The seas have been calm and the crew and science team hope it stays that way for the rest of our journey to Tamu Massif.
Rough seas could mean potential issues with data collection or more work to process what we have already collected along the way. That said, today’s highlight was the crossing of the International Date Line, established in 1884. Passing through the mid-Pacific Ocean, the date line serves as the “line of demarcation” between two consecutive calendar dates. Horns blew as we cheered and looked at our mapping screen to see what the ocean bottom looked like at 180 degrees – the date line roughly follows a 180 degrees longitude north-south line on the Earth. We laughed and took pictures as the crew jokingly commented about seeing the yellow date line in the water. For many of us, this was our first time, and we were excited by the rumor of a special ceremony to come in the evening. We also had a bit of adjusting to do, because as we crossed the line, we traveled into the future. We are now a day ahead and won’t “go back in time” until we return home.
Work Hard, Play Hard
Although it may not seem like a big deal to some, these moments allow us to celebrate, savor a sensational meal, enjoy each other’s company, and take a short break from our daily tasks. The Date Line ceremony led by Captain Bernd was memorable, as he read the creed of the Golden Dragon and recognized each of us with our own personal certificate in commemoration of crossing the date line. The evening concluded withsome great fun, laughing, and getting to learn a little more about those we will be spending the next month with. I am excited to be surrounded by such incredible and intelligent people, and am anxious to see what we will discover about Tamu Massif and about ourselves and our new friends as the journey continues.
