Sailing and Science... at SEA!

SEA, the Sea Education Association, was kind enough to host me onboard the SSV Robert C. Seamans last week for a Colleague Cruise from LA to San Diego. Why? Glad you asked. :-) SEA and PIPA are thinking about a potential collaboration, so I spent a week onboard to basically see what SEA is all about, get the basics on the types of physical and chemical oceanography science they can do, and get a much-needed crash course in sailing.

For the lucky students who may be aboard to do some physical and chemical oceanography, here's a glimpse of life onboard a tallship! :-)

We deployed a compact oceanography carousel to collect water samples at different depths:

SEA and WHOI just recently collaborated on a great project regarding plastic in the Atlantic Ocean, published in the journal Science.

And used a secchi disk to estimate water clarity:


Along the way, we saw some marine mammals and beautiful islands:


We learned how to set and strike the sails of this beautiful vessel in all sorts of configurations:


And handled the lines, too!


It was hard work, exhausting, and a ton of fun (thank goodness for calm seas). SEA already sails to the remote Pacific, including areas near Tahiti and the Line Islands, so a visit to PIPA is not an impossibility. Back at the dock, it's sad to be home, but I'll be thinking of SEA at sea for a while to come. Stay tuned for future details! :-)



-Randi-