Tag: NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow

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Tonya Prentice: Introduction, August 2, 2024

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Tonya Prentice
Aboard NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow
August 8 – August 24, 2024

Mission: Northeast Ecosystem Monitoring Survey 

Geographic Area of Cruise: Northeast Atlantic Ocean

Date: August 2, 2024

Weather Data from Southwest Harbor, Maine
Latitude: 44.2805 º  N  
Longitude: -68.326º W
Wind Speed: WSW at 11 mph
Air Temperature: 18.89° Celsius (66° F)

Introduction

Hello, my name is Tonya Prentice. I am so excited to begin my adventure aboard NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow for the NOAA Teacher at Sea 2024 Season. I teach middle school science for grades 5-8 on Mount Desert Island, Maine, at Tremont Consolidated School in Bass Harbor. This is my 17th year of teaching, and I am passionate about engaging my students with project-based learning, community service opportunities, and STEM activities.

In my role as an educator, I strive to create engaging and interdisciplinary learning experiences for my students with a focus on ocean literacy. My students are the next generation of environmental stewards. They live on an island, and many of their families are lobstermen and/or fishermen who rely on the health of the ocean. We are fortunate that our school is located in a beautiful area that borders Acadia National Park and is across the street from Bass Harbor. This allows me to take my students hiking, kayaking, snowshoeing, and exploring the ecosystems all around us.

The health of our ecosystems may be altered in different ways by human impact. It’s vital that my students understand how climate change and coastal flooding may impact their lives in the future. As a NOAA Teacher at Sea, I am excited to bring real-world scientific research into my classroom and inspire my students with firsthand experiences. I look forward to sharing my adventures and discoveries with you, and I hope to ignite a passion for marine science and environmental stewardship in both my students and readers.

Stay tuned for updates from the sea!

A woman and a man pose for a selfie on a kayak in front of glassy water reflecting a lovely sunset. They are wearing sweaters, life vests, beanies, and sunglasses.
Tonya Prentice (right)
six students (with their backpacks) sit in a line, facing away from the camera, on top a large round rock overlooking a small inlet surrounded by forested hills; small islets are visible beyond.
Top of Bubble Rock
view of at least four harbor seals basking on rocks in bright blue ocean water; in the distance we see a farther shoreline and mountains.
Harbor seals
Three people lean over clumps of seagrasses in a tide pool area. They have placed a one meter square of PVC pipe down on the grasses. Two of them use a measuring tape while another picks through the grass. A purple sample bucket with a plastic bag and laminated identification sheets sits off to the side. The people wear high-visibility vests.
Green crab research
three people kayak toward a tree-lined coastline, their backs to the camera. they wear life vests. the water is calm beneath a blue sky.
Kayaking in the salt marsh
view from the ocean of a lighthouse perched on the rocky cliffs of an island coastline. The light itself is painted white, with a black top, and nearby are a few additional buildings that are white with red roofs. The cluster of buildings is surrounded by tall conifers. The sky is blue with a few fluffy white clouds.
Bass Harbor Head Light Station


Science and Technology Log

Next week, I will board the 209 ft. NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow in Newport, Rhode Island.

“The ship is named after Henry Bryant Bigelow (1879-1967), an oceanographer, zoologist, and marine biologist whose work helped establish oceanography as a scientific discipline.” (NOAA OMAO.)

NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow “is a fisheries survey vessel built specifically for NOAA to support the study and monitoring of marine fisheries and marine mammals.” (NOAA Ocean Exploration.) The ship conducts both acoustic and trawl surveys and has a wet lab where scientists can collect data about the different species of fish caught.

While aboard NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow, I will have the opportunity to deploy a drifting buoy (also known as a drifter) as part of NOAA’s Adopt-a-Drifter Program. The buoy will collect data such as sea surface temperature, salinity, and ocean currents. This data will then be transmitted hourly to orbiting satellites which my students will be able to monitor.

aerial view of NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow underway, as seen from the portside. it's a large white ship with the NOAA logo next to the identifiers NOAA R 225. the surrounding water is so dark it appears black.
Aerial view of NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow. Photo credit: NOAA.

Personal Log

Last week, I attended the University of Maine’s RiSE Coastal TRACERS training.

“The University of Maine-based RiSE Center supports middle and high school students in real-world science research projects, including coastal monitoring and tracking the changes in local ocean water properties, as well as engaging in the design and construction of the sensor units used to collect this data.” (UMaine.)

