Log Post: In Through the Out Door

Late Tuesday, the team was able to begin its first work with the Moving Vessel Profiler (MVP). Since then, this key tool has gathered a pile of data that has provided the scientists food for serious thought as they work to decipher the confusing paths lower-oxygen water is following. The work to date confirms that … Continued

Log Post: At the Source

Today’s work was a study in classic oceanography that took the team to the source of the lower-oxygen water that is the focus of the expedition—and it all came with some beautiful views. There are more and more whale sightings, and albatross are constantly skimming the surface of the waves, which remain reasonably calm. During … Continued

Log Post: Up, Down, Do it Again

This morning at 0800, Falkor arrived at the entrance to Juan de Fuca Strait on her way offshore. There was a little fog, but everyone was pleased to find relatively calm seas in the 2-meter range. The acoustic Doppler current profiler ran all night during the steam from the Straight of Georgia, through Haro Strait, … Continued

Log Post: Away

This morning at 0900, after two full days of loading and prep, Falkor slipped the dock and headed north out of Nanaimo into the central Strait of Georgia. Just north of the Departure Bay – Horseshoe Bay ferry route that runs from Nanaimo to toward Vancouver, the ship parked for some critical equipment tests. The … Continued

News: Falkor’s First Visit to San Francisco

On July 28th, after making her first passage through the Panama Canal, Schmidt Ocean Institute’s 272-foot research vessel Falkor made its way beneath the Golden Gate Bridge and into San Francisco for the first time. Schmidt Ocean Institute has no formal headquarters, with most efforts focused on Falkor. And with a mission that will keep … Continued

Log Post: From the Deep Sea to Europa

When Nereus is operating in ROV mode during Leg 2, the manipulator mounted on front of the vehicle will be used to collect sulfide and host-rock samples that will be analyzed for mineralogy and chemical composition, providing important data for NASA-JPL investigator Dr. Max Coleman. He will use these samples to constrain the total geologic … Continued

Log Post: Homeward Bound

We’re all done.  Nereus has been safely recovered in board from the last dive, the last CTD is complete and the cable greased.  We’re now headed to Jamaica collecting swath bathymetry along the way until we leave Cayman Islands waters around 8pm Sunday.  As Vinnie Jones says at the end of “Lock Stock & 2 … Continued