Murray Levine's blog

The CMOP Spring cruise is coming to an end.  It is currently 11pm on 14 April and we are positioned just off Newport and about to enter Yacquina Bay.  It has been a rough trip the last 14 hours after leaving the newly deployed SATURN-02.  The winds reached 30 knots against us and the significant wave height probably reached 12-14 feet.  We were speeding along at about 6 knots the whole trip south-- rocking and rolling and not in a good way.

We left the dock at 10am on schedule.  The 40 knot wind from the night before has dramatically decreased.  There remains sigificant swell, however we were able to successfully launch the buoy Alder at the NH-10 site.  It was even a sunny day!  The buoy is called by cell phone every 3 hours and data are downloaded from some of the instrumentation.

The start of the CMOP spring cruise is in its final countdown.  Loading will begin on Sunday 10 April and a departure is scheduled for 1000 on Monday.

The objectives of the cruise are:
* Deploy mooring at NH-10
* Recover and deploy moorings at OGI-01 and SATURN-02 near the Columbia River
* Deploy acoustic bottom moorings near Columbia River mouth
* CTD stations along some historical locations -- such as NH, CR lines--some with water and vertical bongo net tows

Arrived on schedule 0800 in Astoria city dock Pier 1.  Science crew change.
Leaving: Levine, Risien, Law, Kosro, Evans
Arriving: Focht, Sevier

It is raining, but spirits are high.
Estimated time of departure is 1500 with Steve Pierce taking over the Cheif Scientist duties.  Good luck Steve!

Continued tow-yo until finally crossed the temperature front seen in underway data. CTD aboard about 0430 after 30 downcasts.

Continued toward Newport with boom ADCP at 4 knots.

At 0645 recovered boom and speed increased to 10 knots (foggy)

Should be at whistle buoy by 1400 and dock by 1500.

Completed the radiator pattern survey of squirt feature.

SH-S2, SR-S1, NH-40, NH-55, SR-55, SH-S3, SH-S4, SR-S2, NH-70, NH-85, SR-85 (casts 541-551). Last cast at about 1800 local.

Boom mounted ADCP put into place by Dave O'Gorman and Walt Waldorf. Tried to go 5 knts, but too much vibration. Some attempts were made to secure more firmly. In the end top speed is about 4 knts.

Proceeded on a line from SR-85 to Newport.

Continued CTD stations mapping out the "squirt".
Stations: SR-55, SR-65, SR-75, SR-85 (casts 534 thru 537).
No cast was done at NH-65 to save time.

Proceeded from NH-65 to NH-10 for mooring operations starting about 1300 local.

NH-10 mooring:
* temperature/conductivity instruments attached to Spectra line using black tape and special pipe wrap tape. This operation was done laying the entire Spectra line on the deck.
* The fluorometer/backscatter sensor frame (Tim Cowles) was attached with modified Walt's clamps.

Safety talk conducted at 0910.
Left the Newport dock promptly at 0955 and headed for NH-10.

Straightaway after lunch mooring recovery operations began. First pass by buoy (named Alder) resulted in breaking anemometer with ship's crane hook. Second pass was successful. Crane lifted Alder buoy and set it on deck, draping the mooring wire over the starboard side. The buoy was secured and the mooring wire disconnected from buoy. The load of the mooring wire was transferred to the trawl wire and fed through the A-frame. All instruments and the anchor were successfully recovered.

Wecoma configured for Leg 1:
* Radiation Van installed on 01 deck
* Boom mount installed on the port side
* Gifford block mounted on A-frame for mooring work
* The -80 degree freezer installed in dry lab
* A -20 degree freezer installed in wet lab

Added to ship flow through system:
* CO2 - Wiley Evans
* Alkalinity - Robert Hart

Loaded equipment for mooring deployment at NH-10:
* "Lodgepole" buoy
* Mike Kosro's ADP buoy
* 2 anchors (a 1 railroad wheel & a 3 railroad wheel)

Other scientific instrumentation:
* Tim Cowles mounted his 600 kHz ADCP on the boom
* An ISUS from Ricardo Letelier installed on ship CTD, using external battery pack