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JOURNALIST AT SEA

Bumpy Rides

3/31/2018

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Good Morning! We are at station four out of five of this cruise but there will be no outdoor work today. The sea is moody so we will continue sampling through a flow through and hope to take advantage of a weather window tonight around midnight.  

I guess I would describe the past twenty-four hours like being on a carnival ride, that doesn't stop, while trying to balance delicate equipment, while standing on one foot.  

BUT it is amazing to witness.

A little fun in the computer lab last night after getting "hit" by a big wave....

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The Waves

3/30/2018

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Cleo Davie-Martin and Jason Graff grab samples from the incubator as twenty-foot waves roll around them.
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On to Station 4...

3/30/2018

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I think it becomes easy when we are going through the routines of our daily lives to begin to overlook the fascinating world around us or maybe take it for granted.  Out here, in between meals, that is all there is…time to be wrapped in the amazing that exists in our oceans. Everything becomes exciting because it is all so new and challenging.  No matter how good you become at the science, science will throw you a curveball and the ocean, well, she has perfected all that is changing the game. 
 
Speaking of change, the North Atlantic has finally reminded us of where we are.  We were able to get in a few hours of work, at station three, before the wind and waves forced us to secure the deck and ourselves inside.  The good news—the winds are now pushing us along to station 4.  We should arrive around ten this evening. 
 
Otherwise, we have had a relatively easy go of it. Yesterday, was a bit like Christmas morning.  We all got to play with our “toys” from science equipment to journalism tools.  I brought out my drone and just like the good big brother he has become over the past few years, Peter Gaube, stole it before I had a chance to use it.  We had been trying for five days to circumvent the incredible technology that DJI has packed into the Mavic Air.  The thing is it is too smart to calibrate never mind fly on the ship in the middle of the Atlantic.  Good thing I am here with some brilliant people.  After some time, we worked our way through it. The resulting footage is breathtaking and will help us share our story.
 
At night, I was able to use a microscope to look closely at some of the creatures that are being collected.  How can you not stare in wonder at these little guys with some impressive teeth? (pic below)  I have never thought twice about a Viper Fish before this day—because I have never looked closely enough.
 
What a gift to dive beneath the surface where all real things exist.

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A viper fish as seen under a microscope.

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Thanks to Peter Gaube for getting our drone in the air.
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A cruise tradition-- the result of sending cups to 3000 meters with the CTD. They begin to shrink at about 1000 meters.  

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Science Blog

3/28/2018

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Good Morning!  We have been on station two for several hours now. The scientists have added blogging to their list of duties so today I will let Jason Graff take over.  He is intelligent, witty and a true example of the awesome humaness that NAAMES has become. 

I will be posting additional blogs by the team under the science blogs tab.


Fourth and Ten (+ One) by Jason R. Graff
Fourth:
We are currently at the first station to be occupied by the fourth and final NAAMES field campaign. It is a bittersweet experience both scientifically and personally. This station represents the final push of an epic joint exploration of marine and atmospheric sciences made possible by the thoughtful investigators who wrote the interdisciplinary proposal; a proposal that NASA found compelling enough to fund and was ultimately made possible by politicians and taxpayers who know that we move society forward through scientific endeavors. I would be amiss not to mention the crew(s) of the R/V Atlantis, our mother ship for all campaigns, who provided a professional, safe, and inviting atmosphere for what must seem like slightly controlled chaos to take place.
As participants we look back and see what we have done right, evaluate and discuss our amazing findings, and feel proud of our contributions to the larger fields of marine and atmospheric sciences. We also have enough hindsight from the past few years to look back and see what we will do even better next time. For many of us, it also represents an era in our careers, ranging from providing the experience and data to build and help finish graduate degrees, bolstering mid‐career scientists, and providing fresh ideas and avenues of exploration to more seasoned scientists. It will, and has already, created new collaborations, publications, proposals, and challenging concepts to tackle in the future.
Ten (+One):

That is the number of people, both scientific (10) and ship’s personnel (1), who have participated in all 4 of the seagoing campaigns. What the ten people pictured above represent is the consistency between cruises that is critical to the successful training of new team members and implementation of the planned science. What is not represented above are the countless people who were here for 1, 2, or 3 voyages who bring fresh personalities, flavors to the galley, and ideas that can motivate, enlighten, and ignite new relationships and scientific curiosities. “Thank you!” to those on the ship, in the air, and on the ground who made all of this possible and successful. 


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Jason Graff, pictured right of lead scientist Mike Behrenfeld, enjoys a good belly laugh during sunset on the bow.
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On to Station 2

3/27/2018

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The Rituals

3/26/2018

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Day 7
 
Location
Latitude: 39 ° 16.453’N
Longitude: 43 °26.804’ W
 
Time to station: On Station 1!!
 
 
This is about the time, a week in, when you start to see everything take shape. Tomorrow we will begin the science, the mad rush, a level of excitement matched only by the impending hours of sleep deprivation.  So, what you live on are the moments and the rituals that help to create a foundation of sanity in the midst of it all.
 
Every morning I eat breakfast with the Bosun, Patrick Hennessy, he has been making science on this ship happen for more than two decades.  We talk about the history and what this lifestyle has afforded him in moments of exploration and cost him in time with his loved ones back on land. He smiles when he talks about his wife, two grandchildren on the way and his plans for retirement. We talk about those parts of our lives that we miss most, how bad the coffee is (ok I talk about that), crazy dreams that come with the rolling of the ship and he challenges some of my ideas about the story we are writing…. I like that. Sometimes we just say nothing, but it is a morning routine that gives me something to depend on before the day begins. That is the thing about living with people in an isolated environment, conversations become intimate quickly; you find those people that will become your satellite family here.
 
