Image Archive

Clearing cable RS01W9 away from ROPOS ROCLS cable laying system during installation in 2014 at the Offshore site, prior to the cable lay. Credit: UW/NSF-OOI/CSSF, ROPSO Dive 1743, V14.

Attaching a strain relief line to the Yale grip on cable AXVMW3 at Axial Base. Photo Credit: NSF-OOI/UW/CSSF, Dive 1738, V14

ROPOS removing the bungee holding slack cable from AXVMW3 onto ROCLS, at the Axial Base site. Photo Credit: NSF-OOI/UW/CSSF, Dive 1738, V14

The port manipulator of ROPOS ROV removing the brake from the ROCLS cable laying system at the Axial Base site (2600 m depth). Photo Credit: NSF-OOI/UW/CSSF, Dive 1738, V14

The empty ROCLS spool on the seafloor at Axial Base, after laying cable AXVMW4 from LV03A to the deep profiler site. Photo Credit: NSF-OOI/UW/CSSF, Dive 1737, V14

ROPOS removing the bungee cords holding the slack cable of AXVMW4 onto the ROCLS sled. Photo Credit: NSF-OOI/UW/CSSF, Dive 1737, V14

The ROCLS cable drum a few meters above the seafloor as it is being lowered by the R/V Thompson's trawl wire. The drum contains >15,000 feet of extension cable. Photo credit: NSF-OOI/UW/CSSF; Dive 1727; V14.

The ROCLS cable drum with >8000 ft of electro-optical cable is lowered on the R/V Thompsons trawl wire for deployment near PN3B. ROPOS will launch shortly, and acquire the drum with a sonar at ~ 600 ft beneath the surface. Near bottom, an acoustic release will free the drum to rest gently on the seafloor so that ROPOS can latch into it and begin the cable installation at Axial Summit. Photo credit: Mitch Elend, University of Washington, V14.

Keith Shepherd, ROPOS Operations Manager, and ROPOS Pilot Kim Wallace, guide the R/V Thompson into position to deploy the ROCLS drum onto the seafloor at 5000 ft water depth to begin installation of the 4.6 km extension cable. ROPOS later will latch into the ROCLS drum and begin the cable lay. Photo credit: Mitch Elend, University of Washington, V14.

ROCLS with 4.7 km of extension cable, which was laid on Axial, from Primary Node PN3B to the Central Caldera.  Photo credit: Christina Ramirez, University of Washington, V14.

Skip Denny's dragon brought good luck on a ROCLS cable installation during VISIONS'14. Photo Credit: Debbie Kelley, University of Washington; V14.

The entire crew turns out for hand spooling ~800 ft of extension cable back onto the ROCLS drum that was recovered from the seafloor. Hard work, but lots of smiles. Photo credit: Mitch Elend, University of Washington, V14.

ROPOS uses a T-handle to latch into the top of the ROCLS cable drum. Photo Credit: NSF-OOI/UW/CSSF; Dive R1716; V14.

The ROCLS cable drum is unlatched on the seafloor at the base of Axial Seamount near PN3A at a depth of 2600 m. The cable, once plugged into a junction box and Primary Node, will power and communicate with ~2600 m-tall (8500 ft) instrumented moorings, as well as seafloor instruments. Photo Credit: NSF-OOI/UW/CSSF; Dive R1715; V14.

During ROPOS Dive 1611, the ROV latched into the remotely operated cable laying system (ROCLS) hosting a drum with an RSN extension cable ready to be installed. In concert, these two systems successfully installed >22,000 m of extension cables on the seafloor during the UW-OOI-NSF VISIONS'13 expedition.

Before and after images of the fantail of the R/V Thompson during the VISIONS'13 expedition - at the end of the cruises there was nothing else left to deploy.

Empty ROCLS spools on Thompson fantail at end of VISIONS '13, Leg 3, are emblematic of the cable-laying work accomplished.   Photo by Nancy Penrose