Florida State University : Research in Review

Day 15 - Saturday, 09/27/08

Position: N32 53.941 W 120 37.111

Mr. Winch was no respecter of persons this morning. Regardless of who was scheduled to be on deck by 7, his full-throated “dirge of the deep” made sure all of us were wide-awake by then. We’ve taken a poll and learned that when this trip is in the books, no one will miss Mr. Winch.

We had arrived at Station No. 7—177 miles due west of San Diego—by 6. Our first cast of the day came up completely empty, save water. “Looks like we got a bounce,” is how science chief Thistle put it. The Sur may have taken an inopportune heave the instant the corer touched down and triggered the corers to snap shut just shy of the mud. This took a three-hour bite out of our workday.

After a CTD sample, we got a fine set, pulling in eight solid cores—and from the deepest hole we’ve sampled yet, just over 3,850 meters! Thistle had said that if all had gone perfectly from the outset, his team would be hauling back around 1,000 mud samples. If luck holds, he’ll get around 750 or so—a solid measure of success in this very tricky business. Bad seas easily could have intervened and made this entire venture an expensive bust. Thistle wore lots of smiles today.

In the afternoon, after knocking off another good set, we decided to turn east toward Station No. 8, only 13 miles away, and scope out the bottom. The idea is to grab some good samples from our closest 2,700-meter station while the grabbing is good. When done at 8, we’ll return to 7 and wrap it up.

Fun during Allison’s CTD cast this morning. Several of the science crew took Styrofoam cups and decorated them with names, signatures, dates and such with Sharpies, and put them in a bag tied to the CTD. The long trip to 3,800 meters transformed the cups into hardened, miniature keepsakes. Amazing what six thousand pounds of pressure per square inch can do to anything with air in it.

Five days and a wake-up. That’s what Chef Karen has written on her galley board. She’s looking forward to getting back for an eight-month-long respite from sea duty. Winter weather in these parts keeps the Point Sur and its crew for good stretches of the year. All but the short trips—overnighters and such—are generally scheduled from October through February or March. Moss Landing’s research season kicks into high gear in May.

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