August 16, 2024
Today was the final day of the voyage. We entered the NOAA dock at around 11 AM and I took my first steps on land in 10 days! Me and the other VISIONS students went on a little adventure when we got back to land which I will attempt to summarize as my final blog post!
After we left the boat, we decided to go to the Hatfield Marine Center which was only down the street from the NOAA facility. It was like a mini aquarium! We even saw some of the organisms seen during Jason dives.
When we left the Hatfield Marine Center, we began our very long trek across the Newport Bridge. It looked longer than it was, and we were determined to cross because there was a Boba shop on the other side that we wanted to get to! The wind as we were crossing was very intense, but we stayed together and made it to the Boba shop!
After that we explored the pier area of Newport and visited a variety of different shops and found where all the Sea Lions were. They piled on top of each other and were barking at the Sea Lions who tried to join the pile late. There were a lot more than I thought there would be, and it was super cool to see them so close.
We got dinner at a sea food restaurant, and I tried the halibut fish and chips which were incredible! After dinner we walked to the nearby beach and watched the sunset over the ocean. The beach was covered with sand dunes that were very pretty. After that we walked back over the bridge and returned to the ship to go to bed.
It was a very nice way to end my time on the Atlantis and reminded me of how privileged I was to not only have an amazing voyage filled with mind-blowing imagery and dives, but that I also had an amazing group of students to share it with!
August 15, 2024
Today was my last full day at sea on the Atlantis. I once again became incredibly lucky and was able to see a pod of Humpback whales feeding off the port side of the Atlantis during the transit back to the mainland. Seemed like a good omen to me!
The head engineer of the Atlantis, Gregory Hollstein, showed the VISIONS students around the engine room of the ship. It was amazing to see how all the different control panels, generators and motors work together to make the ship move in the water. The thrusters of the ship are also incredibly advanced! They can angle themselves at any angle in the water which provides the Atlantis with unprecedented maneuverability.
I also was able to finalize the ideas for my project. Each VISIONS students needs to create a VISIONS project that utilizes data or resources collected by the ROV Jason. I decided to create a video or presentation that will use the pictures and videos recorded by Jason. I will then use those photos and videos to create a detailed look into the ecosystem of one of the dive sites we visited on our voyage.
My final dive is tonight and I’m both sad and excited. Sad that my time on the Atlantis is ending, but excited that I get to go home and share my experience with my friends and family!
I’ve never been that good at sharing my thoughts in writing, but I really did try my best with this blog. This voyage was a lifesaver, before this my summer was very uninteresting. Being able to fully immerse myself in the world of science again has been very nice. Our final dive is tomorrow and then we will be back on the mainland!
August 14, 2024
Today I spent some more time with fellow VISIONS students Emily and Erik. We were able to spend time on the Atlantis’s bridge. We saw how the navigation crew uses modern technology to aid in the Atlantis’s travel. We also were incredibly lucky and saw a pod of whales blowing their spouts. They were far enough away from the ship that we were unable to see them, but the height of the bridge made it easier to see their spouts.
We are quickly approaching the end of my time on the Atlantis, and it really is surreal how quickly the time passed. On this trip I have seen the most spectacular deep sea hydrothermal vents and the was able to see deep-sea creatures like octopus in their natural environment.
I was even able to receive invaluable advice on my future. Talking with the Jason crew and the research scientists aboard the Atlantis allowed me to really think about my future and the path I want to pursue. I received a few amazing names that I can contact and see if I could join their team after I finish my undergraduate degree.
At the end of this cruise, I truly feel that my future in marine biology has been cemented and the connection I have made here will help me succeed in my future endeavors. I want to thank the crew for accommodating me and the other VISIONS students. I want to also thank the scientists on board for being patient and allowing me to help with their projects, providing me with vital lab and project skills. We have more dives scheduled for tomorrow, here’s hoping that we see interesting things to end the voyage on a high note.
August 13, 2024
Today Jason visited the largest of the hydrothermal vents on our Voyage known as El Guapo. El Guapo is about 18 m tall and supports a vast array of diverse life on it. I unfortunately couldn’t see El Guapo myself because I was off shift, but I was able to see it by looking at the photo’s Jason took during the dive. El Guapo emits fluids that in the past have reached 350 °C.
After we retrieved a digital still camera placed at the International District Hydrothermal Field in Axial Caldera, we began our 19-hour transit back to the Oregon Slope Base. I mainly spent this time with the other VISIONS’24 students and learning more about them!
During our transit we entered a large stretch with no or very little cloud cover, creating beautiful views that could be seen from the deck of the ship.
During our 19-hour transit back to the Slope Base we were able to see the stars with no light pollution. As someone who was raised in a medium sized city, I was able to see some stars at night growing up but nothing like what I saw. We were able to see the Milky Way Galaxy and it really was awe-inspiring. The night sky didn’t show up well on camera, but I hope it gives a general idea about what it looked like.
August 12, 2024
My Jason shift today was video logging the collection of the OSMO sampler deployed in the ASHES hydrothermal field last year. The OSMO is an osmotically-driven device that utilizes fresh and salt water to collect deep hydrothermal vent fluid samples over time. The OSMO is deployed in a diffuse flow site for a year and collects a large amount of methane rich fluids.
The fluid samples collected by the OSMO are analyzed back on land and used to examine changes in the fluid chemistry overtime and how seismic activity at the vents impacts the the chemistry.
The OSMO system is has an ingenious design that was created by Geoff Wheat and Hans Jannasch ex UW students that went to MBARI. Its’ application by the RCA showcases how incredible the minds at the University of Washington are.
I’ve also been doing more activities with the other VISIONS students. Emily Albines from Queens College made this amazing bracelet for me!
While on a dive to collect a FETCH platform we saw many brittle stars underneath one of the legs of the platform at Central Caldera. The diversity of deep-sea ecosystems continues to amaze me. This voyage has certainly cemented in me a desire to study these environments and see if any of these organisms hold the secrets to help humanity.
We are approaching the next dive site which includes the largest of the hydrothermal vents that we shall see on our voyage known as El Guapo. I am very excited to see the amount of life that make the vent their home. VISIONS was an amazing opportunity and I am very excited to see what comes next.
August 11, 2024
My watches today were uneventful. Most of the time I was on call we were either diving or transiting to the next dive site. However, the most amazing thing happened on my watch at the end of the day. We finally reached the ASHES Hydrothermal field that was 1500m below the surface.
Surrounding the vent were several incredible organisms! Worms, bacterial mats and strange fish known as Rattails! It was just as awe inspiring as I thought it would be. The ability for these organisms to survive in such a harsh environment is spectacular and has given me several ideas for future studies. Could there possibly be a genetic reason for their enhanced survival? Could gene splicing crops with the vent worm DNA enhance crop survivability in the era of a warmer earth?
While in the depths, Jason collected an OSMO sampler that collects water samples over a single year using osmotic power. Using the sampled vent fluids, researchers can extract information they includes salinity, dissolved oxygen, and dissolved carbon. These data are used by many researchers back on the mainland making the OSMO one of the most important ways of assessing the status of the water in the deep ocean.
That night I also aided in collecting Chlorophyll samples from the seawater collecting device known as a CTD. The CTD goes up and down the water column collecting seawater. By filtering the seawater photosynthesizing organisms are left on the filter paper allowing for the chlorophyll in each animal to be isolated and further studied.
I have learned a lot from being on the Atlantis and being around so many talented scientists and engineers has allowed me the opportunity to consider how all STEM fields can be utilized when studying our oceans. The Atlantis is packed with amazing people and getting to know all of them has been very fun. We are currently transiting to our next dive site, which is close to more hydrothermal vents, I eagerly anticipate this next dive because it will give me the opportunity to witness more deep-sea organisms.
August 10, 2024
Today we reached the next dive site, Slope Base, which has a depth of 2900 m! I worked with the Jason team this morning to help drop a new Slope Base junction box and retrieve the old junction box. The sites are so far down that it took 2.5 hours to even reach the bottom!
