NOAA Teacher At Sea Vincent Colombo Aboard NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson June 11 – 30, 2015
Mission: Annual Walleye Pollock Survey Geographical Area of Cruise: Bering Sea Date: June 4, 2015
Introduction
Greetings from Delaware! This is my introductory post for my Teacher at Sea experience. I am set to arrive in Kodiak, Alaska on Monday June 8th. My name is Vinny Colombo, teacher at Sussex Technical High School in Georgetown, Delaware. I live near Bethany Beach, DE, and an experience on the water is less than a 5 minutes drive away. As you can see below, Delaware is part of the Delmarva Peninsula. A peninsula is an area surrounded on three sides by water. Accordingly, the Atlantic Ocean and tidal bays are part of our every day lives.
The Delmarva Peninsula
My next post will be from NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson. I am anxiously awaiting being a part of the annual walleye pollock survey. Some of the reasons I have decided to study fisheries is because I absolutely love the water. Below are some pictures of things I will be missing out on until I return in July.
Sunrise on Indian River BayA beautiful day on the Indian River BayBlue CrabsFlounder Fishing in the BayAnother Picture of Indian River Bay
While on the Bering sea, my research study will be to assess the population of Walleye Pollock, an integral part of the Alaskan ecosystem, economy and global commerce. Pollock are a key fish in the food web of the waters surrounding Alaska. The best comparison I have to the pollock is the Atlantic Menhaden found in the waters surrounding Delmarva. Menhaden have different names depending on where you live, such as Bunker, Elwys, Moss Bunker, and Pogy. The way we know exactly the species is by its scientific name: Brevoortia tyrannus. Many other species of fish and invertebrates rely on this very special species of fish.
A juvenile menhaden
A catch of over 300 Menhaden
Sustaining fisheries is vitally important to all of the environment. I look forward to learning more and sharing my experiences with you right here. Please check back soon for more information.
Before we get into detail about data and where all of it ends up, let’s talk acronyms. This trip has been a lot like working in the Special Education world with what we like to call “Alphabet Soup.” We use acronyms a lot and so does the NOAA Science world. Here are a few important acronyms…
AFSC – Alaska Fisheries Science Center (located in Seattle, WA)
MACE – Midwater Assessment and Conservation Engineering Program (also in Seattle)
CLAMS – Catch Logger for Acoustic Midwater Surveys
We recorded data in a program called CLAMS as we processed each haul. The CLAMS (see above: Catch Logger for Acoustic Midwater Surveys) software was written by two NOAA Scientists. Data can be entered for length, weight, sex and development stage. It also assigns a specimen number to each otolith vial so the otoliths can be traced back to a specific fish. This is the CLAMS screen from my very first haul on the Oscar Dyson.
Kacey’s first haul on the Oscar Dyson.
From the Species List in the top left corner you can see I was measuring the length of Walleye Pollock- Adult. In that particular haul we also had Age 2 Pollock, a Chum Salmon and Chrysaora melanaster (a jellyfish or two). There is the graph in the lower left corner that plots the sizes in a bar graph and the summary tells me how many fish I measured – 462! When we finish in the Wet Lab we all exit out of CLAMS and Robert, a zooplankton ecologist working on our cruise, ducks into the Chem Lab to export our data. There were a total of 142 hauls processed during the 2014 Summer Walleye Pollock Survey (June 12 – August 13) so this process has happened 142 times in the last two months!
Next, it is time to export the data we collected onto a server known as MACEBASE. MACEBASE is the server that stores all the data collected on a Pollock survey. Not only will the data I helped collect live in infamy on MACEBASE, all the data collected over the last several years lives there, too. CLAMS data isn’t the only piece of data stored on MACEBASE. Information from the echosounding system, and SBE (Sea-bird Electronics temperature depth recorder) are uploaded as well.
We’ve reached the end of the summer survey. Now what? 142 hauls, two months of echosounder recordings, four Drop TS deployments and 57 CTD’s. There have also been 2660 sets of otoliths collected. Scientists who work for the MACE program will analyze all of this information and a biomass will be determined. What is a biomass? Some may think of it as biological material derived from living or recently living organisms. In this case, biomass refers to the total population of Walleye Pollock in the Bering Sea. In a few weeks our Chief Scientist Taina Honkalehto will present the findings of the survey to the Bering Sea Plan Team.
That team reviews the 2014 NOAA Fisheries survey results and Pollock fishing industry information and makes science-based recommendations to the North Pacific Fishery Management Council, who ultimately decide on Walleye Pollock quotas for 2015. Think about Ohio’s deer hunting season for a minute. Each hunter is given a limit on how many deer they can tag each year. In Pickaway & Ross counties we are limited to three deer – two either sex permits and one antlerless permit. If every deer hunter in Ohio was allowed to kill as many deer as they pleased the deer population could be depleted beyond recovery. The same goes for Pollock in the Bering Sea. Commercial fisheries are given quotas and that is the maximum amount of Pollock they are allowed to catch during a given year. The scientific research we are conducting helps ensure the Pollock population remains strong and healthy for years to come.
Personal Log:
Earlier today I took a trip down to the Engine Room. I can’t believe I waited until we were almost back to Dutch Harbor to check out this part of the ship. The Oscar Dyson is pretty much a floating city! Put on some ear protection…it’s about to get loud!
Kacey stands by one of four diesel engines on the Oscar Dyson. (Photo credit: Sweet William)
Why must we wear ear protection? That large machine behind me! It is a 3512 Caterpillar diesel engine. The diesel engine powers an electric generator. The electric generator gives power to an electric motor which turns the shaft. There are four engine/generator set ups and one shaft on the Dyson. The shaft turns resulting in the propeller turning, thus making us move! When we are cruising along slowly we can get by with using one engine/generator to turn the shaft. Most of the time we are speeding along at 12 knots, which requires us to use multiple engines/generators to get the shaft going. Here is a shot of the shaft.
The shaft of the Oscar Dyson.
Engineering Operation Station
The EOS, or Engineering Operation Station, is the fifth location where the ship can be controlled. The other four locations are on the Bridge.
Engine Data Screen provides information about the engines, generators and shaft.
This screen provides Engineers with important info about the generators (four on board) and how hard they’re working. At the time of my tour the ship was running on two generators (#1 and #2) as shown on the right side of the screen. #3 and #4 were secured, or taking a break. The Officer of the Deck, who is on the Bridge, can also see this screen. You can see an Ordered Shaft RPM (revolutions per minute) and an Actual Shaft RPM boxes. The Ordered Shaft RPM is changed by the Officer on Deck depending on the situation. During normal underway conditions the shaft is running at 100-110 RPMs. During fishing operations the shaft is between 30 and 65 RPMs.
The port side winch of the Oscar Dyson.
When I talked about the trawling process I mentioned that the Chief Boatswain is able to extend the opening of the net really far behind the stern (back) of the ship. This is the port side winch that is reeled out during trawling operations. There are around 4300 meters of cable on that reel! How many feet is that?
The rudder of the Oscar Dyson is right below this part of the hydraulic system.
Part of the hydraulic system on the Oscar Dyson.
When Lt. Ostapenko and ENS Gilman were teaching me how to steer this ship they emphasized how sensitive the steering wheel is. Only a little fingertip push to the left can really make a huge difference in the ship’s course. This is the hydraulic system that controls the rudder, which steers the ship left or right. The actual rudder is hidden down below, under water. I’m told it is a large metal plate that stands twice as tall as me. This tour really opened my eyes to a whole city that operates below the deck I’ve been working on for the last 18 days. Without all of these pieces of equipment long missions would not be possible. Because the Oscar Dyson is well-equipped it is able to sail up to forty days at a time. What keeps it from sailing longer voyages? Food supply!
And just like that I remembered all good things must come to an end. This is the end of the road for the Summer Walleye Pollock Survey and my time with the Oscar Dyson. We have cleaned and packed the science areas of the ship. Next we’ll be packing our bags and cleaning our staterooms. In a matter of hours we’ll be docking and saying our goodbyes. There have been many times over the last 19 days where I’ve stood, staring out the windows of the Bridge and thinking about how lucky I am. I will never be able to express how thankful I am for this opportunity and how it will impact my life for many, many years. A huge THANK YOU goes to the staff of NOAA Teacher at Sea. My fellow shipmates have been beyond welcoming and patient with me. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU to everyone on board the Dyson!! I wish you safe travels and happy fishing!
To Team Bluefin Tuna (night shift Science Crew), thank you for your guidance, ice cream eating habits, card game instruction, movie watching enthusiasm, many laughs and the phrase “It is time.” Thanks for the memories! I owe y’all big time!
Did you know? The ship also has a sewage treatment facility and water evaporation system onboard. The MSD is a septic tank/water treatment machine and the water evaporation system distills seawater into fresh potable (drinking and cooking) water.
A shot of Captain’s Bay from the Flying Bridge of the Oscar Dyson. (Photo credit: Robert)
Kacey on the Flying Bridge of the Oscar Dyson. (Photo credit: Emily)
Kacey on the NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson R-224. (Photo Credit: Emily)
Last night and afternoon was by far the craziest we’ve seen on the Oscar Dyson. The winds were up to 35 knots (about 40 miles an hour). The waves were averaging 12 feet in height, and sometimes reaching 15-18 feet in height. Right now I’m sitting on the bridge and waves are around 8 feet. With every rise the horizon disappears and I’m looking up at stark grey clouds. With every drop the window fills with views of the sea, with the horizon appearing just below the top of the window frames.
In the space of three seconds, the view from atop the bridge of the Oscar Dyson goes from looking up to the sky to down at the sea. The above pic is a MILD example.
Ensign Gilman, a member of NOAA Corps, explains to me how the same thing that makes the Bering Sea good for fish makes things rough for fishermen.
“This part of the Bering Sea is shallow compared to the open ocean. That makes the water easier for the wind to pick up and create waves. When strong winds come off Russia and Alaska, it kicks up a lot of wave action,” Ensign Gilman says.
Lt. Andrew Ostapenko, Survey Tech Bill Potts, and Ens. Nathaniel Gilman on the Bridge
“It’s not so much about the swells (wave height),” he continues. “It’s about the steepness of the wave, and how much time you have to recover from the last wave.” He starts counting between the waves… “one… two… three… three seconds between wave heights… that’s a pretty high frequency. With no time to recover, the ship can get rocked around pretty rough.”
Rough is right! Last night I got shook around like the last jelly bean in the jar. I seriously considered finding some rope to tie myself into my bunk. There were moments when it seemed an angry giraffe was jumping on my bunk. I may or may not have shouted angrily at Sir Isaac Newton that night.
Which brings us to Sea Sickness.
Lt. Paul Hoffman, a Physician’s Assistant with the U.S. Public Health Service, explains how sea sickness works.
“The inner ears are made up of tubes that allow us to sense motion in three ways,” Hoffman explains. “Forward/back, left/right, and up/down. While that’s the main way our brain tells us where we are, we use other senses as well.” He goes on to explain that every point of contact… feet and hands, especially, tell the brain more information about where we are in the world.
“But another, very important piece, are your eyes. Your eyes are a way to confirm where you are in the world. Sea Sickness tends to happen when your ears are experiencing motion that your eyes can’t confirm,” Hoffman says.
For example, when you’re getting bounced around in your cabin (room), but nothing around you APPEARS to be moving (walls, chair, desk, etc) your brain, essentially, freaks out. It’s not connected to anything rational. It’s not enough to say “Duhh, brain, I’m on a boat. Of course this happens.” It happens in a part of the brain that’s not controlled by conscious thought. You can’t, as far as I can tell, think your way out of it.
Hoffman goes on to explain a very simple solution: Go look at the sea.
“When you get out on deck, the motion of the boat doesn’t stop, but your eyes can look at the horizon… they can confirm what your ears have been trying to tell you… that you really are going up and down. And while it won’t stop the boat from bouncing you around, your stomach will probably feel a lot better,” Hoffman says.
