 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
||||||||
 |
 |
|||||||
 |
||||||||
 |
||||||||
 |
||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
|
|
||||||||
|
|
||||||||
|
|
||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||
 |
MISSION DISPATCH 7 • 07/19/01 Today's Weather - images courtesy of NOAA & RSMAS • RADARSAT Images Dispatch by Heath Mills - Georgia Institute of Technology July 17/18, 2001 Today concludes 'Diving to Extremes' with dive 4327 marking the end of submersible operations, with a total of 22 dives since leaving port on the 2nd of July. The last few JSL dives allowed us to complete the last of our objectives, including the retrieval of agar plugs, deployment of a time-lapse camera, and collection of tube worms, mussels, and other invertebrates. Wednesday, July 18, will be an all day transit to Gulfport, MI with an ETA of 0700. Throughout the entire trip, the weather has been flawless. Warm days, slightly less warm nights, and smooth seas were more than we had expected. Now all of the research groups must begin packing and take flight back to their respective institutions. Experiments from the samples collected will fill the up coming months, but for now we soak in the remaining glimpses of the Gulf and enjoy our final day on the water. 
Every person that has had the opportunity to be aboard the R/V SEWARD JOHNSON has undoubtedly gotten to know crew member April Wouters. Wearing her trademark University of Alabama hat, April finishes launch procedures for Dive mission 4323 on Sunday afternoon. April can be seen through out the day doing a variety of tasks, but one thing remains the same, she 
will always have a big smile on her face. Photograph by Heath Mills
During a Chirp survey of site GC185, a bubble plume was witnessed on the monitor. The Chirp survey is a type of SONAR device used aboard the SEWARD JOHNSON to observe bottom features. The plume originates from a mound 525 meters below the surface and continues up approximately 275 meters in the water column. To determine the plume's chemical and biological characteristics, CTD deployments in and out of the bubble plume will be closely examined by the Sobecky, Montoya, and Joye labs. No surface operations of this nature can be conducted while the sub is in the water. This forces most CTD deployments to occur through the early morning hours. Photograph by Heath Mills 
Seen in silhouette, Frank Lombardo positions himself atop the JOHNSON-SEA-LINK preparing to attach the sub to the giant A-frame. This mission, number 4327, is the final mission for our cruise. A highly skilled and dedicated sub crew led by Craig Caddington assured our safety and successful sample collections throughout our 22 dives. Photograph by Heath Mills 
The final mission allowed time for a little invertebrate sample collection.
Attached to the JOHNSON-SEA-LINK platform is the original Dr. Chuck Fisher
(patent pending we are sure) BioBox, a device that allows for the collection
of large amounts of live sample retrieval. Following mission 4327, the box
contained two species of
tubeworms and a variety of mussels and snails. As
seen in an earlier photo, two Galatheid crabs were also captured.
Photograph by Heath Mills
Dr. Joe Montoya shows off his mussels while removing samples from the
BioBox. While an undergraduate, Dr. Montoya studied invertebrate zoology
allowing him a flashback to his earlier years as a budding young scientist.
But these samples will be soon removed from Dr. Montoya's clutches. Seen in
the background, Lance Miller from Georgia Tech will assure the timely
transition to Erik Cordes for safe keeping. Photograph by Heath Mills
With submersible operations finished for the cruise, sub pilot Kenny O'Brien
decides to ham it up for the camera on the back deck.
Throughout the cruise, Kenny has always been someone to add new ideas to
experiments and lend a creative hand to developing new testing methods. But
if you only talk science with Kenny, you have unfortunately missed great
discussions on wide ranges of topics including history, philosophy and
religion. Photograph by Heath Mills
 | |
 | ||