CINMS/McARTHUR II Cruise - Leg II

We began sediment sampling operations at four p.m. on Friday, July 18.
We have been working around the clock since then (it is now Sunday at
eight p.m.) and have collected sediment at twenty-six stations. We
began sampling in the Santa Barbara Channel and have transited to San
Diego, collecting samples all the way. We transited down offshore; we
are now moving back north collecting samples at the stations closer to
shore. We have six stations remaining. If we are successful at
collecting sediment at four of the six, we will have reached our goal of
thirty sediment samples. Thus far we have only had one station where we
were unable to collect sediment (the bottom was rocky, so our grab
repeatedly came up with rocks). Therefore I am optimistic that we will
be able to reach our goal of thirty stations.

The weather these few days has been remarkably beautiful. Flat calm,
warm and sunny. These conditions greatly assist our efforts - the ship
is able to maintain its position during the hour it takes to deploy and
recover the grab sampler (we're collecting sediment at depths between
500 and 1000 meters, so it takes a long time for the equipment to reach
the bottom). Furthermore, operations are much safer when the ship is
not pitching about in rough seas. The sediment sampler is a large,
heavy piece of equipment that must be hoisted over the side, and in
rough seas this can be dangerous for the scientists trying to handle the
equipment. Currently the wind and seas are building, so hopefully the
weather will hold for just one more night of operations.

Should we succeed in our efforts to complete these deep stations by
tomorrow morning, we will be a full three days ahead of schedule! But
fear not, we've got more research we can do using McARTHUR II with these
three days! We will return to the Channel Islands and begin collecting
sediment in the shallow water. This work had been planned for the
Sanctuary's research vessel SHEARWATER, but the McARTHUR II will allow
us to get ahead of schedule on a project scheduled to begin next month.
We are all thrilled with our progress thus far!

 

Sarah Fangman
Research Coordinator
Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary