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OPERATION DEEP SCOPE Exploring Gulf of Mexico Deep-Sea Habitats MISSION DISPATCH 9 • August 16, 2004 Dispatch by Mark Schrope - @Sea Photo-Journalist 
The first image the team saw of the beast couldn't have been framed more perfectly. Its massive
head began as a dim outline in the video frame then came straight for the camera growing until
it was little more than jaw nudging a giant isopod out of the way as it attacked the bait bag.
Once again the lab erupted with screams as the
Eye-in-the-Sea finest performance yet was discovered.
The subject this time was a huge sixgill shark, perhaps the one seen from the sub yesterday, but
revealed in a way that would never have been possible without the innovative system.
"It's so far and above anything I could have ever imagined," says Edie Widder of the sixgill footage from the Eye, "even if we got something like that I had thought it would just be a blur or a fin. To have that thing come in dead center on camera was just amazing." The initial shark clip, which looked almost menacing enough for a horror flick, drew a hooting and hollering crowd to the lab that periodically took to chanting the theme from Jaws. As Erika Heine rapidly went through later material she found several additional clips of the shark, giving a full range of views including a slow swim past the camera and more chomping. 
Besides proving the Eye-in-the-Sea concept once again, the shark clips were a resounding plug for
the makeshift rack system that now perfectly positions bait in front of the camera. This setup
ensured that the shark's antics remained in plain view. It also extended our view of the shark,
which would have carried off the bait bag quickly had it not been tied to the rack. Of course,
the giant did eventually rip the bag off, but not before the Eye had done its good work.
As exciting scientifically, if not quite as dramatic, was a clip the team came across minutes after the shark. It shows a small fish swimming curiously right up to the flashing bioluminescent jellyfish lure, which was also in plain view thanks to the rack. Besides simply recording what life is like in the deep, one of the main goals for the Eye is to capture how animals react to bioluminescence to better understand its uses. This fish footage clearly proved that goal within reach. Early deployments had led to reactions likely related to the jellyfish lure, but because the lure was out of view during earlier deployments we couldn't say for sure. The weather was kind today, and we were actually able to squeeze in two final dives here at methane seep and tubeworm gardens of Green Canyon. Besides allowing us to recover the Eye, much to the relief of those aboard, the dives also led to more remarkable fluorescence finds. On both dives, teams collected a fish known as a greeneye that has brilliant green fluorescence around its eyes and down its back. During the second dive, though, Mike Matz was in the front sphere and made an unexpected discovery that could have important applications. Using the blue lights and yellow filters he learned that methane hydrates are brightly fluorescent. Methane hydrates are ice crystals that form under a narrow range of temperature and pressure conditions trapping methane inside them. Hydrates are widespread throughout many deep-sea areas and some permafrost land areas as well. They are already being explored as a future energy source, and the new knowledge that they fluoresce could lead to new detection techniques. 
Onboard the ship, intrepid scientists also pursued side research into galley fluorescence. After examining
Pop Tarts, pretzels, and other items on hand, they discovered that goldfish crackers exhibit an impressive
fluorescent glow. It's not clear yet what application this knowledge will have, but its all part of exploration.
Staying for the second dive has cut our schedule close, but we should still be able to make the 17-hour run to Viosca Knoll and arrive there in time for two submersible dives before having to head for port at Panama City for our scheduled docking Wednesday morning. 
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