What a difference two weeks makes! I had an opportunity at UCONN for my M.Sc., but with no financial support and working a project that is not related at all to what I want to study. When I turned that one down, which was in itself a scary – some might say stupid – move, I thought that would be the end of the road for grad school at UCONN. But then a surprise opportunity presented itself for graduate studies with another professor at UCONN. When I was applying I considered him, but he didn’t have funding available to support a new graduate student at that time. With the economic cutbacks no new department assistantships are available, so support is entirely up to the professors. The department is also requiring that advisors can provide proof of substantial support for any new grad students this year. Fortunately, Prof. A. was able to rearrange some of his funding so that he could provide a research assistantship. To say the least, I’m ecstatic about the opportunity: GIS, conservation, a smattering of policy and lots of fish (my focus being larval stages and recruits), and fish habitat.
The Johnson Sea Link II being deployed from the R/V Seward Johnson for Life on the Edge 2005
Some people question the real need for manned submersibles, arguing that ROV’s like Hercules, Jason and Kraken II can do anything a manned vehicle can do, only better and safer. It’s a valid question, and one that needs to be repeatedly asked, especially as more advanced ROV’s designed from the ground up for science come on line. But my answer today is that there is a need for both of them still. ROVs can not go everywhere an HOV can, and their mobility and responsiveness are limited, compared to HOVs, by the ever-present tether to the mother ship. An ROV also lacks the ability to provide 3D visual-spatial analysis and true in-situ contextual observations which only a scientist and pilot on the spot can provide, at least with todays technology. ROV’s while extremely capable are still a telepresence technology, and many of those that have used both HOVs and ROVs, such as Dr. Craig McClain at Deep Sea News, attest that something significant is lost in that translation.
These experiences combined to give me a first hand knowledge of an environment, that previously I had only studied remotely. I studied the deep sea for three years before my first deep dive and my understanding, although incomplete, of this environment has radically changed since those dives in the JSL.
Perhaps more important, these manned submersibles stir the imaginations of young minds, leading them, like me, to dream abut exploring the sea, maybe one day sitting in awe within a submersible 1 kilometer below the surface, surrounded by organisms we are still only beginning to comprehend fully.
Please help us let those in control of the JSLs fate aware of the JSLs importance to science and to our ability to understand the seas and stir the imaginations of the young explorers in our midst. Young explorers like Johann. Please GO SIGN A PETITION TO STOP THEIR LOSS.
So, a bit more on the new NOAA Cooperative Institute, since that also directly affects my future. NURC-NA&GL, along with all the other NURC centers, are NOAA supported, non-federal organizations under NOAA’s National Undersea Research Program (NURP). NURC-NA&GL’s mission is as a center for excellence in research related to the North Atlantic and Great Lakes region. They work with NOAA scientists on long term research goals including developing oceanographic research technologies (such as the Kraken II), fisheries and conservation research, historical site identification and documentation along with major outreach efforts. They are also tasked with Postdoc and graduate student training to provide the next generation of oceanographers. Unfortunately NURC-NA&GL may lose all NOAA funding with the establishment of the new center at HBOI, as it will replace the four existing East Coast NURC centers, including the one at UCONN. Personally I think cutting support for the existing centers is a mistake, even though the new Cooperative Institute sounds wonderful.
So my summer and the next two years are set, sort of. There are still some questions (second year funding, nailing down the thesis topic, now that we have health insurance, do we have another baby, etc., etc.), but at least the path forward is clear enough to begin charging down it! The summer will be hectic, split between two projects for NURC (video and GIS outreach products for high school teachers and students to use and possibly video highlights from a recent deep sea cruise), two projects for Prof. A. (both habitat related), a cruise for Prof. A, and then the remainder of my time will be dedicated to finishing up an outreach book and cards for grades K-12+ on molluscs. Whew!
*Johann pointed out that even Playmobil recognizes the JSLs and their full sphere compartments as the iconic submersible.
What is your iconic research submersible? Is it Human operated or remote?
Whatever it is, please do Sign the petition to keep the JSLs operating.
Check out the Deep Sea News collection of JSL videos.
