From collection to processed sample, deep sea rocks go through quite a lot. Because these samples are difficult to obtain, we take utmost care to make sure they remain as pristine as possible. Furthermore, we can’t go back down to get another piece of the same rock, so our team follows a series of checks […]
One objective of this expedition is to use a gravity corer to get a 3-foot-long cylindrical sample of sediment from the middle of the mid-Atlantic Ridge.
Our primary science objectives aboard R/V Atlantis revolve around the human occupied vehicle, Alvin and autonomous underwater vehicle, Sentry. But it takes a lot more things than these two sophisticated machines to make data collection happen aboard the ship. Just how many things I was not fully aware until I stuck a rock hammer under […]
As Alvin and its three passengers sink toward the seafloor, a tiny cargo sits tucked away, out of sight. It’s a laundry bag, the kind made from cotton mesh, with a dozen or so Styrofoam cups stowed safely inside.
An opportunity to dive in the human-occupied vehicle (HOV) Alvin is as exciting as it is rare. At the start of this cruise, there have only been 4,941 dives in the 50-plus-year history of the sub’s existence. According to Adam Soule, co-principal investigator on this expedition, roughly 3,000 scientists have dived in Alvin (many scientists […]
It has been almost two weeks since we left port in Bermuda. For me, it took about a week (the entire transit), to adjust to life at sea. Four days after being on the ship I would still wake up in the morning, get out bed, and fall over, caught off guard by the rocking […]
We arrived at the first dive site at 8:40 in the morning and Alvin was in the water by 9:20. The six-day transit from Bermuda gave us plenty of time to plan the first dive, so everyone was ready to go and we were all relieved to get here and get started without wasting a […]
Let me set a scene. Perhaps an airplane might be best. You are sitting in your seat and your fellow row mate is surprisingly chatty. He or she wants to know where you’re going, where you’re from, and then the next question: “What do you do for a living?”
It seems like just yesterday that we left Bermuda, but we are now on our final day of the six-day transit from Bermuda to the Mid Atlantic Ridge at 14°N latitude. We spent the time getting ready for the first Alvin dive, which is scheduled for tomorrow morning, right after our anticipated arrival on the […]
Traveling to beautiful ports-of-call is one of the benefits of conducting scientific research in the deep sea. The port of call for the Popping Rocks 2 cruise was St. George’s, Bermuda, an idyllic tropical oceanside town, but there was a sight waiting for us that made it feel more like home. In addition to the […]
