Alvin 2000: Dispatch 5

Saturday, April 15 - Cameras, Tube Worms and Stinky Water

Hello again. Dives are continuing out here on Atlantis. We have three dives under our belts now and seven more to go. Time is really flying past, in part because our lab group has been so busy. The major goals of yesterday and today's dives were to recover two cameras that had been left on the sea floor on previous cruises. These cameras were taking time lapse pictures of patches of tube worms so the biologists can study how these colonies change over time. Leaving cameras at the bottom of the sea is no easy task. They need to be packed in water-tight pressure cases that can withstand the pressure of 2.5 km of water pressing down on them. Sea water is also a very corrosive substance and can disintegrate many materials. One camera seems to have weathered its stay on the sea floor, while the other does not seem to have done so well. Its cables appear to be flooded and electrically fried. But this is the way of experiments. Placing equipment on the sea floor is always a risky business.

In the water lab things are going well. We have samples now from several areas of diffuse flow plus a few from the high temperature vent named Ty (named after one of the scientist's dogs). We are busy analyzing these fluids tonight. We do many chemical analyses at sea but one of the most important analyses we are doing is for hydrogen sulfide. This is the chemical that the animal communities use for their energy source, since they are too deep in the ocean to utilize sunlight. Hydrogen sulfide is the stinky gas that smells like rotten eggs. Hydrogen sulfide gets into these fluids because of reactions between the water and the ocean rock. We think it stinks but tube worms regard hydrogen sulfide as their favorite food.

Tomorrow's dive is a PIT dive. A PIT is an Alvin Pilot-in-Training. Every fifth Alvin dive is a dive where a training pilot, a qualified pilot and only one scientist go for a dive. This is the PITs chance to learn more about how to use the submarine and how to take samples for the scientists. Due to the complexity of the submarine and in order to maintain their perfect safety record, training to be an Alvin pilot is a long and complex process. Our PIT for this cruise is Phil Forte. Tomorrow he will join pilot Bruce Strickrott and scientist Eric Olson for a dive. One of their many missions tomorrow will be to sample hydrothermal fluids from another hot vent which we have been monitoring for seven years now. All work and no play makes for a dull ship! Stay tuned tomorrow to see what we do for fun aboard Atlantis.

Other dispatches:

First dispatches from April 9th and 10th
Project overview and launch information!

Dispatch from April 12th
While heading out to dive area 9 North, the crew spots a few interesting sea animals. Much of the time is spent unpacking and testing equipment.

Dispatch from April 13th
Atlantis reaches 13 degrees latitude. Alison and crew test and retest the titanium collection bottles.

Dispatch from April 14th
The first dive of the expedition-Alison joins the crew! Researchers collect anenomes and fluids surrounding hydrothermal vents.

Dispatch from April 15th
Three dives have been completed. The day is spent retrieving cameras, analyzing hydrogen sulfide samples, and training new Alvin pilots.

Dispatch from April 17th
Not all time aboard Atlantis is work! Although shifts are often long, breaks allow for games and relaxation.

Dispatch from April 23rd
Temperature probes are placed near the vents. A lottery to join the crew of Alvin!

Dispatch from April 24th
The last dives of the trip...See how water pressure affects ordinary objects at extreme depths!

Dispatch from April 25th
This incredible voyage aboard Atlantis comes to an end. It's on to Mexico, and finally, back to New Hampshire to analyze our samples.