Cores in Columbia

All we wanted for Christmas...was some good looking cores from the NC coast.

Our team enjoyed working with our SC, GA and BOEM colleagues.

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Wizard Training for Sonar Secrets at CSI

It is Halloween season, and there’s no better time to learn the spells and secrets of wizards. On October 3rd and 4th, curious scientists and students gathered at the UNC Coastal Studies Institute to become competent users of SonarWiz, a sophisticated and sneaky software for collecting and processing marine geophysical data. Under the cover of darkness (in order to see the projected graphics), the coven of computer apprentices manipulated and sometimes mutilated seafloor sounding data to attempt to reveal its secrets. Aspiring sonar sorcerers traveled from near and far to become acquainted with an assortment of weird and magical methods of data discovery, including amplitude adjustments, reflector digitization and 3D rendering. The training involved a mélange of geoscientists from federal (BOEM), state (SC & GA), private (GeoDynamics) and academic entities (ECU and CSI). In truth, SonarWiz is a powerful yet very user-friendly software sold by Chesapeake Technology (https://www.chesapeaketech.com/products/sonarwiz-sidescan/). The trainees were fortunate to have John Gann, its primary developer and a patient and persistent instructor, in Wanchese to guide the Earth explorers in their educational efforts. J.P. Walsh, a faculty member in the ECU Department of Geological Sciences and a Program Head of Coastal Processes at CSI, coordinated the training and is the lead PI for the federal grant that enabled the opportunity. Participants will be using the software over the next couple years to better understand offshore sand resources potentially available for beach nourishment. And yes, even wizards have to eat…the group enjoyed a nice sunset dinner at Pamlico Jack’s.

Learning the Rules and Regs

Drones, a.k.a. Unmanned Aerial Systems (UASs, using FAA speak) are a relatively new tool for many applications, including environmental mapping and change analysis.  Scientists at UNC CSI and ECU will be using them into the future for research and education.

Today, we learned federal and state regulations and demonstrated our aircraft capability. 

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Estuarine Observing

The CSI Coastal Processes team is hard at work in the middle of Albemarle Sound. In collaboration with the Corps of Engineers Field Research Facility, we have re-established the Albemarle Sound Site...an observing site the monitors meteorological data and waves along one of the most treacherous sections of the intercostal waterway. We should have data streaming real-time very soon!!

 

D. Reide Corbett

East Carolina University

Department of Geological Sciences, Professor

Institute for Coastal Science & Policy, Senior Scientist

Greenville, NC  27858

 

252-328-1367

corbettd@ecu.edu

 

UNC Coastal Studies Institute

Coastal Processes, Program Head

Wanchese NC 27981

http://csi.northcarolina.edu/

252-475-5428

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

CSI Boat Basin Survey

Our group had a bit of fieldwork to do last week on the water. First, we had to go to our Albemarle Sound Site, an autonomous observing system that is having some cellular connection issues (that we are still working on). Once we returned, we decided to outfit the "Sound Rover" with the RTK and single beam echo sounder and survey the CSI boat basin. The basin has been shoaling over the last few years, so CSI had a maintenance "dredge" operation recently. Our group wanted to provide CSI with some baseline information post dredging...that way we can get a better handle on how the basin changes with time AND, more importantly, what the depth is for the research vessels coming in and out of campus! Although the Sound Rover can travel upwards of 50 mph, we tooled around at about 3 mph throughout the boat basin to get this high-resolution bathymetric survey! My back sore the next day from just sitting on the SeaDoo for 3 hours...hard job, but someone has to do it!

Studying Abroad in Ireland

Getting a great chance to see and study the impressive geology and coast of Ireland.  Our group is traveling with another friendly crew of students from UNC Pembroke.  The weather has been good and highlights this far include a lecture at Trinity College in Dublin, hiking the Wicklow Mountains, studying coastal sedimentary processes and understanding Atlantic Ocean history and its predecessor, Iapetus.

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Land Ho!

We've arrived to Norfolk...in some lovely weather on a quiet Easter Sunday morning.   It's been a great research cruise,  but all are excited to be back in port to get reunited with family and friends...and cell coverage and high-speed Internet.

Despite some days of inclement weather,  we accomplished all of our objectives and have had some fun along the way. 

