Settling Seas in the Journey's Final Week

Ship’s meeting just ended, and it marked the finale of our weekly Friday afternoon marine conservation talks from Barb and Boris. The weather cooperated for another precious day of class outside on the quarter deck – blue skies, fair-weather cumulus, and northeasterly trades seem too good to be true at times. Our greater appreciation of the beautiful weather follows our almost weeklong squally journey through the ITCZ (I think everyone onboard would agree that we overstayed our welcome). Anyway, we have about two hours until first sitting for dinner, and our two ‘COWs’ (Chief of the Week) have left us with plenty to think about. As Barb pointed out a few days ago, the students of Stanford@SEA 2009 are experiencing a very different ocean than she did on her voyage on the Westward. Despite passing through some highly productive waters, our lack of shark, turtle or marine mammal sightings throughout the cruise track is a good indication of how depleted our oceans have become in terms of biodiversity and top predators.

However, as I’m sure everyone at home can imagine, it is difficult to be a pessimist while sailing on a tall ship through the Central Pacific Ocean. So our marine conservation series ended on an appropriately optimistic note, with a nod towards the intimate experience and education we’ve had with the Pacific Ocean and how we can bring that home with us to increase awareness and even *gasp!* concern about the status of our finite and fragile marine resources.

The limited nature of these resources is even more apparent now as we approach Hawai’i and head into the more oligotrophic waters of the North Pacific Gyre. Thankfully there is still plenty to occupy us as we approach the home stretch. Our GPS continues to be concealed by a sign that says ‘Seek Guidance Elsewhere,’ so every morning and evening between Civil and Nautical Twilight, we are perfecting out celestial navigation skills through STAR FRENZYING!! During ‘Star Frenzy’ the quarter deck overflows with sextants and the air is filled with shouts of “Standby on Arcturus! Ready…and…MARK!” We have also moved into J.W.O./J.L.O. phase (junior watch officer/junior lab officer), so the 22 of us who thought a jib jigger was some sort of dance four weeks ago are now taking turns running the ship during our watches. Any offerings made to King Neptune would be greatly appreciated.

-Annie Scalmanini

Rough Seas in the ITCZ

We’ve been sailing through the last of the inter tropical convergence zone (ITCZ), an area of atmospheric activity that has led to confused seas in squalls, some high wind gusts of 35 knots and heavy seas. The ITCZ has handed RCS some heavier weather-without question its been rough the last few days, cloudy and squally- some of the biggest swells of the trip. Cooler weather is a welcome relief after the heat of the tropics.

The students handle this weather with ease now – their capacity to carry on scientific station work- measuring and pouring fluids to do nitrates, phosphates and nutrient or microscopic observations, sailing the ship, creating delicious galley meals, and being up at all hours to keep the vessel going by watch, from galley to deck is remarkable. Boris and I served all day yesterday in the galley, and this reaffirmed my awareness that this job is the hardest by far on the trip. Imagine cooking three meals and three snacks in a single day in a hot galley in a rolling sea. It is not easy, and the students do this every day with the guidance of our Steward Anna. At this point, the students of Stanford@SEA (S223 in SEA terms) are primarily taking charge in all aspects of the shipboard function.

The final phase of the trip has begun when each student is a JWO, which means a Junior Watch Officer. Here they will be completely in charge- with the true watch officers standing close by. JWOs provide leadership on the watch, calling out the commands for changing sails or helm orders, and JWO will be the communications point person with science deck.


The Tucker trawl being prepared for deployment

We’ve been studying the oxygen minimum layer intensively here in this portion of the Pacific. Its shoaled up to 100m in the past few casts. Oxygen is very low below 100m - perhaps becoming a biogeographic boundary for larger vertebrates. We’re using the Tucker trawl with 3 nets to sample the mesopelagic world that lies in this low oxygen zone and we’re finding some remarkable squid, hatchet fish and other very beautiful midwater animals capable of handling the harsh environs.


