The Light Side of Optics Have you ever stopped to think about the color of the ocean? I mean, really stopped to think about why the ocean looks the way it does? If you’ve been to a variety of beaches, you’ve probably noticed that some waters are crystal blue, while others are emerald green, and […]
A Peek into the Inner Space of the North Atlantic Thinking of a “NASA mission” generally conjures images of a telescope pointed towards outer space visualizing a myriad of stars, planets and other celestial bodies. However, NASA’s NAAMES mission turns it focus, quite literally, from outer space to the Earth’s inner space, the North Atlantic […]
The Ocean. A chemical soup that covers 70% of the Earth’s surface with a total volume that provides approximately 300 times more space for life than that combined by freshwater and land. Tiny microbes…phytoplankton, zooplankton, bacteria, viruses, but also fish and marine mammals live in that mighty ocean, which is tightly coupled to the atmosphere, […]
Ups and Downs Life on the ship. Up at midnight, Half awake in the dark, My feet feel for the Steps of the ladder down my bunk, And my hands for the clothes piled up from last night. Up one deck to main lab, And another to the galley, For a well needed cup of […]
We are on our way to the 3rd station of the expedition, the sea is relatively calm and cloud are freeing the sky to let the sun shine. Sleep schedules are adjusted: many of us sleep between 4pm and 22pm, whereas others have their night between 3am and 9am, naps are more than welcome when […]
My eyes begrudgingly opened today around noon and the slow but steady accelerations of the rocking ship made their way into my consciousness. I hardly ever wake feeling thoroughly rested but the excitement of starting another day at sea always drags me out of bed. The start of a work day on-board is always preceded […]
I’m part of the Russell research group, along with my colleagues Raghu Betha, Chia-li (Candice) Chen, and Maryam Lamjiri, from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Our group focuses on aerosols, which are microscopic liquids and solids suspended in the air. Aerosols may be formed over the ocean when wave generated bubbles burst and eject particles […]
With day one of Station One complete, an opportunity is provided to reflect on the stations events so far. I woke up at to start the day at 11 o’clock, quickly helping myself to a cup of the ships endless pot of coffee and a hefty bowl of cereal. If this sounds like a very […]
Greetings from Station Zero. It sounds like something from a bad sci-fi movie, but we are indeed at Station Zero. On most oceanographic cruises there is what is called a “shake down day” or an opportunity to test all your equipment and methods with a test station before the actual ‘real’ sampling begins. Thus, we […]
As we progress on our journey north, it is as if we are travelling back in time through winter and on towards the Arctic. When we left Woods Hole, we were treated with blue skies, calm (occasionally glassy) seas, and reasonably warm air temperatures; a complete contrast to the November cruise! We have been extremely […]