Everything is easier on deck! Clockwise from left: Winch Operator Pete Stoeckle and myself near Cape Navarin, Russia. Oceanographer Nate Lauffenburger and myself crossing the International Date Line. Survey Tech Alyssa Pourmonir and Chief Scientist Taina Honkalehto near Cape Navarin, Russia.
And he’s right. Being up on the bridge… watching the Oscar Dyson plow into those stout waves… my brain has settled into things. The world is back to normal. Well, as normal as things can get on a ship more than a third of the way around the world, that is.
Personal Log:
Let’s meet a few of the good folks on the Oscar Dyson.
NOAA Crew Member Alyssa Pourmonir
Job Title: Survey Technician
Survey Tech Alyssa Pourmonir assesses a giant jelly fish!
Responsibilities on the Dyson: “I’m a liaison between crew and scientists, work with scientists in the wet lab, put sensors onto the trawling nets, focus on safety, maintaining all scientific data and equipment on board.” A liaison is someone who connects two people or groups of people.
Education Level Required: “A Bachelors degree in the sciences.” Alyssa has a BS in Marine and Environmental Science from SUNY Maritime with minors in oceanography and meteorology.
Job or career you’ve had before this: “I was a life guard/swim instructor in high school, then I was in the Coast Guard for three years. Life guarding is the BEST job in high school!”
Goal: “I strive to bring about positive change in the world through science.”
Weirdest thing you ever took out of the Sea: “Lump Sucker: They have big flappy eyebrows… they kinda look like a bowling ball.”
Lump Sucker! When provoked, this fish sucks in so much water that it becomes too big for most other fish to swallow. That’s its defense mechanism! It sort of looks like a cross between a bowling ball and grumpy cat!
Dirtiest job you’ve ever had to do on a ship: “Sexing the fish (by cutting them open and looking at the fish’s gonads… sometimes they explode!) is pretty gross, but cleaning the PCO2 filter is nasty. There are these marine organisms that get in there and cling to the filter and you have to push them off with your hands… they get all slimy!”
Engineer Rico Speights shows off how nasty a filter can be! He and his wife (Chief Steward Ava) sail the Bering Sea together with NOAA!
NOAA Rotating Technician Ricardo Guevara
Job Title: Electronics Technician
Responsibilities on the Dyson: “I maintain and upkeep most of the low voltage electronics on the ship, like computer networking, radio, television systems, sensors, navigation systems. All the equipment that can “talk,” that can communicate with other devices, I take care of that.”
Education level Required: High school diploma and experience. “I have a high school diploma and some college. The majority of my knowledge comes from experience… 23 years in the military.”
Technician Ricardo Guevara shows me an ultrasonic anemometer… It can tell the wind speed by the time it takes the wind to get from one fork to the other.
Job or career you’ve had before this: “I was a telecommunications specialist with the United States Air Force… I managed encryption systems and associated keymat for secure communications.” This means he worked with secret codes.
Trickiest problem you’ve solved for NOAA: “There was a science station way out on the outer edge of the Hawaiian Islands that was running their internet off of dial-up via satellite phone when the whole thing shut down on them… ‘Blue Screen of Death’ style. We couldn’t just swap out the computer because of all the sensitive information on it. I figured out how to repair the disk without tearing the machine apart. Folks were extremely happy with the result… it was very important to the scientists’ work.”
What are you working on now? “I’m migrating most of the ship’s computers from windows xp to Windows 7. I’m also troubleshooting the DirecTV system. The problem with DirecTV is that the Multi-Switch for the receivers isn’t communicating directly with the satellite. Our antenna sees the satellite, but the satellite cannot ‘shake hands’ with our receiver system.” And that means no Red Sox games on TV! Having entertainment available for the crew is important when you’re out to sea for two to three weeks at a time!
What’s a challenging part of your job on the Dyson? “I don’t like it, but I do it when I have to… sometimes in this job you have to work pretty high up. Sometimes I have to climb the ship’s mast for antenna and wind sensor maintenance. It’s windy up there… and eagles aren’t afraid of you up there. That’s their place!”
