MISSION DISPATCH 6 October 07, 2005 | Claire Nouvian - @SEA Correspondent We are heading to Woods Hole for shelter with the hope of returning to a deep-water canyon when the weather improves. Woods Hole is the closest available port to a future dive site. It feels very strange steaming away from a calm sea bathed in bright sunshine but high waves are forecast for the next few days. When we dock at the little town several hours after sunset, we decide to visit a local pub. You can tell by our optimism that no one envisages not going back to sea. This evening brings people closer together and acts to reinforce our desire to study midwater zooplankton in their natural environment. MISSION DISPATCH 7 October 08, 2005 | Claire Nouvian - @SEA Correspondent "Man, from an evolutionary point of view, is a success. But isn't the most remarkable success of all that evolution the extraordinary cycle, which takes him back to his origins, towards the depths of the sea of which he still holds nostalgia in his blood?" - Jacques Piccard, 1961 The storm arrived. The sea surface is choppy even in this sheltered port. The air is very warm. How strange. The wind blows ever stronger throughout the day. It's raining. We all sit quietly in the dry lab. Most of us are pecking at computer keyboards. David is cataloging the beautiful pictures he took. Jessica is using the spectrophotometer to determine the amounts of phosphate and ammonia excreted by gelatinous zooplankton during the 12-h periods when oxygen consumption was measured. Marsh and Kelly place watery zooplankton into aluminum pans and then stuff these containers into a tiny oven to bake the remains at low temperatures. Once dried, the residue will be weighed, homogenized, and processed for carbon content. These biomass data are used to standardize the measurements of oxygen consumption. I think of my deep dive. From now on, I know I'll be thinking about it often. I am glad I did not take a camera with me. There is always a conflict of interests between getting a suitable image and simply letting oneself be impressed. My deep dive was a continuous dream, a suspended moment in the course of my life. My memories would have been very different if I had captured images on film. The day passes slowly. We've checked e-mails and toured the nearby city of Falmouth. It's Saturday night, we all walk to another pub but with less enthusiasm. One night of socializing is great but a second one, when we wish we were back at sea, does not feel right. I think of the quiet depths of the sea, unaffected by surface turmoil. I feel nostalgia for this remote environment. We have a serious attraction to the deep sea. I hear in me an echo of what German philosopher C.J. Jung thought: "the depths of the sea are inherently linked to our human nature, they are the cradle of life and death, and probably the place of our origins." MISSION DISPATCH 8 October 09, 2005 | Claire Nouvian - @SEA Correspondent Marsh walks in the dry lab and tells us "we're closing down". VERY BAD NEWS. The weather is not improving. The first storm has drifted pass us but a second one will arrive in a few hours. Fifteen-foot waves are predicted over the shelf and slope. Such a sea state allows no chance to launch the submersible. We'll have no more dives on this trip. Everyone is so disappointed, even sad I must admit. Our group was working so well together; the dives were bringing up fantastic animals. What a shame we cannot continue. We have to start packing and stowing our gear and update travel arrangements. Marsh's positive nature changes our mood. "Although it was painful to have had to make the decision to end the cruise, we must look at the bright side. We accomplished a lot of research in a short period." Yes, he's right. We observed, collected, photographed, examined and respired many delicate deep-sea animals with the aid of an amazing submersible. Our success was due in large part to the professionalism of the submersible team and the ship's crew.

© 2005, Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution