Log Post: Maiden Voyages

Melissa Omand, interdisciplinary physical oceanographer from the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Oceanography, was confronted with a conflict: it was time for an upgrade to her phone, but creating more technological trash did not feel right. Plus, the camera on her older phone was fantastic. Together with her first graduate student Noah Walcutt, she worked on … Continued

Log Post: Sampling the Invisible

Microbes play many vital roles by physically and chemically changing their surroundings: they consume and produce a diverse range of organic and inorganic materials, provide food for other organisms, and drive biogeochemical cycles on a global scale. Our research in the Cunliffe Group based at the Marine Biological Association in Plymouth UK focuses on understanding … Continued

Log Post: With Bells On!

Mariana looks at the buoy drifting away from R/V Falkor. She has done it countless times before; but as she assists in the deployment of the snifel off of the ship’s aft deck, the familiar anxiety comes back all the same. Designed to measure the speed of the exchange of carbon dioxide between the atmosphere … Continued

Person: Ko-ichi Nakamura

Ko-ichi studies marine geology including hydrothermal and gas hydrate sites in various settings. Subseafloor fluid emission makes variety of geologic phenomena on the seafloor as well as variety of chemical and biological process in the water column. He joined the first 2009 expedition in the Cayman Trough utilizing HROV Nereus on the Cape Haterras with … Continued

Person: Cédric Boulart

Cédric Boulart is a marine geochemist based at IFREMER in Brest, France. He received his Ph.D. in Ocean and Earth Sciences from the University of Southampton (UK) in 2008, as part of a European Project focusing on the processes at mid-ocean ridges. He specializes in the development of methods and sensors for the detection, mapping … Continued

Person: Paolo Montagna

Paolo Montagna is a researcher at the Institute of Marine Science (ISMAR-CNR) in Bologna with interests in the geochemistry of biogenic carbonates for palaeoclimate reconstructions and biomineralization studies. He obtained his PhD in Earth Sciences from the University of Padova (Italy) in collaboration with the Australian National University. He was awarded a three year post-doctoral … Continued

Person: Conall McNicholl

Conall is a currently a biology major in his senior year at Temple University.  His ongoing research project at Temple involves ocean acidification and the physiological responses of the cold-water coral Lophelia pertusa.  This is Conall’s first scientific research cruise and he is excited to gain a lot of experience at sea.  On board the … Continued

Person: Jay Lunden

Jay is a 5th year Ph.D. student in the Biology Department at Temple University. His research focuses on the effects of ocean acidification (OA) on the cold-water coral Lophelia pertusa. Jay is interested in how OA affects calcification and other physiological processes, and hopes to expand this line of research in his future academic career. … Continued

Log Post: How to sneak up on a storm

Two action packed days have passed since the Falkor left port on Saturday evening. Despite a shifted storm track, the ship remains outside the most severe weather associated with Tropical Storm Isaac. The ship is currently ‘sneaking up’ behind the storm and heading towards the first ROV dive site, having avoided the storm’s track over … Continued