During our descent there was a technical issue where Jason lost communication with the bridge for short time and had to reorient its travel path to make sure it was not near other equipment deployed at depth. The Jason team was spectacular and remained calm while they addressed the issue, and we were quickly back on our way down.
Once we reached our target depth the Jason team commenced their mission of unplugging the cables from the old node and retrieving the old junction box. While we were there, me and fellow VISIONS student Nichole Sams saw several amazing marine organisms including a Pudgy Cusk eel and a Deep-Sea Octopus.
After the junction box was retrieved, we then spent a 2.5-hour ascent journey, my shift ended a few moments before Jason surfaced at around midnight. Seeing the interesting organisms that reside at such an intense depth reminded me of the many lessons on evolution I have taken during my academic career.
The intense stressors at such a depth including temperature and water pressure have morphed these species into incredibly specialized animals.
August 9, 2024
My official Jason “duties” started today, and I have already been a part of 3 complete dive missions! The engineering is extremely good at controlling and communicating with the ROV and seeing the deep ocean with my own eyes was just as incredible as I imagined it would be. Being in the Jason control van makes me feel like I’m at Mission Control in Houston. Carefully watching the ROV complete its tasks and keeping track of every action that Jason takes. My duties on the dives vary, twice I have been the video logger who oversees recording the dive in both HD and 4k resolutions and taking 4k photos of any interesting phenomenon. I have also been the event logger which oversees making notes in the computer about what Jason is always doing.
The objective of the first dive I was a part of was to retrieve a SPA (Shallow Profiler Science Pod) device from its location where it was installed in 2023. The SPA is profiling "pod" that is attached to a 200-meter-deep 12 ft across platform on the Shallow Profiler Mooring off the coast of Oregon. The SPA hosts a large collection of several instruments and it was designed by the Applied Physics Lab at the University of Washington. The instrumented large orange float traverses up and down the water column several times a day and collects pH readings, temperature, nutrient levels, dissolved oxygen content and more! It is an extremely advanced piece of hardware that live streams its collected information back to the mainland. The data that the SPA collects is invaluable for oceanographers as it allows them to see in real time the changes the oceans are experiencing.
My second dive was to connect a newly installed SPA onto the mooring that is connected to the large undersea cable network, which allows its collected data to be streamed back to the mainland. I was shocked at how precise the Jason team could use its mechanical arms/manipulators to unplug cables, grab handles to steady itself, and to collect the caps of the plugs on the cables themselves. The Jason team has likely done years of these dives and are likely used to it, but I was dumbfounded by just how incredible the technology being used was.
The third dive this morning was to connect another SPA to a Shallow Profiler Mooring at the Slope Base site. As I am writing this, we are currently and the next dive site which is known as the “Slope Base” which has a depth of 2900m! We are not fully in the deep sea, and I eagerly anticipate my next dive, which will allow me to see the abyssal zone of the Pacific Ocean with my very own eyes!
August 8, 2024
Yesterday, my fellow students and I boarded the R/V Atlantis at around 3 P.M. Pacific Standard Time. The amazing crew welcomed us, and we settled into the scientific berths. As someone who has never been on a research vessel, or even out to open ocean, I was very nervous about the experience. However, the orientation and helpfulness of the more experienced members helped put my mind at ease. My class took a tour of the ship and learned about how the vessel produces its electricity and water. I also saw the ROV Jason in person for the first time and learned how Jason will be using its manipulator arms to complete its dive missions.
I am continuously surprised by the sheer amount of extremely intelligent and capable people I find myself surrounded by while working toward my undergraduate degree. This is an amazing opportunity, and I cannot to wait to absorb as much knowledge as possible!
Jason’s first dive was today and was only a short distance offshore (~3 hrs). The Atlantis departed at 9:30 and Jason went into the ocean at the first dive site (Oregon Offshore) at 13:30. My first logging shift on Jason is tonight at 20:00 and will end at 24:00. I am equally excited to help the Jason team and to witness the deep ocean with my own eyes!
The Atlantis is extremely welcoming, and I am 100% devoted to giving my best to help make the team successful with their dive missions.