As part of my training, I toured the “Buoy Barn” at the University of Maine Ocean Observing System (UMOOS). Dr. Neal Pettigrew, professor of oceanography, led the tour while explaining how these moored buoys in the Gulf of Maine help collect data and information about ocean temperatures, salinities, dissolved oxygen, wave heights and periods, and current profiles.  “The buoys, designed, fabricated and maintained by Dr. Pettigrew’s team of oceanographers, engineers, computer programmers and research associates, have been transmitting real-time data since 2001.”  Such amazing work is happening at the University of Maine!

Two large buoys in a storage shed. They are wide and round at the bottom, to float in the ocean, and towers of sensors and equipment extend upward from each base. The buoys are painted mostly yellow, with blue bottoms and blue lettering: the left buoy reads NOAA and the right reads UPRM.
Land/Ocean Biogeochemical Observatory (LOBO) Data Buoys
a large buoy in a storage shed (flanked by other buoys and equipment, only partially visible.) It are wide and round at the bottom, to float in the ocean, and towers of sensors and equipment extend upward from the base. The buoy is painted mostly yellow, with blue bottom and blue lettering: the buoy reads NOAA 41052. The word CariCOOS is visible in smaller letters on the tower portion.
Land/Ocean Biogeochemical Observatory (LOBO) Data Buoy
this vessel looks like a small sailboat, one too small to fit people. in fact, the hull is covered completely (no room for seating) and dotted with solar panels. The hull is red, and the sails are white and orange. It's inside a storage shed, and ocean buoys are partially visible behind it.
Navocean
Automated Surface Vessel
ocean monitoring equipment in a storage shed; this glider is shaped a bit like a small airplane (aerodynamic body, wings, tail.) It's stored on a small trailer or cart with wheels, on top of a bench.
Slocum Electric Glider
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Cecelia Carroll: A Busy Day Off the Coast of New Hampshire and Massachusetts, May 11, 2017

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Cecelia Carroll

Aboard NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow

May 2 – 13, 2017  

Mission: Spring Bottom Trawl

Geographic Area: Northeastern Atlantic

Date: May 11, 2017

Latitude: 42.45.719 N
Longitude: 282.18.6 W

Science and Technology

As soon as the day group’s shift started at noon we were right into sorting the catch and doing the work-up of weighing, measuring and taking samples.

It’s with a good bit of anticipation waiting to see what the net will reveal when its contents are emptied! There were some new fish for me to see today of which I was able to get some nice photos.  I was asked today if I had a favorite fish.  I enjoy seeing the variety of star fish that come down the conveyor belt as we sort through the catch even though they are not part of the survey.  The Atlantic Mackerel (Scomber scombrus) are beautiful with their blue and black bands on their upper bodies and their shimmering scales.  They are a schooling fish and today one catch consisted primarily of this species. I’m fascinated with the unusual looking fish such as the goosefish, the Atlantic wolffish (Anarchichas lupus) with its sharp protruding teeth, and some of the different crabs we have caught in the net.  Another catch today, closer to land where the seafloor was more sandy, was full of Atlantic Scallops. Their shells consisted of a variety of interesting colors and patterns.

Today I also had a chance to have a conversation with the Commanding Officer of the Henry B. Bigelow, Commander Jeffrey Taylor.  After serving as a medic in the air force, and with a degree in Biology with a concentration in marine zoology from the University of South Florida.  What he enjoys about his job is teaching the younger NOAA officers in the operation of the ship.  He is proud of his state-of-the-art ship with its advanced technology and engineering and its mission to protect, restore, and manage the marine, coastal and ocean resources.  Some things that were touched upon in our conversation about the ship included the winch system for trawling.  It is an advanced system that monitors the cable tension and adjusts to keep the net with its sensors open to specific measurements and to keep it on the bottom of the seafloor. This system also is more time efficient. The Hydrographic Winch System deploys the CTD’s before each trawl.  CO Taylor also related how the quiet hull and the advanced SONAR systems help in their missions.  What we discussed that I am most familiar with since I boarded the Henry B. Bigelow is the Wet Lab, which was especially engineered for the Henry B. Bigelow and its survey missions. This is where I spend a good bit of time during the survey.  The ergonomically designed work stations interface with the computer system to record and store the data collected from the fish samples 100% digitally. I was pleased to hear what thought, skill and fine tuning had gone into designing this room as I had earlier on the trip mentally noted some of the interesting aspects of the layout of the room. Commanding Officer Taylor also had high praise for his dedicated NOAA Corps staff and the crew, engineers and scientists that work together as a team.

 

Sea stars

 

Atlantic mackerel

 

TAS Cecelia Carroll holds a wolffish

 

Crab and sea star

 

Atlantic sea scallops