Tag: sandy hook

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Chuck Gregory
Onboard NOAA Ship Thomas Jefferson
August 12 – 24, 2007

Mission: Hydrographic Survey
Geographical Area: New York Harbor
Date: August 19, 2007

“Our greatest happiness does not depend on the condition of life in which chance has placed us, but is always the result of a good conscience, good health, occupation, and freedom in all just pursuits.” ~Thomas Jefferson

Here’s the Plan of the Day (POD):
Sunrise = 0610h Sunset = 1950h
0000h Ship at Sandy Hook, NJ anchorage
0745h Launch safety brief (Survey)
0800h Deploy Launches
1745h Retrieve launches

Tides for Sandy Hook High @ 0031h (4.2 ft.) & 1307h (4.7 ft.); Low @ 0627h (0.8 ft.) & 1913h (1.2 ft.). Currents in Sandy Hook Channel Ebb: 0356h (1.3 kts.), 1638h (1.2 kts.); Flood: 1011h (1.8 kts.) & 2234h (1.3 kts.). Weather from Sandy Hook to Fire Island AM: NW winds 5kts., seas 1-2 ft., PM: S winds 10 kts., seas 2-3 feet.

Today’s goal: Conduct a few of those interviews. I’m not going out on the launches so I should have time to interview, do a little exercise and continue typing. The skies are overcast, but the seas are calm. I hope the calmness lasts throughout the day.

The interviews went well.  I was able to talk with CO Schattgen, my roommate Ensign Ostapenko, Senior Hydrographic Survey Technician Peter Lewit, Assistant Hydrographic Survey Technician Melody Ovard, Chief Electronics Technician Eric Thompson, and Chief Steward Dave Fare.  I’d like to do two or three more before my cruise is done. I was pretty impressed with myself when, once again, I exercised!  The exercise room is packed with a stationary bike, treadmill, free weights, and a few other pieces.  It’s never packed with users, and I was able to get right on the stationary bike for 20 minutes.  A note to anyone interested in going on a TAS cruise: take the time to exercise.  You can’t continue to eat three-plus square meals a day and not gain some serious weight.

While interviewing the CO, he again stated that tomorrow I would be able to steer the ship when we go out to sea to dump the “wet” trash.  He reviewed the equipment I would use (wheel, compass, etc.) and commands I would hear from the “Con” (or controller). He also went over my responses to the commands.  I am looking forward to this experience. Today ended with a light rain, a good dinner (turkey), and a bad movie (“Vacancy”).

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Chuck Gregory
Onboard NOAA Ship Thomas Jefferson
August 12 – 24, 2007

Mission: Hydrographic Survey
Geographical Area: New York Harbor
Date: August 18, 2007

“It takes time to persuade men to do even what is for their own good.” ~Thomas Jefferson

Here’s the Plan of the Day (POD):
Sunrise = 0609h Sunset = 1951h
0000h Ship at Sandy Hook, NJ anchorage
0745h Launch safety brief (Survey)
0800h Deploy Launches
1745h Retrieve launches

Tides for Sandy Hook Low @ 0554h (0.6 ft.) & 1825h (1.0 ft.); High @ 1225h (4.8 ft.) & 0031h (4.2 ft.). Currents in Sandy Hook Channel Ebb: 0314h (1.4 kts.), 1546h (1.3 kts.); Flood: 0925h (1.8 kts.) & 2146h (1.4 kts.). Weather from Sandy Hook to Fire Island AM: NW winds 15-20 kts., seas 3-5 ft., PM: NW winds 5-10 kts., seas 2 feet.

Today is Saturday, but on the ship it’s difficult to tell the work week from the weekend.  Just like the previous five days, the launches are scheduled to go out, the data is scheduled to come in, and there is work to be done around the ship.  For now deploying the launches has been put on hold until the sea calms down.  It’s a windy morning, but crystal clear, cool and beautiful.

