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Expedition
to the Mariana forearc
Mar.
23 - May 4, 2003
Day
30, April 21st
(click
on any image for the larger version)
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Day
30 Happy Birthday
Plan
A, Plan B, Plan C, Plan A-1... We have so many plans, I don’t try
to keep track. Instead, I keep track of what we actually do. The
first half of this expedition took us north as we used a variety
of sonar instruments to get data and improve our bathymetric maps
of the region. We also took a lot of core samples to learn more
about the nature of the seamounts. Returning south, the “plan” was
to continue coring and to get a real look at each seamount using
Jason. Rough seas kept Jason out of the water all weekend.
We
can’t control the weather and it takes time to repair mechanical
problems, so the plans must be flexible. Patty
has an abundance of alternatives. As she says, “It’s easy when you
have so much you want to do and so many toys to play with.” Patty’s
toys, of course, are the core
assemblies, the sonar
instruments and Jason.
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| We
get up again at midnight-thirty to rig the piston core and we are
ready to deploy at 0200 when Matt
H., the Jason Team Leader, announces that the seas have calmed
sufficiently for a Jason Launch. Hurray! Plan D-4. The piston core
is rigged and ready, but Jason comes first. We launch at 0300. |
Japanese fishing boat passing near the bow |
| Matt
keeps a close eye on the swell to know when it’s safe to launch Jason.
He really doesn’t need to; we have our own Jason indicator onboard.
Her name is Andrea, today
is her birthday and today she feels well enough to eat her birthday
cake which means it’s OK to launch. Andrea is prone to motion sickness.
There is nothing she can do about it. Some people get seasick, some
people don’t. Some people get over it, some people don’t. Andrea keeps
on smiling and doing her work, but you can tell she is a bit green
around the edges. We just ask Andrea, “Can we launch today?” When
she feels good, it’s calm enough for Jason. |
Jason at the surface prior to descent |
For
15 hours, each group standing 4-hour watches, we explored Celestial
Seamount. Up and down the lumps and bumps, across and transiting
the ridges and scarps looking for signs of active mud and fluid
flows. We gathered rocks and took push cores but never saw any signs
of activity.
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At
one point, while Jason was taking a sample, the hand of his main
manipulator arm froze in the open position. Later, while looking
at the still pictures, it was discovered that a small piece of the
hand had actually fallen off. This arm is Jason’s most versatile
manipulator and vital to some of the work we have planned at South
Chamorro Seamount, so we went back to the last sampling site to
look for it. No one was very optimistic. The piece that was lost
was about the size of your ear. It took an hour to reach the site
and we found the very rock where the Jason was working when the
manipulator broke. We searched every nook and cranny of that large
rock without success.
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The hand of Jason's manipulator, stuck in the open position |
We
are set to bring Jason up at midnight but the Jason Team is already
planning how they will replace the lost part. The Jason Team is
made up of 9 highly talented individuals. They don’t just pilot
and navigate, but they also compute, repair and construct. As
Jason rises to the surface they are discussing the possible methods
to manufacture the new part.
Happy
Birthday Andrea! Glad we got to enjoy your birthday cake. Glad
you got to enjoy it too. The cooks on this ship don’t miss a thing.
We get great meals, Easter eggs and birthday cakes.
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Science
Summary - Day 30, April 21st
Science
Objectives, Day 30:
The
thirtieth day of the cruise, Apr. 21, we were unable to launch Jason2/Medea
because of weather conditions, so did EM300 and hydrosweep surveying
after our piston coring yesterday. Today we will start the day with
another piston core at the summit of Celestial Seamount unless the
weather calms down and we are able to launch Jason2/Medea in the
early morning hours. If we do a lowering, we will explore the summit
scarps on the seamount, examine the piston core hole and search
for signs of recent eruptive activity in the hollowed-out summit
region of the seamount.
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