The VISIONS 11 Expedition

Watch Down to the Volcano, an online program about the VISIONS ’11 expedition.

The VISIONS ’11 expedition ended on 1 September 2011. The archived website is still available HERE.

Summary of Cruise Activities

  • Successful at-sea education program with 11 undergraduate and graduate students who learned all aspects of seagoing research and life aboard an oceanographic research vessel, as well as conducting individual research projects
  • Live high-definition, narrated video from the seafloor and ship delivered via the Internet to a global audience; Twitter used to interact with viewers on shore in real time; 70,000 website hits; undergraduate class in marine geology at College of Charleston taught from sea
  • Stunning imagery transmitted and archived of “snowblowers” at the recently erupted Axial Volcano
  • Canadian remotely operated vehicle (ROV) ROPOS used extensively in operations
  • Successful deployment and recovery tests of the OOI RSN primary nodes
  • Site verification of secondary node and sensor locations at Southern Hydrate Ridge and Axial Seamount, and for mooring infrastructure at base of Axial
  • Surveys of primary cable that had been deployed earlier in summer 2011; discovery of segment laid through new and active vent field