Saturday, June 03, 2023 – Offshore North Pacific Coast (Latitude: 42.50.801 N, Longitude: 124.40.196 W) The Chemistry of Life Phytoplankton play a key role in our atmosphere providing half of the oxygen we need to sustain life. Like land plants, these ocean microbes rely on sunlight, water, and nutrients...
PUPCYCLE II Day 6 – The Nitrogen Team
Friday, June 02, 2023 – North Pacific Ocean (Latitude: 42.50.802 N, Longitude: 124.40.196W) You Are What You Eat – Raquel Flynn (University of Cape Town, South Africa), Yeongsun Ryu (Princeton), and Julie Granger (University of Connecticut) are researching one of the key components of the biogeochemical cycle (Figure 12,...
PUPCYCLE II Day 5 – Toxins and HABs
Thursday, June 01, 2023 – North Pacific Ocean (Latitude: 42.50.802 N, Longitude: 124.40.196 W) The Culprits behind Harmful Algal Blooms Toxins are another threat to the phytoplankton bloom and are very prevalent in the ocean. Will McClure (Schnetzer Lab, NC State University) is investigating toxins found in seawater, specifically...
PUPCYCLE II Day 4 – Microbes Under Attack!!
Wednesday, May 31, 2023 – Offshore North Pacific Coast (42.57.313 N, 124.34.661 W) Microbes Under Attack Remember 2020, when a tiny little virus caused the world to take a pause? It is difficult to concede that a small .2um (micrometers) virus could wreak such havoc on our society. According...
PUPCYCLE II Day 3 – Holey Socks?
Tuesday, May 30, 2023 – Offshore North Pacific Coast (Latitude: 43.01.281N, Longitude: 124.38.708W) Tracking the Drifters of the Sea Phytoplankton are primary producers for the aquatic food web as well as key producers for Earth’s atmosphere. Larger aquatic organisms rely on these microscopic producers for survival. (See Figure 9)...
PUPCYCLE II Day 2 – Finding Phytoplankton!
Monday, May 29, 2023 – Offshore North Pacific Coast (Latitude: 43.02.679N; 124.33.120W) Time to Cast for some Phytoplankton! In addition to checking weather forecasts for predicted wind directions, the scientists also analyze satellite and buoy data to track changes in Sea Surface Temperature (SST) and Chlorophyll (CHLA). Cooler SST...
PUPCYCLE II Day 1 – Heading into the North Pacific
Sunday, May 28, 2023 – Offshore North Pacific Coast (Latitude: 44.04.022 N, Longitude: 124.29.472 W) Searching for Upwelling Along the North Pacific Coast! Upwelling cycles are a collaborative effort between Earth’s atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere; also referred to as the air, water, and land. When atmospheric winds blow along...
PUPCYCLE II Log – Embarkation Day
Saturday, May 27, 2023 – Newport, Oregon Welcome Aboard the R/V Sally Ride! I am onboard the Research Vessel Sally Ride with 23 scientists for the PUPCYCLE II Research Cruise. This is the second PUPCYCLE (Phytoplankton responses during Upwelling Cycles) research cruise I have participated in with Adrian Marchetti...
Science by the Sea Wonders
Explore the world around us through my Science by the Sea Wonders blog. Sea-ing Stars – Sea star (Asterias forbesii) My Bonnet Comes from the Ocean – Scotch Bonnet (Semicassis granulate) Giant Tuns Weigh Much Less – Giant Tun (Tonna galea) You can also follow Science by the...
PUPCYCLE Day 14 – PUPCYCLE 2019 Returns to Port
The PUPCYCLE Log is also available for download as two pdfs: PUPCYCLE Log – Days 1-8 PUPCYCLE Log – Days 9-14 Thursday, June 06, 2019 – Returning to Newport, Oregon PUPCYCLE LOG – Day 14: PUPCYCLE 2019 Returns to Port PUPCYCLE 2019 is a classic example of collaborative research...