NOAA Teacher at Sea
Jeff Lawrence
Onboard Research Vessel Hugh R. Sharp
June 8-19, 2009
Mission: Sea scallop survey
Geographical area of cruise: North Atlantic
Date: June 9, 2009
Weather Data from the Bridge
S winds 5-10KT
Seas 1-2ft
Barometric pressure 1029mb
Air Temperature 78˚F
Visibility clear
Cold front moving offshore towards us later today, rain expected.
Science and Technology Log
The sorting table is full of activity as soon as the dredge is pulled aboard the ship. After the crew secure all lines and dump the load the volunteers and scientist begin to sort through the biological that has been brought up from the bottom or the Atlantic Ocean. Each dredge can bring a varied amount of sea life on the ship. We are always looking for scallop, yet every third dredge we also sort for crabs. All fish are also sorted and counted.
After all the sorting is done the fish, scallops, and crabs are weighed and measured for length. They are then logged into the onboard computer for analysis of results for each catch. We are trawling along closed areas for scallops. These areas have been closed for commercial fishing to ensure that the population has time to recover in that area. Scallop surveys are carried out by the R/V Hugh R. Sharp, in three phases during the summer. Duane and I are on the second leg, which encompasses the area to the east of Delaware, areas around Long Island, and the area around Martha’s Vineyard south of Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
Personal Log
The work aboard the ship can be very long and laborious. The days are long, as each member of the cruise will do a 12-hour shift. My shift is from noon to midnight. The conditions can vary greatly during a shift. During the day the sun may be out with light winds and it gets very warm with all the wet weather gear that is worn during sorting. It is necessary to leave the gear on between dredges, since they occur so often. As soon as the sun goes down the temperatures can drop very rapidly. It is important to keep a hooded sweatshirt and other warm weather gear nearby for the changing conditions. All gear must be taken with you when you leave your cabin so that the other shift can sleep uninterrupted. The days are long, with the goal of all who are onboard to get the science completed in a timely fashion. Keeping a ship stored with goods and running is very expensive so the goal is to get as much science completed in the allotted time as possible.
Question of the Day
What other bottom dwelling species in the Atlantic are under protection from over-fishing?
Animals Seen Today
Scallops, eels, crabs, starfish, clams, silver dollars, urchins, goose fish, and many varieties of bottom dwelling fish.
