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It was a fitting end to ROV operations for the expedition. Our final dive had the clearest water, the most spectacular scenes, and some of the best biological finds. We were diving on a previously unmapped bank affectionately dubbed Tom’s Nob, after safety officer Tom Bills, who was on duty as the first signs of … Continued

“Do you like it?” Asked Toshi Mikagawa, one of the ROV engineers from Deep Sea Systems International, and indeed I did. I was looking at the 3D feed from the company’s Ocean Explorer ROV. Just as it was designed to do, the 3D video gave the feeling that I was actually moving past the corals … Continued

We finally found a major shipwreck. It’s in about 100 feet of water and it’s huge. I must say, though, the fact that it was sunk there on purpose a few years back, and that its location is well known, did dampen the excitement a touch. Mapping the wreck of the Texas Clipper, sunk as … Continued

“Oh, wow, Nathan are you getting this?” marine tech Jimbo Duncan called across the room to his counterpart. On the screen, the sonar system was spitting out the first ever map of a large bank probably known before now only to a few fishermen. But it was the big, dark blue spot coming up that … Continued

Yesterday I joked about a mystery at Mysterious Bank, but today we came on something of a real mystery. It happened about midway through an 8-hour ROV dive at a spot called Dream Bank. The views were a little dull at the base of the bank, but as we made our way up, the slope … Continued

“Let’s give them a little challenge,” said chief mate Niklas Pfaff. Then he gunned the engine on Falkor’s jet boat, Atreyu, and we sped away from the ship. The challenge was for a pod of a dozen or so dolphins, and they were more than able to keep up. For the next twenty minutes even … Continued

I was sure we had found a shipwreck with a pile of gold coins fully visible, or at the very least a very large shark. The cheers coming from the control room were just so loud. I was sitting in the room next door and though there was an ROV monitor in front of me, … Continued

With no ROV dive, today was a time for filling in some gaps in the high-resolution seafloor mapping, and some sampling work launching equipment from the surface. In contrast to yesterday’s beautiful scenes at Baker Bank, one of the more interesting finds was something invisible to the naked eye and a good bit less pleasant. … Continued

“This is beautiful.” That was one of the first things I heard coming from the science control room this morning once the Global Explorer ROV made it to the base of Baker Bank. It was the first of many like comments to come, not to mention some wows, oohs, and ahs. The scenes before us … Continued

The plan is set. Tomorrow morning, the team from Deep Sea Systems International will launch their Global Explorer remotely operated vehicle (ROV) so we can begin exploring an area called Baker Bank. The last time anyone set eyes on this place was from a submersible about 40 years ago. The team decided to start here … Continued