A silvery hatchetfish and a variety of bright red crustaceans come up in a midwater trawl

Alex and Nick have projects that will utilize the data sets being generated by the daily tows and intensive processing. Kate Lowry’s been working up the station data from the CTD and corresponding with our shore base support from NOAA (Dr. Dave Foley) for an in situ comparison of chlorophyll from the CTD and satellite data. Students are busy analyzing data for their individual projects and final oral reports and papers which are due early next week. The ship is a bee hive of activity and everywhere you go you see students with computers either discussing data or writing up their work.

The log shows we’re past 2500 nm on this trip- and we’re about 600 nm from Southpoint, Hawaii. That’s a lot of sailing in the Pacific, with a few hundred more miles to go before we see the mountainous volcanoes of the big island.

-Dr. Barbara Block

Sampling the Deep on the Long Haul to Hawaii

We're sailing and doing some motoring as we head north towards Hawaii. We have to average over 110 nm a day these days, with over 1000 nm ahead. We're doing 5-6 hours of station work, and the rest is travel time. Another large project has taken off- this time its Alex and Nik's OML project studying the remarkable shoaling of the oxygen minimal layer in this region of the inter tropical convergence zone (ITCZ), and examining the critters in the deep scattering layer. We're using a Tucker trawl which, when it works correctly, should tow a zooplankton-collecting net at a specific depth. We're pulling three nets and sending down messengers - small brass weights that slide down the line to open and close them - to sample the mesopelagic organisms at specific times and depths. We're pulling up lots of exciting fish, many of which have bioluminescent light organs and other adaptations specifically for life in the deep sea. Squalls are making things a bit blusterly at times and clouds have filled in as we course through the ITCZ.

-Dr. Barbara Block

Back in the Northern Hemisphere

The pollywogs await their trial in King Neptune's Court

We successfully crossed the equator with traditional shipboard pomp and ceremony aboard the RCS. We had discussed the crossing in class back at Hopkins, but the reality of tropical breezes, a hot day, 15-20 knot winds and a ship full of traditions wowed the pollywogs (those who have not been across the equator).

King Neptune and his Court prepare for the crossing ceremony

The pollywogs were treated quite fairly by the experienced shellbacks, led by the Court of King Neptune (Rob Dunbar), Neptune’s wife (Boris Worm) and the Bayliff (our second mate Sully). After a speedy and unsuccessful legal trial for all 25 pollywogs (defended by the lawyers Barb and Liz), the crew, led by James, Mack, Anna and Erin, provided the traditional ceremonial crossing the line shipboard fun. All the pollywogs successfully made it across, solemnly promised to protect and conserve the oceans, and became shellbacks. Many aboard shaved their heads in traditional styles for first time crossings of the equator as final tributes to Neptune. Enthusiasm could not have been higher aboard the ship as we all enjoyed the day together.

We’re sailing in the Northern hemisphere now, the big dipper in front of us guiding us each night, the southern cross behind; with a fast breeze - speeds up to 8 knots - under starlit skies and a bright sliver of a moon. Once again- the rolling seas, the gorgeous weather, and the grace of a tall ship under a bright night sky has captured the imagination of another generation of sailors here in the Pacific at 0° latitude. I myself enjoy the solitude of a bow watch, where you stand alone scanning the horizon for ships or obstacles, but primarily you are vividly aware of your presence on this ship sailing within a huge sea, the sounds of the riggings and the beauty of the sails against the nighttime sky- an awesome place to be.

-Dr. Barbara Block

Crossing the Line

Stanford At Sea student Kate Lowry

It’s 0900 and we are just a couple hours away from crossing the equator! According to our celestial fixes and dead reckoning, we are within 15 nautical miles of 0 degrees…the lateral center of the world! The ship is booming with excitement as we travel across the Equatorial Counter Current. So far we pollywogs (those who have never crossed the equator on a ship) have in good fun, been subject to the whims of Neptune. We’ve been left messages on our mirrors from King Neptune, labeled pollywogs, and offered cereal and milk for breakfast rather than fresh bagels and papaya. By lunch time, we will all celebrate together as shellbacks, the name for those who have crossed the equator!

Students prepare a CTD sampler on deck

It’s hard to believe we are already so far along in our journey. It’s bittersweet to leave the Southern Hemisphere. We are excited to really dig into our projects and eventually reach Honolulu, but sad to see our time south of the equator end. With more uninterrupted time at sea, it seems that everyone has acclimatized pretty well to ship life. The spirits on board seem higher than ever, and after some structured working time yesterday afternoon, everyone is well into their projects. Our knowledge of the ship increases each day, but we are now navigating without the GPS (using star and sun sites for positions) and have received high compliments from Captain Phil on our sail setting and line handling. With lots of data collection and new organisms in our net tows every day, it is an exciting time to be aboard the Robert C. Seamans!

-Kate Lowry

Last Day in the Southern Hemisphere

Fair winds and fast sailing has brought the students, faculty and crew of S223 to within a day of crossing the equator. Seas are beautiful, the temperature has remained hot and muggy but the strong breezes have cooled the ship. Its almost picture perfect. Stations for science morning and evening are on going. Bird diversity is being monitored across the transect hourly, and the ship has been successful catching fish for science and the galley. The students are engaged in a variety of individual and ship-wide science projects ranging from examining squid and pteropod diversity along the transect, to collecting first-rate carbon data along the track- setting a baseline for future studies. We put an ARGO float over the side yesterday which will sample continuously to 1000m for the next five years.

Lectures during class by faculty provide a structured classroom setting during the afternoons and delicious snacks are served by the students in the galley both am and pm. The big news is the crossing of the line. At sea there is a long tradition of having a "Line Crossing Ceremony." Sailors who have not been across the line are called pollywogs and experienced veterans are Shellbacks. Of course King Neptune and his wife are sure to make an appearance and a certificate of crossing will be issued to all the pollywogs of S223.

-Dr. Barbara Block

Good Bye to the Marquesas

We had a super port stop in Nuka Hiva, Marquesas- a place that is remarkable for the people, the beauty, the island culture and history. We enjoyed a spectacular hike to a waterfall, and along the way we saw historical sites, rock foundations, rich with history, marked with tikis, that echoed in a somewhat haunting way the loss of a society that once numbered hundreds of thousands of islanders. There are less than 3000 today.

We loaded the vessel with fresh produce from the island and traded fishing lures with the locals. We organized some tours to archeological sites and spent several days hiking, swimming, exploring and even fishing. The dogtooth team was ecstatic when on the third day a local Marquesan had the elusive fish mixed in with his yellowfin catch. I immediately asked for the
fish, and we're looking forward to dissecting it. To us it's almost like finding a dinosaur.

We fished again with this vessel in the early am the next day- and were able to document their fishing methodologies with students Joe Berg and Jered helping to pull fish in. It was awesome to be out on a local boat, with 6 other boats surrounding us, all working together to chum up fish; and then using traditional techniques - handlines - to catch the fish. There was a colorful Saturday market full of fish, produce, carvings and local artisan products that all members of the ship browsed through. We left Nuka Hiva full of new experiences and memories, chanting a local tune taught to us by Marquesans.

We are heading north now to the equator on the longest leg of the trip- 19 days and over 2100 sailing miles. This will be the leg that students truly sense the sea- under fair breezes sailing with all the lower sails up. On this leg, our students get to experience fully the joy of being on a tall ship- with sails up, stars overhead used for celestial navigation, and 4-6h of science stations ahead. Winds are steady, we're making good time, and everyone appears happy. Crossing the equator - a rare event for most sailors - is up next for the students of S223.

-Dr. Barbara Block