The
R/V Thomson preparing to depart Victoria, BC on August 23, 2006.
After loading the two primary tools we will be using during this NeMO
2006 expedition - two high-tech underwater vehicles with very different
but complimentary capabilities - we left Victoria this afternoon on board
the R/V Thompson and are heading out to our first dive site: the Endeavour
segment of the Juan de Fuca Ridge. There we plan to make dives alternately
with the remotely operated vehicle (ROV) named ROPOS (from the Canadian
Scientific Submersible Facility), and the autonomous underwater vehicle
(AUV) named the D. Allan B. (from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute).
After working at Endeavour for two days we will then move down to Axial
Seamount where we will spend the rest of the expedition. We will update
you after we leave Endeavour. In the meantime, we are all looking forward
to using these new and upgraded vehicles and working with a diverse group
of scientists, some of whom have not been on a NeMO cruise before. More
soon…
