I am fortunate this cruise to have a private cabin with a desk! This is where I write my blog and work on data analysis. (Photo by Kathy Hardy)
LeAnn Pritchard (front) is another Maine native on the cruise. She grew up in Machias. LeAnn and Traci Haddock (behind LeAnn) are students at the University of Rhode Island. Here they are filtering seawater samples. (Photo by Kathy Hardy)
NORTH PACIFIC OCEAN (May 22, 2007): We had no incubations to set up or sample today, so it allowed me some time to catch up on data analysis and house keeping. Our clean bubble had gotten a little dirty. I spent some time this morning cleaning it again. As we go further out to sea, the iron content of the sea water becomes much less, such that any little bit of iron contamination could ruin our samples. So, we have to keep the clean bubble extra clean.
We are doing about 12 knots steaming for PAPA station. When we are speeding through swells, you get a sense of weightlessness as the ship falls out from under you, followed by a sensation of instantaneously gaining about 50 pounds as the ship rises again. Walking a straight line is a challenge as your muscles are constantly overcompensating one way or another. It’s kind of like trying to walk a straight line after having way too much to drink.
A few people have disappeared at various times throughout the day, probably to a bout of seasickness or exhaustion. I feel sorry for those on board who never seem to shake the seasickness and spend their entire time at sea looking green around the gills.
The sky is gray and overcast and it has been raining off and on throughout the day. The sea is a monotonous dark blue gray.
Much to my surprise, there are several native Mainers on board besides myself.
Bill Caddigan (for Bill’s picture see yesterday’s blog posting) is a teacher from Bethel, Maine who is funded to come along on the cruise and incorporate what he learns here into a curriculum for his students. Check out his web site at http://www.teacheratsea.mainelearns.org/. Bill really seems to be enjoying his time at sea.
Eric Roy is a student from UM. For Eric’s picture see my May 12 blog posting. Eric is studying and building sensors that detect chemicals in sea water. He is measuring iron and copper concentrations at the very low levels that are present in seawater on a cutting edge instrument designed and built by a Maine company called Waterville Analytical.
LeAnn Pritchard grew up in Machias. She is a student at the University of Rhode Island with Dr. Bethany Jenkins, who is one of the professors on the cruise. She is studying iron uptake mechanisms of diatoms. Diatoms are phytoplankton that have hard shells of silica. LeAnn is a pleasure to go to sea with. She’s really nice, capable, intelligent. She works hard and is conscientious. What more could you ask? Traci Haddock, although not from Maine, is also in the Jenkins lab. As well as working on her own projects, she has been helping us with chlorophyll filtrations now and again when we are swamped.
We also have lots of Canadians on this cruise. At least 7 that I can think of, including two of the professors.
Because we are going full speed ahead, most of the scientists had a little time for relaxation during the evening hours. I joined a game of Trivial Pursuit 80s version. It wasn’t a great night for me as it was a Canadian version of the game and I think I must have slept through the 80s, at least concerning politics, movies, television.....