We all are very appreciative of the fabulous Captain  and crew,  and based on our experiences,  we know the ship is ready for many years of exciting research on oceans around the world.

Cape Henry Lighthouse.

Arriving to the dock at the Nauticus Museum, Norfolk VA.

Chesapeak Bay Bridge Tunnel

Norfolk Harbor under overcast skies on Easter.

It Takes a Village

Oceanographic research is a team effort, not only does it require a talented captain and crew (22 people total) to navigate across the ocean safely and comfortably but also the science is inherently interdisciplinary and complex, requiring researchers of all kinds, technical people with great skills, and motivated students to invest time and energy.

This expedition has been a tremendous team effort involving a wide array of people at sea and on land.  I can’t acknowledge everyone here, and I’m sure I’ll forget to mention some people.  But I thought I’d list some science folks onboard  (in no particular order) to give you a grasp of the many different individuals  involved in this effort:

Masako Tominaga from Texas A&M – looking at magnetic properties of the margin

Dan Lizzaralde from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution – interested in margin evolution and fluid  flow

Bill Danforth from U.S. Geological Survey Woods Hole – technical experts for seafloor mapping and leading field surveying for USGS

Wayne Baldwin from U.S. Geological Survey Woods Hole – technical experts for seafloor mapping and leading field surveying for USGS

Sid Mitra from ECU Geological Scientists– organic geochemist analyzing seawater properties from the shoreline to  

Erin Field from ECU Biology – microbial ecologist looking at seawater and sediments

Mike Muglia from UNC CSI/UNC Chapel Hill – physical oceanography researcher focused on Gulf Stream dynamics

Dave Sybert from UNC CSI – Education and outreach specialist and research scientist

Keith Garmire – technical staff from ECU/CSI for GIS and data processing

Trip Taylor – technical staff from UNC CSI  for ADCP analysis and data processing

Amy Simoneau – Marine technician on the ship

Ellen Roosen – Coring technician from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Joe – Marine technician on the ship

Ian Conery – ECU PhD student

Ryan Gibbons – ECU MS student

Caroline Webb – ECU MS student

Beau Benfield – ECU MS student

Reide Corbett from ECU/UNC CSI  - biogeochemical oceanographer focused on material exchange  and sedimentation

Me (J.P. Walsh) from ECU/UNC CSI   - geological oceanographer focused on sedimentation and margin construction

Everyone onboard is very professional and a pleasure to work with (except for me without coffee). 

Ian, Dave, Keith, Ryan and Reide (left to right) have a down moment of deck operations.

Beau and Caroline process water samples. 

Caroline filters water.

Sid (left) and Beau (right) are happy to have samples to work with.

Reide and Erin slice up a sediment core.

 Dan and Melody examine seismic data.

Wayne, Bill and Masako at work in the computer lab.

Masako examines magnetic variation data. 

 Wayne, the multibeam mapping wizard, cleans data with Caris.

 Jen pilots the ship on the bridge.

Mike, Reide and J.P., take a needed break from the stress of seep sampling.

Trips relaxes during some ADCP analysis.

The dirt of the ocean…

Yesterday we spent most of the day collecting cores from the seabed.  So, what is a core…well, if you can imagine sticking a tube into the ground and pulling it out with a plug of the bottom.  Think about it this way…know when you have a drink at a restaurant, waitress gives you a straw…the you put the straw in your drink and put your finger over the top and pull some drink out of the glass in your straw.  You have essentially created a suction in the straw allowing the drink to remain in the straw when you remove it from the glass.  We are doing essentially the same thing, but on the sea floor.  This allows us to collect "sediment" from the ocean.

 

To be clear, sediment is the dirt, the soil of the ocean.  Particles that wash of the continent or are created in the water column sink through the depths of the ocean and accumulate on the sea floor.  This has been happening for thousands, hundreds of thousands of years.  So, these sediments hold a record of earth's history…information on ocean properties, changes in climate, alteration of the coast.  All of these processes influence the physical and chemical character of the sediments being deposited on the sea floor.  So, we collect these sediments to gain information on processes that are occurring in the overlying water column, the atmosphere, and the adjacent continents.  These sediments act as a window into the geologic and recent past.  The longer core we collect (longer straw), the further back in time we can see…

 

Given that background, we are interested in using these cores to gain a better understanding of how the continental margin, particularly the shelf-slope break, off NC, has changed and processes that lead to the accumulation or down-slope transport of sediments.  We use geochemical tools (natural radionuclides, organic matter, among others) and physical character (grain size, porosity, bulk density, etc.) of the sediments to interpret the source, mechanisms of delivery, age, and how the sediments have been altered with time.  The data collected form the sediments, together with the information gained from the multibeam, EK80, and Knudsen (se earlier blog post) will provide the initial data for several working hypotheses we hope to test in greater detail in the near future. 