The strange thing is, in less than three weeks, we will return home to the lives we have built on land.  The family made here will become a memory, just a story we tell about an experience in time, albeit a beautiful one.
 
Speaking of those rituals-there is nothing here we look forward to more than the sunset! A time when everyone gathers to talk about the day, share in laughter and soak in the gratitude for the amazing journey we are on.

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Sunday Sentiments

3/25/2018

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​Day 6
 
Location
 
Latitude: 35° 3.335’ N
Longitude: 48° 36.545’ W
 
Time to Station: 29 hours
 
We woke up to the most stunning sunrise.  Though the sun was masked by a windswept mask of clouds; she painted the water below with a soft and soothing pink.  It can be hard to translate what is seen here through a picture or video.  There is just something different about the perspective of the waves, the way we take in the sounds and smells, when you are surrounded in endless miles of sea.
 
On my last trip with the NAAMES crew I spent a great deal of time with green cheeks.  Every morning I would walk (stumble) by one of the crew members, Clindor Cacho, a man who’s smile is so big his eyes practically close, leaving just enough of a tiny sparkle, to make room for his infectious grin.  He would say, “Nicole, be one with the sea.” Ok, it didn’t work because a part of me didn’t let it.  To be one with the sea, to let go of our natural and complicated ability to keep our balance and walk straight even though our surroundings are leaning and turning and sending us in different directions. 
 
To surrender to what is and let go of the fight to hold onto what was.  This is just one of the many ways the ocean mirrors and reflects all that is life. I feel great this time around. Maybe I am learning….

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Clindor Cacho enjoying a moment with the sea
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Pretty In Pink Sunrise
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Day 5-In Transition

3/24/2018

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Day 5
 
Location
 
Latitude: 31° 21.836 N
Longitude: 53° 9.436’ W
 
 
You can feel the change in the air, that slight chill that lets us know we are transitioning from our sunny and smooth transit to our chilly and likely much bumpier destination. 
 
We are now about 718.6nm (57 hours) from our first station. The place where the work begins!
 
In the meantime, here are some pictures from the last couple of days.

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Thoughts as we sail

3/22/2018

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Location 

Latitude: 25° 20.629' N
Longitude: 60° 13.280' W



To have an idea so intriguing that you are willing to do anything to make it happen, I believe this is the seed from which many great things grow.  The Nasa_Naames project began as an idea over a beer in Corsica, surely the genesis of many amazing journeys, to study the earth’s largest phytoplankton bloom and the aerosols surrounding us.
 
An idea that would bring together NAMES, many complete strangers, to this one place together, intertwined by the common thread of curiosity that motivates one to sail away from safe harbors.
 
The data collected here will someday be published in scientific journals and papers around the world.  Some of it will challenge widely held beliefs and some will be challenged.  Ultimately,  building a bridge to more questions; more worlds of possibility to be explored.
 
What isn’t as easy to measure is the impact this work has on the human experience.
 
Evidence and the realization of this is always found in one place, that far off gaze, the one filled with all the collective wisdom, fears, hopes and dreams that have brought us all together.  Visually, this begins at the dock, when the rope is untied and the vessel sets course, the buzz of the days leading up to the journey goes silent.  That’s where you find that moment of serenity looking forward to the magical world that awaits on the wide-open sea.
 
I will let our lead scientist Mike Behrenfeld explain.

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And so we begin....

3/20/2018

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Hello from Latitude 20° 8.096' N Longitude 65° 20.434!!  We have been busy getting our sea legs under us and have been blessed with smooth water to start us off.  We will be in transit for a few days before stopping at our first station.  In the meantime, here is a quick time-lapse video of our journey leaving the dock this morning.  Will post more this evening when we work out our connection issues. 

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    ​Nicole Estaphan

    I love surprises, they give us the opportunity to dive into the unknown with unquenchable curiosity.  Two years ago, I made the decision to leave my job as an Atlanta television reporter. I moved home to Massachusetts and found myself on Cape Cod with no job and no idea of what was next, no idea about the pure magic that was about to enter my life.  A friend of mine called and asked me to do a favor for a small radio station where she had just taken a job.  All I had to do was go to Woods Hole, MA and interview a scientist about a mission called the NASA_NAAMES project.  That scientist would end up changing my life and perspective in ways I am still trying to find the words to fully explain.  After a discussion about their impending journey at sea--an invitation to join them. Though, Mike Behrenfeld and I still disagree on who asked who we DO agree on the result--a fantastic partnership was born.  With less than twenty four hours notice I was on a ship headed to parts of the North Atlantic that few ever see in winter AND for good reason!! The conditions can be intense!   At the time, given the challenges at sea and my video equipment being limited to one tiny little camera .
    (RE: 24 hours notice) this blog became a way for me to communicate with the family members whose loved ones were so far away.  Giving them an onboard look at the fascinating work at the hands of those they call family. Fast forward we are at it again!! This time as the scientists dive deeper into all that is unseen in our oceans--we will dive deeper into their research, the incredible sacrifices that come with that and the love that fuels their mission of discovery. The journey continues March 20th.....

    The Ship

    The R/V Atlantis is an impressive ship, a 275-foot, steel-hulled research vessel operated by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. 

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