Lt. Paul Hoffman
Job Title: Physician Assistant (or P.A.) with the U.S. Public Health Service
Lt. Paul Huffman and the small boat Peggy D behind him. Lt. Huffman is with the U.S. Public Health Service. But secretly I call him the Bat Man of Health Care. Peggy Dyson is a beloved part of the Alaska Fishing Industry’s history. Before the internet and satellite telephones, her radio service served as a vital link home for fishermen out at sea. She was married to Oscar Dyson, the man for whom the ship was named.
Responsibilities on the Dyson: He’s effectively the ship’s doctor. “Whenever a NOAA ship travels outside 200 miles of the U.S. coast, they need to be able to provide an increased level of medical care. That’s what I do,” says Hoffman.
Education required for this career: “Usually a Masters degree from a Physician’s Assistant school with certification.”
Job or career you’ve had before this: “Ten and a half years in the U.S. Army, I started off as an EMT. Then I went on to LPN (Licensed Practical Nurse) school, and then blessed with a chance to go on to PA school. I served in Iraq in 2007-2008, then returned for 2010-2011.”
Most satisfying thing you’ve seen or done in your career: “Knowing that you personally had an impact on somebody’s life… keeping somebody alive. We stabilized one of our soldiers and then had a helicopter evac (evacuation) under adverse situations. Situations like that are what make being a PA worthwhile.”
Could you explain what the Public Health Service is for folks that might not be familiar with it?
“The Public Health Service is one of the seven branches of the U.S. Military. It’s a non-weaponized, non-combative, all-officer corps that falls under the Department of Health and Human Services. We’re entirely medical related. Primary deployments (when they get sent into action) are related to national emergency situations… hurricanes, earth quakes… anywhere where state and local resources are overrun… they can request additional resources… that’s where we step in. Hurricane Katrina, the Earthquake in Haiti… a lot of officers saw deployment there. Personally, I’ve been employed in Indian Health Services in California and NOAA’s Aircraft Operations Center (AOC)… they’re the hurricane hunters,” Hoffman concludes.
Kids, when you’ve been around Lt. Hoffman for a while, you realize “adverse conditions” to him are a little tougher than a traffic jam or missing a homework assignment. I’ve decided to call him, and the rest of the Public Health Service, “The Batman of Health Care.” When somebody lights up the Bat Signal, they’re there to help people feel better.
Date: August 8, 2014 Weather information from the Bridge:
Air Temperature: 11° C
Wind Speed: 27 knots
Wind Direction: 30°
Weather Conditions: High winds and high seas
Latitude: 60° 35.97 N
Longitude: 178° 56.08 W Science and Technology Log:
If you recall from my last post we left off with fish on the table ready to be sorted and processed. Before we go into the Wet Lab/Fish Lab we need to get geared up. Go ahead and put on your boots, bibs, gloves and a jacket if you’re cold. You should look like this when you’re ready for work…
This is the gear you’ll need in the Wet Lab. It can get pretty slimy in there! (Photo Credit: Emily)
The first order of business is sorting the catch. We don’t have a magic net that only catches Pollock. Sometimes we pick up other treats along the way. Some of the cool things we’ve brought in are crabs, squid, many types of jellyfish and the occasional salmon. One person stands on each side of the conveyor belt and picks these other species out so they aren’t weighed in with our Pollock catch. It is very important that we only weigh Pollock as we sort so our data are valid. After all the Pollock have been weighed, we then weigh the other items from the haul. Here are some shots from the conveyor belt.
Kacey lifts the door on the table so the fish will slide down onto the conveyor belt. This is when other species are pulled out. (Photo Credit: Sandi)At the end of the conveyor belt, Pollock are put into baskets, weighed and put into the sorting bin. (Photo Credit: Sandi)
Not every single fish in our net is put into the sorting bin. Only random selection from the catch goes to the sorting bin. The remaining fish from the haul are returned back to the sea. Those fish who find themselves in the sorting bin are cut open to determine their sex. You can’t tell the sex of the fish just by looking at the outside. You have to cut them open, slide the liver to the side and look for the reproductive organs. Males have a rope-like strand as testes. Females have ovaries, which are sacs similar to the stomach but are a distinctly different color.
This is the sorting bin. Can you guess what Blokes and Sheilas means?The white, rope-like structure is the male reproductive organ.The pinkish colored sac is one of the female’s ovaries. It contains thousands of eggs!Kacey uses a scalpel to cut the fish. She slides the liver out and looks for the reproductive organs. Is it a male or female? (Photo Credit: Darin)
Okay, no more slicing open fish. For now! The next step is to measure the length of all the fish we just separated by sex. One of the scientists goes to the blokes side and another goes to the sheilas side. We have a handy-dandy tool used to measure and record the lengths called an Ichthystick. I can’t imagine processing fish without it!
The Ichthystick is used to record the length of fish. A special tool held in the hand has a magnet inside that makes a connection with a magnet strip inside the board. It automatically registers a length and records it in a computer program called ClamsKacey measures the length of a male with the Ichthystick. She holds the tool in her right hand and places it at the fork in the fish’s tail. A special sound alerts her when the data is recorded. (Photo Credit: Darin)
That is the end of the line for those Pollock but we still have a basket waiting for us. A random sample is pulled off the conveyor belt and set to the side for another type of data collection. The Pollock in this special basket will be individually weighed, lengths will be taken and a scientist will determine if it is a male or female. Then we remove the otoliths. What are otoliths? They are small bones inside a fish’s skull that can tell us the age of the fish. Think of a tree and how we can count the rings of a tree to know how old it is. This is the same concept. For this special sample we remove the otoliths, which are labeled and given to a lab on land where a scientist will carefully examine them under a microscope. The scientist will be able to connect the vial containing the otoliths to the other data collected on that fish (length, weight, sex) because each fish in this sample is given a unique specimen number. This is all part of our mission, which is analyzing the health and population of Pollock in the Bering Sea!
Kacey scans a barcode placed on an otolith vial. Robert is removing the otoliths from each fish and Kacey places them in the vial. It is important to make sure the otoliths are placed in the vial that corresponds to the fish Robert measured. (Photo Credit: Emily)
Kacey removes an otolith from a fish Robert cut open. The otoliths are placed in the vial Kacey is holding. (Photo Credit: Emily)
At this point we have just about collected all the data we need for this haul. Each time we haul in a catch this process is completed. As of today, our survey has completed 28 hauls. Thank goodness we have a day shift and a night shift to share the responsibility. That would be a lot of fish for one crew to process! For our next topic we’ll take a look at how the data is recorded and what happens after we’ve completed our mission. By the way, “blokes” are males and “sheilas” are females. Now please excuse us while we go wash fish scales off of every surface in the Wet Lab, including ourselves!
Personal Log:
Just so you know, we’re not starving out here. In fact, we’re stuffed to the gills – pun completely intended. Our Chief Steward Ava and her assistant Adam whip up some delicious meals. Since I am on night shift I do miss the traditional breakfast served each morning. Sometimes, like today, I am up for lunch. I’m really glad I was or I would have missed out on enchiladas. That would have been a terrible crisis! Most people who know me realize there is never enough Mexican food in my life! Tacos (hard and soft), rice and beans were served along with the enchiladas. Each meal is quite a spread! If I have missed lunch I’ll grab a bowl of cereal to hold me over until supper. I bet you’ll never guess we eat a lot of seafood on board. There is usually a fish dish at supper. We even had crab legs one night and fried shrimp another. Some other supper dishes include pork chops, BBQ ribs, baked steak, turkey, rice, mashed potatoes, and macaroni and cheese plus there are always a couple vegetable dishes to choose from. We can’t forget about dessert, either. Cookies, cakes, brownies or pies are served at nearly every meal. It didn’t take long for me to find the ice cream cooler, either. What else would one eat at midnight?!
