Letters from war
Checking my e-mail has gotten more interesting recently.
The divers I worked with in Longyearbyen are now on a research expedition in Svalbard waters, and they're stopping in several different fjords to deploy my settlement plates, among other things. It's a bit difficult for me to not be there personally, but a paperwork glitch prevented my participation. Thankfully, I received an e-mail from one of the divers, Peter, to say that my settlement plates have been successfully deployed at two shallow locations and on a mooring. That means one fjord down, three or four to go. Peter also said they had arrived in the second fjord, so things are moving along. I was thrilled to receive this good news, especially considering that Internet access is apparently really spotty up there.
Meanwhile, back in Oregon, several recently-graduated students are continuing an experiment I started there over the summer. Over the past week, they have successfully recovered 5 out of 10 moorings I outplanted, but a strong current prevented them from recovering the rest. Any time you put equipment into the ocean, there's a substantial chance you won't get it back. I am now waiting anxiously to see whether the rest of the moorings will be recovered, and if so, what organisms are present on them. In case you're wondering, the Oregon experiment is a parallel experiment to the one I'm starting in Svalbard, because both involve outplanting settlement plates at different locations and seeing what organisms grow there.
I'm thankful to have so many willing volunteers involved in my projects. Without them, it would not be possible for me to complete the projects I've started, or start the projects I've planned. It's almost like I'm in three places at the same time. I can't wait to receive further updates from the "front lines" of field work.
The divers I worked with in Longyearbyen are now on a research expedition in Svalbard waters, and they're stopping in several different fjords to deploy my settlement plates, among other things. It's a bit difficult for me to not be there personally, but a paperwork glitch prevented my participation. Thankfully, I received an e-mail from one of the divers, Peter, to say that my settlement plates have been successfully deployed at two shallow locations and on a mooring. That means one fjord down, three or four to go. Peter also said they had arrived in the second fjord, so things are moving along. I was thrilled to receive this good news, especially considering that Internet access is apparently really spotty up there.
Meanwhile, back in Oregon, several recently-graduated students are continuing an experiment I started there over the summer. Over the past week, they have successfully recovered 5 out of 10 moorings I outplanted, but a strong current prevented them from recovering the rest. Any time you put equipment into the ocean, there's a substantial chance you won't get it back. I am now waiting anxiously to see whether the rest of the moorings will be recovered, and if so, what organisms are present on them. In case you're wondering, the Oregon experiment is a parallel experiment to the one I'm starting in Svalbard, because both involve outplanting settlement plates at different locations and seeing what organisms grow there.
I'm thankful to have so many willing volunteers involved in my projects. Without them, it would not be possible for me to complete the projects I've started, or start the projects I've planned. It's almost like I'm in three places at the same time. I can't wait to receive further updates from the "front lines" of field work.
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