ship’s mast. The signal is then captured by a computer and a spectrogram of the sound is displayed and recorded. The sonobuoy has about an eight hour life span and a five mile range.
A defunct sonobuoy out of the aluminum case. You can see the orange float, and the round hydrophone (in the upper left corner) attached to the purple netting.
Chris Tremblay analyzing the signal coming from the sonobuoy that was deployed.
Two sei whales with orange float of the sonobuoy located to the left of the whales.
There are some limits to sonobuoys, namely the five mile (or more depending on model and antenna location) range. Doctors Baumgartner and Fratantoni at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) have developed a means of retrieving real-time detection of whale acoustics from autonomous acoustic gliders. The particular glider used in the Great South Channel is a Slocum glider. It looks a bit like a torpedo. It is programmed to follow a specific track and come to the surface every two hours to send data. The two researchers also developed a computer program that detects, classifies and reports interesting marine mammal calls otherwise the amount of data coming in would be completely overwhelming. The Slocum glider also measures fluorescence and other oceanographic conditions, similar to the CTD.
Today is the last full day on the ship and it is bittersweet. I have had a wonderful time and will be sad to go (but also glad to get home). I have learned so much about whales and the ocean. I have met some absolutely wonderful people, both scientists and crew. I am very grateful to all for incorporating me into their family. I would love to do this again next year.
NOAA Corps on this cruise. Back row: Operations Officer Ensign David Wang, Junior Officer Ensign Pete Gleichauf, Executive Officer Lieutenant Commander Colin Little, Augmenting Officer Lieutenant Junior Grade P.J. Klavon. Front row: Navigation Officer Ensign Kristin Johns, Junior Officer Ensign Melissa Mathes, Commanding Officer Captain Donn Pratt.
Even though we did not see the as many of the right whales that we wanted to, we did see several species including: humpbacks, sei whales, fin whales, minke whales, and Pete saw a sperm whale. Yesterday (June 4th) we were deploying plankton nets encircled by a few dozen feeding humpback whales. It was a spectacular show.
Two humpbacks feeding. Images collected under MMPA research permit #17355
Humback whale feeding. Images collected under MMPA research permit #17355.
Two humpbacks. Images collected under MMPA research permit #17355.
Humpback feeding. Images collected under MMPA research permit #17355.
Humpback. Images collected under MMPA research permit #17355.
NOAA Teacher at Sea Kelly Dilliard
(Almost-Almost) Onboard NOAA Ship Gordon Gunter May 15 – June 5, 2015
Mission: Right Whale Survey Geographical area of cruise: Northeast Atlantic Ocean Date: May 15, 2015
Personal Log
Well, as you can see we are not quite on the ship yet. Today is the day, though. We are heading from Woods Hole, MA to Newport, RI to get on the Gordon Gunter and we are to set sail at 5 pm or 17:00. On Wednesday, I traveled to Newport and the Gordon Gunter with one of the scientists, a marine mammal specialist named Suzanne Yin (she goes by Yin). She was extremely helpful in making the shuttle to Newport and the Taxi to get onto the Navy base where the Gordon Gunter is docked.
Once there we met up with many of the other scientists and helped to unload all of the scientific equipment and two small boats that will be deployed off the stern. Antennas were installed for acoustic work and the science labs were organized. I got to meet many of the scientists who will be on board and some that are not travelling. The project involves personnel from NOAA Fisheries and from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI). There are full time workers, contractors, and student interns. All of them are extremely nice and welcoming.
Loading equipment onto the Gordon Gunter (photo taken by Yin)
Standing alongside the Gordon Gunter in port. (Photo taken by Yin)
After loading the ship and getting a bit organized it was determined that the ship would not make a good place to stay until Friday. One of the scientists, Chris Tremblay offered up a guest room and I headed back with them to Woods Hole. Yesterday (Thursday, May 14th) while everyone continued getting ready, I headed on the ferry to Martha’s Vineyard where I rented a car and drove around the island.
Martha’s Vineyard is actually composed of two islands to the south of Cape Cod. The island, similar to Cape Cod is the remnant of glaciers. The island marks the location of a terminal moraine and consists of sediment that was pushed there by glaciers and then left behind as the glaciers receded. It is an island now as sea level increased and separated this part of the moraine from other parts. The island is covered in glacial erratics, large rocks left behind by the receding glaciers. Many of these smaller rocks have been turned into rock walls all over the island.
Map of Martha’s Vineyard
An interesting geologic feature of the island is Gays Head Cliffs. The cliffs are also referred to as the Aquinnah Cliffs and they are located on the western most edge of the island. The Gay Head Cliffs are composed of series of white, grey, red, and black clays that are Cretaceous in age (about 75 million years old). These beds once formed the coastal plain of North America but were pushed upwards by the moving glaciers to form part of the moraine. The top of the cliffs are composed of glacial deposits, including boulders, some of which have tumbled down to the beach. A viewpoint above and a walk on the beach provided a really nice view of the cliffs.
The Gay Head Cliffs, located on the western edge of the island.
I continued my tour around Martha’s Vineyard by heading east to Edgartown and the Katama Beach. I walked for a while on the beach trying to see the spit, but had to give up in the interest of time. Still, the beach was very spectacular especially since I seemed to have it all to myself. I found all sorts of seashells and dead crabs along my walk. The beach itself is bordered by vegetated sand dunes.
Katama Beach, located to the south of Edgartown on the eastern side of the island. The beach is bordered by vegetated sand dunes.
From Edgartown, I headed north to Oak Bluffs to see some unique architecture including The Gingerbread Cottages, a colony of more than 300 small, unique decorated homes around a central park. This area started out as a Methodist meeting place with families setting up tents around a central park in the late 1800’s. Over the years, the tents were built on platforms and then the platforms had porches, and then they became these small, elaborate cottages. They are very cute, but I am not sure I would want to take on the task of repainting one.
One of the Gingerbread Cottages in Oak Bluffs.
From Oak Bluffs I returned to Vineyard Haven to return my rental car and to board the ferry for Woods Hole. I had a wonderful day touring Martha’s Vineyard.
Reference: Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, and Nantucket: The Geologic Story, by Robert N. Oldale, 2001 (revised), published by On Cape Publications. (you can download the book from the author’s website: http://woodshole.er.usgs.gov/staffpages/boldale/Default.htm)
