In November 2015 we've set sail again on board RV Maria S Merian to service one of our dust-collecting buoys.

On this blog, we'll keep you updated on our adventures at sea. Please drop us a note (jbstuut-at-nioz.nl)  if you have any questions!?

 

Link to the Sailwx website (ship's actual position).

26 November: Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

 

25 November: Wildlife

A turtle approached the ship

 

24 November: What’s the weather gonna be?

 

 

 

23 November: A Rare Sight

 

Image credit: Lorand

 

 

22 November: Floating traps

Image credit: Gerard & Karin

 

 

Image credit: Gerard & Karin

 

 

Image credit: Gerard & Karin

 

 

21 November: Dust collection on the ship’s roof

Image credit: Lorand

 

 

Image credit: Lorand

 

 

 

 

20 November: Dusty skies

 

 

19 November: Deep-sea mud

 

 

 

 

18 November: Working day and night

 

 

 

17 November: Pump it up!

Image credit: Lorand

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

16 November: Re-deployment of buoy Carmen

 

 

Image credit: Lorand

 

 

Image credit: Lorand

 

 

Image credit: Lorand

 

 

 

16 November: Fishing

Image credit: Lorand

 

 

 

 

15 November: Recovering buoy Carmen

 

 

Image credits: Karin

 

 

 

 

14 November: Opening Cores

 

 

 

13 November: leaving the harbour of Mindelo

 

 

 

10 November: fishing for small creatures

 

9 November: more deep-sea sediments

 

8 November: core on deck!

 

6 November: the Atlantic ocean here is deeeeeep

 

6 November: coring the Madeira Abyssal Plane

 

4 November: CTD watch

 

2 November: Off they go! Catarina and Carmen on board the Merian.

 

17 September: Packing up

 

14 September: Cruise preparations


 

On 12 November 2015 a small team from NIOZ will fly to Mindelo, which is the capital of Sao Vicente, which is one of the Cape-Verde Islands. In the mean time, the ship has sailed from the Azores, where it left on 2 November, with a large team of international colleagues from MARUM-Bremen. During these two weeks they have already carried out a comprehensive sampling schedule, taking predominantly water samples as well as sediment cores.

From Mindelo, we'll set sail towards Cape Blanc, Mauritania, where buoy Carmen has been collecting dust since August 2013. We will service the buoy, collect a hopefully nice set of data and dust filters, and re-deploy it for another half year. In April 2016 we will again visit buoy Carmen during cruise  JC134. After another intense sampling program off Cape Blanc we will sail towards Gran Canaria, from where we'll fly home again.

Below you can see the planned cruise track: