Blogs from Oceans and Seas - page 103

Here's a resume of my ocean journey, now I've reached Montreal: I arrive at the Lisbon docks by taxi to go through Immigration and then to the ship at last; it's reassuring to be met and driven by the ship's agent, he knows where he is going. We drive through a dock full of containers perched several high lowering at us, quite formidable; giant gantries stand high above, with runways like trams to go back and forth, and special carriers dart to and fro, unloading a ship up ahead. We park immediately outside Hanjin Palermo, our ship, and climb the gangway, a stairway specially netted - I guess - to catch anything which might inadvertently fall through. We're greeted by the gangway watch, welcoming grins and logging of our ID, and time of arrival. Having been ... read more

After an emotional beginning with loads of expectations to find a bloom our first stations were a disappointment. Emiliania was not there...well, only very few were there. We had to concentrate the water over 200 times to see 3 or 4 Emiliania cells under the microscope. The hypothesis is that we’ve arrived too late and the bloom had been already swipped away, probably due to viral infections. We might have been in the middle of what Vardi et al. 2009 coined as the ‘oceanic plaque’. After a lot of discussions among all participants, Kay Bidle, the chief scientist, decided to head north towards a patch of high chlorophyll and particulate inorganic carbon (PIC), which is generally an indication of high coccolithophore abundance. We are now at 46 degrees North – 28 degrees West. We have still ... read more

17thJune 2012 Life at sea has its cost. It’s very tiring trying to stay standing all the time, great workout for your legs and glut’s. Taking a shower is a bit of a circus act, and I’ve only had one in calm seas so far, I hate to think what’ll happen when things get rough. We also have to get used to the meal times. We start breakfast at 07:30, and are finished with dinner by 17:30. In between we have a full cooked lunch, snacks at 3ish, and a free for all fridge with all sorts of goodies and an assortment of fruit all day long. The thing is, we’re working ALL the time, so by 23:00, we’re all hungry again. Oy Vey… I complained to you earlier about the sleeping arraignments, but I must ... read more

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The Lot’s Wife’s Sanction What a full and interesting week in St Helena. Those of you still waiting to hear of my professional work will, I’m afraid, have to remain frustrated as I am sworn to secrecy …. So you will have to suffice with my diary of events since I last communicated via the blog. Firstly the tale of the disappearing felix – Wahoo has been and gone on several occasions – each time returning with his snarl and demand for food before retreating into the wilderness of New Ground. It is now Tuesday and I haven’t seen him since last Thursday – I trust that he is safe and will return at some stage. The ‘Lost’ notice has been placed once again on his owner’s house and the local vet has been informed. I ... read more