Santa Cruz – NOAA Teacher at Sea Blog

June 13, 2024June 13, 2024

Charlotte Sutton: Learning the Lasker, June 11, 2024

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Charlotte Sutton

Aboard NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker

June 7 – June 18, 2024

Mission: Rockfish Recruitment and Ecosystem Assessment Survey (RREAS)

Geographic Area of Cruise: Pacific Ocean; U.S. West Coast

Date: June 11th, 2024

Weather Data from the Bridge

Date: Tuesday, June 11, 2024
Latitude: 35.42 °N
Longitude: 121.22 °W
Sea Wave Height: 4-5 ft
Wind Speed: 4 knots
Air Temperature: 57 ° F
Sky: Foggy / light rain

Science Log

Arriving on the Lasker

We’re off! After landing in San Francisco and driving down to Santa Cruz, I arrived on the NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker by way of small boat transfer. The Lasker was anchored in Monterey Bay, and sent a small boat to pick up myself and some of the science team and crew to be taken aboard. We boarded the small boat, the “RL-2 Shark,” then traveled to the side of the Lasker where we were hoisted up via a winch. I then got a full tour around the ship, and the opportunity to meet many people who work on the Lasker, including members of the science team, NOAA Corps, and Lasker crew.

Teacher at Sea Charlotte Sutton poses for a photo on board the small boat RL-2 Shark. She's wearing a life vest and a hard hat and holding in her hands a jacket with neon yellow reflective coloring. Behind the small boat, we can see the Santa Cruz harbor. — Charlotte boards the RL-2 Shark in Santa Cruz

a view up the portside of NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker, facing the aft deck, as seen from the small boat the water's surface. Winch cables and a frame have been lowered off the side of the large vessel. We can see a davit arm toward the aft. — Charlotte boards the RL-2 Shark in Santa Cruz

The Night Shift

Running a ship like the Lasker is a 24-hour-a-day operation. At all times there are some groups of people sleeping and others who are working. The majority of the science crew works at night, so my day typically begins with dinner at 5:00 pm and then working with the science team from approximately 9:30 pm until 6:30 am. As a morning person this was very difficult at first! But after two nights working, I’m finally adjusting to our new schedule.

What is the Goal of the Survey?

The main scientific focus of the upcoming mission is the Rockfish Recruitment and Ecosystem Assessment Survey (RREAS). This survey has been conducted since 1983, and collects data on rockfish and other organisms in their ecosystem.

Rockfish are a very important fish commercially and recreationally in California and on the West Coast. One of the primary purposes of the survey is to use the data collected to help provide additional information about the management of commercial and recreational fisheries off the west coast.

CTD Operations

On the ship's deck at night, a man stands facing away from the camera, looking down a large apparatus nearly the height of his shoulder. Inside a round metal frame are gray cannisters arranged in a circle (the "rosette"), surrounding a scientific probe mounted in the center. A cable extends from the top of the appartus out of sight. The man wears a hard hat, a life vest, and sunglasses and grasps a gray rope looped through a rung of the rosette. Another man, also wearing life vest and hard hat, is seen at a distance beyond the apparatus. It's nighttime. — CTD rosette, ready to be deployed into the ocean.

I began my first night shift by observing a CTD deployment. CTDs are instruments that measure Conductivity, Temperature and Depth (CTD). CTD measurements are conducted approximately 5-6 times a day, and twice at night. The CTD descends down into the ocean to a depth of up to 500 m . There are other instruments and sensors attached to the CTD that measure things like chlorophyll levels and oxygen levels. The data taken from the water column serves as a foundation for scientists to understand the ocean environment.

All of the CTD data, and all the data that the Lasker collects, is free and available to the public.

Trawling

a hand-drawn diagram of a trawl net in two positions: net while fishing (on top) and net deployment and retrieval (bottom.) The lines are all labeled: we see the headrope (with buoys) at the top of the net, the footrope (small buoys) at the base of the opening, the bridle lines, door leg and transfer lines, the doors, and lines "to trawl winch" and net "to cod end." — Hand-drawn diagram of trawl net, courtesy of scientist Tanya Rogers.

When do we trawl?

The reason the science team trawls at night because there is net avoidance during the daytime, meaning the fish will see the net coming during the day and swim away from it. Other creatures migrate towards the surface at night. In a pattern called vertical migration, these mesopelagic species migrate to shallow waters to feed during the night, while spending day hours at depth.

Having more diverse species to study is useful for the Rockfish Recruitment and Ecosystem Assessment Survey (RREAS). The more data that is collected on rockfish and other species helps scientists to better understand the heath of different fish species, and make predictions and assessments of ocean trends.

How does trawling work?

Each night, the Lasker crew, NOAA corps officers, and science team work together to trawl for different fish species.

“Trawls, which are nets towed behind a boat to collect organisms, have been used by fishers for centuries. Trawls can be divided into three categories based on where they sample the water column: surface, midwater, and bottom.” (NOAA Ocean Exploration)

In our Rockfish Recruitment and Ecosystem Assessment Survey, the science team conducts midwater trawls, at approximately 30m depth to target the fish and other ocean organisms that are targeted for the study.

The last few days we’ve averaged 5 trawls per night. The process begins by deploying the trawling net behind the ship into the midwater section of the water column, and trawling for fish for either 5 or 15 min. After the net is brought in, the contents of the trawl are sorted, measured, and recorded by the science team. This data will be later analyzed to help better understand the ocean ecosystem.

Charlotte stands at a large white bin, about three feet long, containing a pile of small silver-colored fish. She uses two hands to hold up a plastic pitcher filled with a sample of the fish - two other empty pitches rest in the bin. Charlotte wears a coat, orange grundens (fishing overalls), long orange gloves, and her Teacher at Sea beanie hat. — Teacher at Sea Charlotte with the catch of a trawl.

Six people stand three to a side along a long metal table and face the camera for a photo. They are wearing heavy fishing overalls and long orange gloves, and each grasps a pair of tweezers in one hand. On the metal table, white plastic trays contain subsets of the catch; in the foregroud, two of these plastic trays contain organisms that have already been sorted and neatly arranged. — The science team sort fish and other organisms from the trawl.

Personal Log

NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker: My New Home at Sea

NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker (photo courtesy of NOAA)

My new home for my time at sea is the NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker. The Lasker is a NOAA fisheries vessel, with a home port located in San Diego, CA.

“The ship’s primary objective is to support fish, marine mammal, seabird and turtle surveys off the U.S. West Coast and in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean” (NOAA Office of Marine and Aviation Operations).

During my time at sea, the Lasker will be sailing off the coast of California, sailing out of Santa Cruz and back into port in San Diego.

Living on the ship reminds me a lot of my college dorm room. On the ship most people have roommates, and we all have shared spaces like the mess (cafeteria), science labs, outside decks and places to relax. Everyone aboard the ship has been extremely welcoming and kind, always answering any questions I might have and teaching me about life aboard a ship. I am happy to call the Lasker home over my trip at sea!

a bulletin board housed in a case with sliding glass doors, titled OUR CREW. The background of the display is a nautical chart of the California coast around the Channel Islands, though it is mostly obscured. Photos of the crew members are cut out and pinned all over the chart. There's also a magazine article about Reuben Lasker, the ship's namesake. — There are three major teams working and living as a cohesive unit aboard the *Lasker*. The *Reuben Lasker* crew, NOAA science team, and NOAA Corps officers each have distinct roles and work together each day to accomplish various science projects.

view of a sunset over a calm sea — Sunset aboard the *Lasker*.

Did you know?

Adjusting to working the night shift (approximately 9:00 pm – 7:00 am) as a typical morning person has meant sleep is often on my mind. Chatting before our second night shift, scientist Ily Iglesias shared with me how dolphins sleep. Both dolphins and whales sleep much differently than most mammals. Known as unihemispheric sleep, dolphins

“only rest half of their brain while the other half stays awake to breathe. Also, most whale and dolphin respiratory and digestive tracts are completely separate, so they don’t get water in their lungs when feeding underwater.” (NOAA Fisheries).

June 7, 2024June 7, 2024

Charlotte Sutton: Introduction, June 7, 2024

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Charlotte Sutton
Aboard NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker
June 7 – June 18, 2024

Mission: Rockfish Recruitment and Ecosystem Assessment Survey (RREAS)

Geographic Area of Cruise: Pacific Ocean; U.S. West Coast

Date: June 6th, 2024

Weather Data (Santa Cruz)

Date: 06/06/2024
Time: 08:00
Latitude: 36.98°N
Temperature: 60°F
Longitude: 122.01°W

Introduction

Hello! My name is Charlotte Sutton and I am thrilled to be a Teacher at Sea for the 2024 Season. I have been teaching for 5 years, and currently teach preschool at Orion Elementary at Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson (JBER), Alaska. It is truly my passion to teach our littlest learners, and to help them grow and learn each day. Teaching in Alaska, students are surrounded by nature and wildlife. JBER is located near both the Knik Arm (Dena’ina: Nuti) and the Turnagain Arm (Dena’ina: Tutl’uh) waterways that are part of the northwestern Gulf of Alaska, as well as many mountain ranges and forests. My students are very curious about the world around them, and often tell me about the fish (especially salmon), beluga whales, moose, and bears that they see around the Anchorage area. In my classroom, I love to help students investigate the world around them by explicitly teaching and practicing the foundations of the scientific inquiry process to help them to become resilient problem solvers not just in preschool but in the years ahead.

I plan to use my experience as a NOAA Teacher at Sea to educate and inform students about the world’s oceans not just in my own classroom but throughout my community on JBER.

A view of Charlotte sitting at the helm of a small boat. She's wearing a navy blue windbreaker with the hood pulled tightly over a baseball cap, smiling, and squinting a bit into the wind. In the foreground is a compass mounted on the vessel beyond the helm. In the background, we see a cloudy sky over gray waters, with developed shoreline, trees, and the silhouettes of far distant mountains.

A wintery scene; snow blankets the ground. The outer wall of a school building fills the left side of the photo. To the right is a snowy field, a shed, and icy trees. In the center, a mother moose stands looking after her young; the juvenile moose is resting on the snow against the building wall.

Photos: Charlotte Sutton; A mother and juvenile moose outside Orion Elementary in JBER, Alaska; View of the Turnagain Arm waterway, Alaska, taken from Bird Point Trail

Science and Technology Log

This week I will be aboard the NOAA Vessel Reuben Lasker as a NOAA Teacher at Sea. The Reuben Lasker is a fisheries survey vessel, meaning the primary mission to “support fish, marine mammal, seabird and turtle surveys off the U.S. West Coast and in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean”. The main scientific focus of the upcoming mission is the Rockfish Recruitment and Ecosystem Assessment Survey (RREAS). This survey has been conducted since 1983, and the data collected on rockfish and other fish like salmon helps scientists to better understand the heath of different fish species, and make predictions and assessments of ocean trends.

When I arrived in Santa Cruz, I had the opportunity to meet with NOAA Corps Officer LTJG Bonnie Vierra, who gave me a tour around Southwest Fisheries Science Center Santa Cruz Lab. This lab is where NOAA scientists and their team conduct research and operations when not at sea. This lab hosts an array of scientists who conduct various projects. I’m excited to join the NOAA crew aboard the Lasker soon!

A partial whale skeleton (lacking skull and perhaps pectoral fin bones) mounted on metal posts at a cliffside. Coastal plants cover most of the sand surrounding the display, but a picnic bench is visible in a clearing to the right. Beyond the vegetation, the gray ocean blends into the cloudy white-gray sky, creating a notable contrast with the brown whale bones. — **Photo**: *Partial Whale Skeleton outside of the Southwest Fisheries Science Center Santa Cruz Lab*

several small vessels on boat trailers in a line at the boatyard. We can see shelves of equipment to the left, and a small garage and sheds behind the vessels.

View inside a lab - workbenches, overhead lights, microscopes, stacks of containers.

Photos: Small NOAA vessels, research lab, and salmon tank at the Southwest Fisheries Science Center Santa Cruz Lab

Full-wall indoor mural depicting species found off the California coast, including rockfish, salmon, opah

view out the window of the lab over the coastal dunes; a small stained glass sturgeon hangs from threads over the top of the window

Photos: Art found at the Southwest Fisheries Science Center Santa Cruz Lab

Personal Log

Before I left for my Teacher at Sea trip, I received a last minute invitation to the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation Ocean Awards Gala. The National Marine Sanctuary Foundation’s mission is “The Foundation is a leading voice for U.S. protected waters, working with communities to conserve and expand those special places for a healthy ocean, coasts, and Great Lakes. Working together, we safeguard species and the places they call home, and preserve America’s maritime history.” The foundation supports the NOAA mission as the official nonprofit partner to NOAA’s National Marine Sanctuary System.

I happened to sit at the same table as Rear Admiral (RADM) Chad Cary. RADM Cary is currently deputy director for operations, NOAA Office of Marine and Aviation Operations (OMAO), and deputy director, NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps (NOAA Corps). He also was a previous Commanding Officer (CO) of the NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker which I’ll be sailing on in just a few days! He had so many wonderful things to say about both the science research team and the officers and crew of the Lasker. RADM Cary is also originally from Alaska, and I was so fortunate to get to speak with him before my upcoming time at sea aboard the Lasker.

I am so excited for the journey ahead!

