All were getting used to 16-hour work days (6 A.M. to 10 P.M.). Great food onboard the R/V Hatteras helped us along. We were "cruising" in terms of data collection: we completed five stations on Day 00 and six stations on Day 01.
Sue and Mike (<<<) examine microscopic
plankton using a microscope. Chris (>>>) is making his point: the
FlowCAM instrument captures sharp images
of phytoplankton cells within flowing seawater... automatically.
Terry (<<<) runs the Flow Cytometer,
counting millions of the smallest marine cells: tiny phytoplankton and bacteria.
Mark (>>>) is preparing samples AND trying not to get "pushed
around' by the ship's motion.
Ed (<<<) seems happy to be onboard...
he's probably just finished lunch. Collin (>>>) is logging optical
property data and wondering: "Where's the spring bloom?"
Sue, Mike and Annette (<<<) are noticing a change in the plankton assemblages as we travel north in the Gulf of Maine. The earliest stations showed signs of the spring bloom (i.e., chain diatoms & colonies, phaeocystis) but those species were not present in mid-Gulf surface waters. Heidi and Mark (>>>) collect their water samples.
The yellow buoy carried by Heidi and Collin
(<<<) characterizes the sunlight hitting the ocean surface AND the
light emanating from the ocean itself. Knowing both of these factors tells
researchers about the biological composition of upper ocean waters. These
buoy data help to "sea truth" ocean color measurements taken by
earth-orbiting satellites.
Tim, Mark and Jennifer are deploying scientific
equipment at night, especially tricky on a rolling ocean. On the evening of
Day 01, we suffered a tear in our plankton net.