My one goal today is simple – do laundry!  The laundry and exercise rooms are at the bottom of the stairway I use to access my stateroom: laundry to the left and exercise to the right. The laundry room is well equipped with two washing machines and two dryers, soap, bleach and softener. And it is all free!  I was able to do two loads, read some side scan sonar material and use the stationary bike at the same time.  [A Teacher At Sea of many talents!].  Peter loaned me a good book on the basics of side scan sonar.  Its citation is: Fish, J.P. and H.A. Carr. 1990. “Sound Underwater Images: A guide to the generation and interpretation of side scan sonar data.”  Lower Cape Publishing, Orleans, MA. I am particularly interested in learning about the history and development of side scan sonar, its applications, and how to interpret the many images we are producing from the launches. In addition, I hope to use some of this information when I write up my lessons for my Teacher At Sea Internship.  So I read a few chapters of this book and took several pages of notes.

While I was eating lunch I learned that today’s launches will not be going out.  The wind is still strong and the seas to rough to risk deploying the launches.  And a choppy sea can result in poor data when the launches heave, pitch and roll.  [I won’t even get into the sea sickness issue.] Also, today the CO gave me a copy of one of NOAA’s latest publications: Stanitski, D.M., 2007.  “Teacher at Sea: Mrs. Armwood’s Hydrographic Adventure on the NOAA Ship FAIRWEATHER.”  NOAA publication.  It’s a cute but accurate account of Linda Armwood’s trip to Alaska and her TAS internship work on the hydrographic survey.  At the time, Linda was a high school teacher from Richmond, Virginia. I can’t wait to read it!

As previously mentioned, one part of my internship assignment is coming up with 6-8 lessons that correspond with the science and research being done on the NOAA Ship THOMAS JEFFERSON. I am having a little trouble with this assignment because I have never written “lessons”.  As a community college teacher I have written lectures, labs, assignments, etc., but not lessons.  After looking over a few examples in the “Teacher At Sea” book, and some sent me from TAS Deputy Program Manager Elizabeth McMahon, I am going to assume that a “lesson” is similar to an “assignment” and work from there.  Goodness knows I have been exposed to enough interesting information to produce 6-8 assignments.  And I have 90 days to submit them after my cruise.

Another part of my internship is to do a few interviews of the ship’s crew.  I thought I’d interview at least one representative from each working group of ship personnel: an Executive Officer, a Junior Officer, a Survey Technician, a Deck Hand, someone  working in the Mess Hall, an Engineer, and the Electronics Technician.  Here are the questions I have so far:

1.  Name and rank (or job title).
2.  How long have you been working for NOAA?
3.  What did you do prior to working for NOAA?
4.  Describe your college education.
5.  How did you “find” your NOAA position?
6.  Describe your job on board the NOAA Ship THOMAS JEFFERSON.
7.  What is the best part of your job?
8.  What is the worse part of your job?
9.  Immediately after my Teacher At Sea Internship I plan to turn my experience into a Hollywood blockbuster. What person do you want to act as you in this movie?

Well, I’ve got some side scan sonar notes to type, dinner to eat, and Roxann to call. Maybe I’ll even spend a little more time on the exercise bike and catch tonight’s movie “Disturbia”. Good night! 

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Chuck Gregory
Onboard NOAA Ship Thomas Jefferson
August 12 – 24, 2007

Mission: Hydrographic Survey
Geographical Area: New York Harbor
Date: August 17, 2007

“Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.” ~Thomas Jefferson

Here’s the Plan of the Day (POD):
Sunrise = 0608h Sunset = 1952h
0000h Ship at Sandy Hook, NJ anchorage
0745h Launch safety brief (Survey)
0800h Deploy Launches
1745h Retrieve launches

Tides for Sandy Hook Low @ 0523h (0.3 ft.) & 1743h (0.8 ft.); High @ 1143h (4.9 ft.) & 2347h (4.5 ft.). Currents in Sandy Hook Channel Ebb: 0235h (1.6 kts.), 1501h (1.4 kts.); Flood: 0840h (1.9 kts.) & 2058h (1.6 kts.). Weather from Sandy Hook to Fire Island AM & PM: NW winds 5-10 kts., seas 2-4 ft.

Rise and shine for me was about 0630h, but the stateroom phone rang at 0300h.  Andy was soon up and out for his 0330h watch.

Our stateroom is small, but air conditioned and cozy.  It is about 16 feet long and 8 feet wide. The bunks hold two comfortably (I’m on the bottom) and each bunk has a curtain to keep the light out and the sound low. There’s a light above each bunk and a small shelf that holds my reading material, glasses and clock.  Andy even has a porthole above his bunk. Today you can see Manhattan through the porthole.  The room has a sink with odd tasting hot and cold water. Above the sink is an empty medicine cabinet.  Two sets of drawers hold our cloths and “stuff”, and what doesn’t fit in the drawers finds a home in one of two lockers. We even have a phone, TV and a refrigerator.  Last but not least is our emergency equipment: survival suits, life jackets, and emergency escape breathing devices. (Let’s hope we never have to use them!).

As I have mentioned before, adjoining our stateroom is a shared toilet and small shower.  So far I am doing quite well remembering to lock and unlock that gal’s door.  Two Ensign Megans reside next door: Ensign Megan G. who received a Bachelor’s degree from Smith, and Ensign Megan N. who is from the great state of Maine (Lewiston) and an UMaine graduate with a degree in marine biology. My goal today is to keep going with my log and do some school work. Classes start three days after I return to Maine and there is little prep time between now and then.  In short, it should be a quiet day.

I even had time to e-mail Tom Long, our Lab Technician back at Southern Maine Community College (SMCC).  Tom keeps our equipment ‘happy’, and I asked him about our side scan sonar – make, model, etc.  It turns out we have an Imagenex SportScan and Tom would like more input on possible post-survey software.  None of the folks on the THOMAS JEFFERSON have heard of Imagenex, but they were eager to offer advice about possible software.

Here’s an exciting addition form the CO, Tod Schattgen: “[Today] the boats returned to the ship at 1545 on schedule as a rather intense thunderstorm was fast approaching from the west.  The deck and boat crews quickly stored the launches on deck as lightning began to strike closer and closer to the ship.  10 minutes later the winds picked up to 20 knots with gusts to 33 knots and a band of rain passed over the ship. Rob the deck hand got a photo of a lightning striking the water on his cell phone.”

I was down below and missed all this excitement.  Bummer!

Oh, well…After a phone call to Roxann and a little TV, I was asleep by 2215h.

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Chuck Gregory
Onboard NOAA Ship Thomas Jefferson
August 12 – 24, 2007

Mission: Hydrographic Survey
Geographical Area: New York Harbor
Date: August 15, 2007

“Delay is preferable to error.” ~Thomas Jefferson

Here’s the Plan of the Day (POD):
Sunrise = 0606h Sunset = 1955h 0000h
Ship at Sandy Hook, NJ anchorage 0745h
Launch safety brief (Survey) 0800h
Deploy Launches (3101 & 3102) 1745h
Retrieve launches

Tides for Sandy Hook Low @ 0416h (-0.1 ft.) & 1624h (0.4 ft.); High @ 1020h (5.0 ft.) & 2225h (5.2 ft.). Currents in Sandy Hook Channel Ebb: 0120h (1.7 kts.), 1339h (1.6 kts.); Flood: 0717h (2.0 kts.) & 1930h (2.0 kts.). Weather from Sandy Hook to Fire Island AM: SW winds 10 kts., seas 2-4 ft.; PM: SW winds 10-15 kts., seas 2-4 ft.

My goal today is to improve my computer skills on the ship.  After an oatmeal breakfast I met with Eric, the ship’s Electronics Technician.  Eric was able to check out my laptop, get me a cable for the dial-up connection, and help me access NOAA charts for my Power Point Presentation. He was a huge help!

I am now able to catch up on my e-mails, surf the net, and get in touch with Teacher At Sea Coordinator, Elizabeth McMahon. Before I send out my log for day’s 1 & 2, I was asked to have Commander Schattgen (or his designee) review my material.  He was quick to read my e-mail log and add a few edits. Now it’s time so send it to Liz in Silver Spring.

The CO also added a few ideas for me to consider – being the helmsman when the ‘TJ’ heads out to sea for house keeping, observing the data acquisition and reporting process, and checking out a multibeam calibration test or patch test.  Since this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for my I ensured him I was open to anything…once! The rest of my day was spent getting all caught up with my computer work, and calling Roxann. I saw tomorrow’s POD and learned I will be once again heading out on Launch 3102 for 10 hours. The weather looks OK in the AM, but the wind and thunderstorms will pick up in the afternoon.  Now where did I put those Dramamine? I was in bed finishing up Cannery Row by 2100h.