Charlotte, in a full length floral dress, stands under the words "Ocean Awards Gala" projected against a curved stone wall — Charlotte Sutton

a group of people in formal wear mingle at a gala — Charlotte Sutton

Photos: Charlotte Sutton; National Marine Sanctuary Foundation Gala at Union Station in Washington D.C.; Charlotte Sutton and RADM Chad Cary

July 11, 2018

Kimberly Godfrey: Back in Philly… June 29, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Kimberly Godfrey

Aboard NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker

May 31 – June 11, 2018

Mission: Rockfish recruitment and ecosystem assessment survey

Geographic Range: California Coast

Date: June 29, 2018

*Update from previous blog*

I mentioned in my previous blog that one of our scientists was analyzing water samples for sea turtle eDNA. Here is what she added about her research…

“Kirsten Harper, a postdoctoral researcher with NOAA/AOML, collected water to analyze for environmental DNA (eDNA). This is DNA that might be left in the air, soil, or water from feces, mucus, or even shed skin of an organism. In her case, she is trying to detect the diurnal vertical migration of fish species, such as sardine, using eDNA. Additionally, she is using eDNA to detect the presence of leatherback turtles. Very little is known about leatherback turtles in the open ocean, as they are difficult to find and survey. eDNA could help solve this problem!”

I officially left the Reuben Lasker on the morning of June 11, 2018 via small boat transfer. While I was looking forward to getting back to family my students, I realized I wasn’t quite ready to leave the ship and the work behind. I finally felt integrated into the team and the work, and that quick it was over. I definitely wanted to stay!

The small boat transfer was fun; it was the fastest speed I traveled in over a week. We also spotted dolphins on the way into shore. Once on land, I had the opportunity to meet with Emily Susko, Program Specialist for NOAA TAS. I had almost a full day to spend on land, and [I believe] Emily knew I had only been to California once before for a very short visit. She was an awesome host and decided to show me some really cool attractions that were more first-time experiences for me.

The first place we visited was the Henry Cowell State Park, a well-known location for exploring redwood forests. I am not sure I ever knew the difference between the coastal redwoods and the giant sequoia redwoods; I now understand the coastal redwoods are the smaller of the two species. Nonetheless, there were still the biggest trees I think I’ve ever seen. I also had the chance to test some of my birding skills. I do not know Pacific coast species as well, but some calls sound similar to east coast species, and I feel pretty confident in saying I heard and saw chestnut-backed chickadees, a species we do not have in Philly.

Redwood Tree cookie — Kimberly Godfrey TAS 2018 with Emily Susko visiting Henry Cowell State Park.

Coastal Redwood — Coastal redwood tree in Henry Cowell State Park

The second place we visited was Natural Bridges State Beach. This was another equally exciting experience for me because, again, it was so different. On the east coast, the land is pretty flat along the ocean. Therefore, our coast is lined with salt marshes (another one of my favorite places). Being able to see the rocky coasts in Santa Cruz was cool because it’s something I’ve only seen in pictures. When we teach beach ecology, we use this coast as an example because the ecological boundaries are so visually obvious, and I saw it for the first time in person. We explored some of the tidal pools, and they were teeming with little organisms. Now the next time I teach about them in class, I can use my own pictures!

Tide Pool — Tide pool from Natural Bridges State Beach. I cannot wait to use these pictures in class in the Spring!

Long story short, I had a blast! I am so genuinely grateful for the opportunity to participate in something like this. As someone who started out in Marine Biology, it is near and dear to my heart. I like to think I knew a few things coming in, but I learn so much during this trip. I learned about how much has changed since the last time I did this type of research, like the importance of being able to read and write programming language to analyze data. I personally enjoyed working with people whose work has the potential to impact the environment and people alike. I also learned a lot about how many people it takes to get the work done. It included every individual on the ship, no matter his or her role.

It’s been a few weeks since I returned from my cruise. I had some time off to catch up with home life, and then had to get back in the office and prepare for the summer. Since our program is an out-of-school program, we are running programs and opportunities year-round. I have a group of Seniors who completed the program, the current 9^th-11^th grade students move up a grade, and we have a brand-new group of rising 9^th grade students beginning the WINS journey. Everyone, from family to colleagues to students, has been asking to hear about my experience. I have a few dates in place to present what I’ve learned and how they too can get involved. I am looking forward to the next stage of the process, writing the activities based on my experience.

I especially want to thank everyone from the Science Team, all of the NOAA Corps. Officers, and the crew of the NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker. I truly enjoyed my time while aboard the ship, and appreciate that you all welcomed me and treated me with kindness. I hope this is not my only visit to the Reuben Lasker!