RCA VISIONS 22
Blue Sharks Encounter
This clip of ROPOS ROV video from dives R2330 and R2331 (compiled by UW student Leilani Combs) shows some of the aggressive behavior by the blue sharks we encountered during the OOI Oregon Offshore Deep Profiler deployments. Credit: UW/NSF-OOI/CSSF #NSFfunded @NSF @UWOcean pic.twitter.com/l75wX2rw6H — VISIONS Expeditions (@VISIONSops) September 6, 2022
Read MoreOperational for 8 years at 200 meters
Recovery of the OOI Cabled Slope Base Shallow Profiler mooring. The platform normally sits at 200m depth, stable instruments on one side and the profiler pod and winch on the other. The mooring is being turned for the first time since deployment in 2014!
Read MoreSea Spider
A pycnogonid (sea spider, a kind of arthropod) recovered along with other macrofauna samples from the ASHES hydrothermal vent field on Axial Seamount, while we conducted our OOI work. This individual is carrying eggs below its body, so it is a male.
Read MoreCurious Stowaway!
The RCA team had a stowaway on Leg 3 of the OOI RCA O&M cruise! This bold adventurer even joined them in the main lab to inspect their operations. The curious bird ate some suet provided by the crew and then ventured on its way, hopefully to continue its migration.
Read MoreROPOS delivery
ROPOS launching with one of four experimental sonar tripods to be plugged into the OOI Regional Cabled Array. They were developed by UW researchers to accurately measure stresses that precede an eruption of Axial Seamount, a subsea volcano off the coast of Oregon.
Read MoreFogbow
The R/V Thompson encountered a “fogbow” this morning between ROV dives at the base of Axial Seamount. It was pretty bright, and hopefully a good omen for continued successful deployments on the OOI RCA O&M cruise. The team is now completing leg 3, with two more legs to go.
Read MoreSunrise prep
UW-APL engineer Paul Aguilar up at sunrise to prep the Axial Base Horizontal Electrometer Pressure-Inverted Echosounder (HPIES), a novel OOI instrument measuring horizontal electrical field, pressure & acoustic travel time from seafloor to sea surface.
Read MoreWater column sampling
ROPOS recently ran a series of dives to swap out the OOI deep profiler vehicles after a year in the water. A specialized ROV frame places the new vehicle on the cable and removes the old one to bring it back to UW for cleaning and refurbishment.
Read MoreHomes for marine life
The OOI Oregon Offshore deep profiler mooring, which hosts a vehicle that moves up and down the cable taking measurements, has a large float at the top for buoyancy. Apparently it is also an irresistible attachment point for a whole biofouling ecosystem.
Read MoreCamera capturing gas hydrate mound
An OOI PI-deployed camera captured the ROPOS ROV peeking over a gas hydrate mound. The striped pole was originally deployed in a cavern and is now buried in sediment, demonstrating the dynamic nature of this site.
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