Ava and Adam are always open to suggestions as well. Someone told Ava the night shift Science Crew was really missing breakfast foods so a few days ago we had breakfast for supper. Not only did they make a traditional supper meal, they made a complete breakfast meal, too! We had pancakes, waffles, bacon, eggs, and hashbrowns. It was so thoughtful of them to do that for us, especially on top of making a full meal for the rest of the crew. Thanks Ava and Adam!
There are situations where a crew member might not be able to make it to the Mess during our set serving schedule. Deck Crew could be putting a net in or taking it out or Science Crew could be processing a catch. We never have to worry, though. Another great thing about Ava and Adam is they will make you a plate, wrap it up and put it in the fridge so you have a meal for later.
Like I said, we’re not going hungry any time soon! Here are some shots from the Mess Deck (dining room).
Mess Deck on the Oscar Dyson.Mess Deck on the Oscar Dyson. Can you guess why there are tennis balls on the legs of the chairs?There are always multiple options for every meal. If you’re hungry on this ship you must be the pickiest eater on Earth!
Did you know?
Not only are otoliths useful to scientists during stock assessment, they help the fish with balance, movement and hearing.
Now that we have chosen a location to fish, the real fun begins! With a flurry of action, the Bridge (control center of the ship) announces we are going to trawl (fish). This alerts the Deck Crew who has the responsibility of deploying a net. There are three different types of trawls, AWT (Aleutian Wing Trawl), 83-112 Bottom Trawl, and the Marinovich. The type of trawl chosen depends on the depth in the water column and proximity to the bottom of what we want to catch. The 83-112 Bottom Trawl pretty much does what it is called. It is drug along the bottom of the ocean floor and picks up all sorts of awesome sea creatures. The Marinovich is a smaller net that is trawled near the surface. For this Pollock survey, we have primarily used the AWT. It is a mid-water net and that is the area where Pollock primarily live.
Diagram of the Aleutian Wing Trawl (AWT).
As you can see in the diagram, the AWT is cone-shaped. When fully deployed it is 491 feet long! The opening of the net, similar to a mouth, is about 115 feet wide. The Chief Boatswain (pronounced bo-sun) controls the winches that let wire out which extends the opening of the net at least another 500 feet from the aft (rear) deck of the ship.
The ITI screen located on the Bridge that allows us to see how far behind the boat and at what depth the net is located.
The Deck Crew begins to roll out the net and prepares it for deployment. There are several pieces of equipment attached along the way. A Camtrawl is attached first. Can you guess what it does? It is essentially a camera attached to the net that records what is being caught in the net. Near the Camtrawl, a pocket net is attached to the bottom side of the AWT. This pocket net can show scientists what, if any, fish are escaping the AWT. On a piece of net called the kite that is attached to the headrope (top of the mouth/opening), the FS70 and SBE are attached. The FS70 is a transducer that reports data to the Bridge showing the scientist what is coming into the net, similar to a fish finder. The SBE is bathythermograph that records water temperature and depth. Tomweights are added next. These heavy pieces of chain help weigh the footrope (bottom of the mouth/opening) down, pulling it deeper into the water. The net continues to be reeled out and is finally connected to lines on each side of the deck. The horizontal distance between the lines helps the net to fully open its mouth.
The Camtrawl lets us see fish as they enter the net.Attaching the tomweights as the net is deployed.
While the net is out the Bridge crew, the Chief Boatswain, the Survey Tech and at least one scientist are on the Bridge communicating. Each person has a role to ensure a successful catch. The Bridge crew controls the speed and direction of the boat. The Chief Boatswain controls the net; changing the distance it is deployed. The Survey Tech has information to report on one of the computers. Lastly, the scientist watches multiple screens, making the decision on how far out the net goes and when to haulback (brings the net in). Ultimately, the Bridge crew is the liaison between all of the other departments and has the final decision on each step of the process, keeping everyone’s safety in mind. This piece of the fishing puzzle quickly became my favorite part of the survey. It is so neat to listen to the chatter of all these groups coming together for one purpose.
On the Bridge during a trawl – left to right: Lt. Frydrych, Officer of the Deck; Taina Honkalehto, Chief Scientist; Allen Smith, Survey Tech; Chief Boatswain Kirk Perry.
Once we have reached haulback the Chief Boatswain alerts his deck crew and they begin reeling the net back in. They watch to make sure the lines are going back on the reel evenly. When the tomweights come back on deck they are removed. The next items to arrive are the FS70 and SBE. They are removed and the reeling in continues. The Camtrawl comes in and is removed and the pocket net is checked for fish. By that point we are almost to the end of the net where we’ll find our catch. Because the net is very heavy, the deck crew uses a crane to lift it and move it over the table. A member of the Deck Crew pulls a rope and all the fish are released onto the table. The table is a piece of equipment that holds the fish on the deck but feeds them into the Wet Lab by conveyor belt. Once the fish have been removed from the net it is finally rolled up onto the reel and awaits its next deployment. In my next blog we’ll get fishy as we explore the Wet Lab!
Deck Crew members Bill (left) and Mike (right) prepare a full net to be hoisted to the table by the crane.
Personal Log:
I have delayed writing about this next location on the ship because it is my favorite place and I want to make sure I do it justice. Plus, the Officers who stand watch on the Bridge are really awesome and I don’t want to disappoint them with my lack of understanding. Here are a few pictures showing some of the things I actually do understand…
Display of tanks located on board the Dyson.
This screen provides Officers with valuable information about the ship’s engine, among other things. This diagram shows multiple tanks located on the ship. Some tanks take in seawater as we use diesel fuel, drinking water, etc. to counter balance that usage and keep the Dyson in a state of equilibrium. Also, if they are expecting high seas they may take in some of the seawater to make our ship heavier, reducing the effects of the waves on the ship. I’ve been told this may be important in a couple of days because we’re expecting some “weather.” That makes me a little nervous!
The General Alarm on the Bridge.
The General Alarm is really important to the safety of all those on the ship but it is not my favorite thing every day at noon. The General Alarm is used to signal us in an emergency – Abandon Ship, Man Overboard, Fire, etc. It is tested every day at noon…while I’m sleeping!! “Attention on the Dyson, this is a test of the ship’s General Alarm.” BEEEP. “That concludes the test of the ship’s General Alarm. Please heed all further alarms.”
ENS Gilman updates a chart during his watch.
What would happen if all of our fancy technology failed on us? How would we know where to tell the Coast Guard to find us? NOAA Corps Officers maintain paper charts as a back up method. At the time this photo was taken the Officer was predicting our location in 30 minutes and in 60 minutes. This prediction is updated at regular intervals so that we have a general area to report in the case of an emergency. Officer Gilman completes this task during his shift.
Kacey learns how to steer the Dyson from Lt. Ostapenko. (Photo Credit: ENS Gilman)
Have I mentioned that the NOAA Corps Officers onboard the Dyson are awesome? They’re so great they let me steer the boat for a little while! In the photo Lt. Ostapenko teaches me how to maintain the ship in a constant direction. The wheel is very sensitive and it took some time to adjust to amount of effort it takes to turn left or right. We’re talking fingertip pushes! The rudder is so large that even just a little push left or right can make a huge difference in the ships course.
Kacey records data on the Bridge during an AWT. (Photo Credit: Darin)
Since beginning our survey I’ve only missed being on the Bridge for one trawl. Because I have paid very close attention during those trawls Scientist Darin is now allowing me to record some data. I am entering information about the net in this photo. Survey Tech Allen is making sure I do it correctly!
There are so many other things on the Bridge that deserve to be showcased. The ship can be controlled from any one of four locations. Besides the main control center at the front of the Bridge, there are control stations on either side of the ship, port and starboard, as well as the aft (rear). There is the radar system, too. It is necessary so the Officers can determine the location of other vessels and the direction they are traveling. As I’ve been told, their #1 job responsibility is to look out the windows and make sure we don’t run into anything. They are self-proclaimed nerds about safety and that makes me feel very safe!
Did you know? The NOAA Commissioned Officers Corps is one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. There are currently 321 commissioned officers.
