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Mary Grady, a Providence-based freelance writer, is traveling for two weeks
on the research vessel Ron Brown, the flagship of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration. The ship, nearly 300 feet long and six stories high, carries
a crew of about 25 plus some three dozen scientists and their gear. Many of
those on board for this cruise are affiliated with University of Rhode Island's
school of oceanography. Grady, who works part time as a college instructor in
earth science and environmental studies, is part of the education crew. She
will be filing daily reports and pictures from the Atlantic Ocean to projo.com
via a satellite link provided by NOAA's Office of Ocean Exploration.
Filed 5.24.2004
Cruise
Log, Day Fourteen: Deeper understanding of ocean exploration
We are used to thinking that our human communities
form the hub of the universe. We imagine that the world revolves around us,
our cities, our farmlands, our freeways and shopping malls. Most maps of the
world enhance this illusion. They focus on the mid-latitude land masses and
leave out large chunks of the planet's surface. Our maps show the U.S. and Europe
at the center of all things, and marginalize the Pacific Ocean, the Southern
Hemisphere and the poles. More
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Filed 5.20.2004
Cruise
Log, Day Eleven: Nighttime brings ship fever
From the aft deck of this big ship, an island in
the endless sea, last night I saw a bright red star glittering low on the horizon.
It was probably Mars, but it never glows red like that at home. Back in Providence,
we can see Orion, the Big Dipper, Venus, and a few others, just a handful of
pale stars in our small patch of sky. More
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Filed 5.19.2004
Cruise
Log, Day Ten: Stabilizing the system
Late Sunday night, Hercules passed its previous
depth record, on its way down to Kelvin Seamount. But around midnight, when
it reached the seafloor 4,000 meters deep, it was immediately clear that all
was not going well. More
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Filed 5.18.2004
Cruise
Log, Day Nine: Rediscovering new zones of life
What Is A Seamount? Far to the east of us, in the
deepest part of the ocean known as the abyss, an underwater mountain chain runs
like a ragged seam down the center of the ocean basin. This is the mid-Atlantic
Ridge, and it marks the place where new rock is being created of molten lava
from the planet's interior. More
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Filed 5.17.2004
Cruise
Log, Day Eight: The view from the control van
All night long, as the ROVs explore the ocean deeps,
life in the control van runs on a rhythm of its own. The space in the van, which
is built from two tractor-trailer-type steel containers jammed side by side
on the aft deck, is packed full with video screens, computer terminals, and
control panels. More
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Filed 5.14.2004
Cruise
Log, Day Five: Hercules and Argus -- a team effort
Every minute or so, the foghorn blasts. The ship,
on an overnight haul toward Manning Seamount, climbs a swell, then slides down
the other side, swaying. The anchors that hang against the bow crash into the
hull with a sound like a car wreck. Every ten seconds, the multibeam mapping
sonar chirps, like a very loud sparrow trapped in an echo chamber. Motors, generators,
bow thrusters add to the cacophony. Sleeping in my narrow bunk, I'm frequently
jarred awake. More ...
Filed 5.13.2004
Cruise
Log, Day Four: Seeking to shed light on black coral mysteries
Six thousand feet may not seem like a long way,
if you're strolling a pleasant path on a sunny afternoon. It's easily done in
twenty minutes or less. You can climb or fly 6,000 feet straight up, and still
feel comfortable. The air up there is a little thinner, maybe a little chillier,
but it will do you no harm. But travel six thousand feet straight down from
the surface of the sea, and you've entered a foreign and hostile land with pressures
and problems beyond what our bodies can tolerate. More
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Filed 5.12.2004
Cruise
Log, Day Three: Learning by doing
Out at sea, there is no Home Depot. No corner
hardware store or Walmart. So when technician Dave Wright figured out what had
gone wrong with the ROV Hercules, and what it would take to fix it, he sent
a helper round the ship in search of the proper tool. More
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Filed 5.11.2004
Cruise
Log, Day Two: Waiting for that first look
By early Monday morning, after steaming through
the night, the NOAA ship Ron Brown reached the waters above Bear Seamount. We're
almost 200 miles offshore. From the decks of our ship, the world revolves around
us now. Nothing lies between us and the horizon except the wide, flat, empty,
dark-blue sea. More
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Filed 5.10.2004
Cruise
Log, Day One: Leaving on an urgent mission
We like to think that the Earth is a well-known,
familiar world. We fly above it and sit indifferently on the aisle, we circle
it with satellites that assign precise numbers to every point on its surface.
But three-quarters of that surface lies beneath the ocean waves, in the deep
and in the dark, where unknown creatures carry on an unseen life. More
...