Honoring Armstrong’s Legacy: The 50 Year Anniversary of Gemini 8

As you walk down the stairs to the main deck, you're faced with a near-life-sized photograph of Neil Armstrong, the ship's namesake.  It's a striking photo.  Despite the space suit and lunar background, he looks so human, so normal.   

 

Neil Armstrong was an amazing individual:  a naval aviator, experimental test pilot, aerospace engineer, university professor, and, of course, world-renown astronaut.  It's reported that he flew over 200 different models of aircraft, including the X-15 hypersonic rocket plane (https://www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/about/bios/neilabio.html).  His first step on the moon was a monumental occasion, and indeed, it symbolized much more than a space walk.

 

Neil Armstrong led the Gemini 8 mission which launched on March 16, 1966 - exactly 50 years prior to the start of our oceanographic research cruise.  It's an honor to have one of the first research cruises aboard the R/V Neil Armstrong.  I must admit when I boarded the ship, I questioned why it was named after him.   I didn't doubt his accomplishments or abilities, but I wondered why not honor a marine scientist.  But now I realize there couldn't be a more fitting name for a research vessel - to celebrate one of the United States' greatest explorers.  Armstrong has inspired generations of young scientists.  To this day, his moonwalk still seems unfathomable.  Let's hope a new wave of ocean scientists will use this ship to better understand our water planet.

 

It is always exciting to go to sea, but this voyage is particularly energizing as we are approaching it with a spirit of exploration.  Unfortunately, this is not always possible as most research today (even oceanography) is conducted in a very calculated and controlled fashion, requiring proposals, hypotheses, clear plans and detailed budgets.  Certainly, this is important as effective research must follow the scientific method and funding must be invested wisely.  But, because this expedition is for scientific verification of the new ship, it is allowing us to have a more flexible and free approach.  This is wonderfully refreshing, and the vibe on the vessel seems different as a result (i.e., less stressed and more excited).   I'm hopeful that many other scientists that come aboard this vessel will be inspired by Armstrong.  Like space, the oceans are vast and largely unexplored.  We need more scientific adventurers to help us explore and understand the depths of the sea.

Kasten Cores and Methane Seeps

By: David Sybert

The Kasten Core has been unleashed!  In an effort to get a more complete and deeper core scientists aboard the R/V Armstrong have turned to the Kasten Core.  The Kasten Core is a large square stainless steel tube that is pushed into the sediment by a series of weights that are positioned above the steel tube.  The core is dropped down to the seafloor, the weights push the tube into the sediment, and as the core is brought out of the sediment two small doors close inside the tube, which keeps the sediment in the tube as it is brought back to the surface.  When it arrives back on deck a side of the tube is removed allowing access to the core inside.  Samples are then collected for the numerous studies using the sediment. 

 

Yesterday there was much success in coring with enough mud for everyone!  Samples were taken from over 400 meters underwater.  As the evening drew late there was also sampling of potential methane seeps on the sea floor using a CTD and deep-water camera.  Stay tuned for some imagery of what the sea floor looks like around one of the potential seeps.  

Sunrise and Sunset: The Day Backwards

Sunset on the bridge... time for bed.

A few days on an ocean research vessel, you kind of get into a groove... whatever watch you're on.   Today was a beautiful, cool day.   After another long shift, I visited the bridge at sunrise to give a few more waypoints.   After breakfast (my dinner of blueberry pancakes) I was very happy to go to bed at ~10 AM.  I woke up at 5 PM  to grab some yummy grilled mahi mahi for breakfast.  Then I checked out what's happening with the day shift. As the sun set, the day watch worked quickly to process a core on deck and get ready for the next sampling effort.  I grabed a cup of coffee and did a little work before watch at 9 PM.  The moon was rising to light up my night.

Morning coffee... at sunset.