College of Sciences Newsletter

Edition 17

March 1, 2003

The Research Vessel Fay Slover in Action

Since R/V Slover's christening on October 1, 2002, faculty in the Department of Ocean, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences have been training the new vessel to talk (i.e. make observations and describe them).

Interim Chair, Tom Royer, reports that the child can now talk with the profiling and underway sea surface temperature, conductivity, salinity, and fluorometry systems presently running. The underway system is integrated with the meteorological data (air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and direction), depth measurements, time and position. The basics of the CTD/Rosette profiling system are also running so faculty and student users can gather vertical profiles of very accurate conductivity (salinity), temperature, and dissolved oxygen, with fluorometry and transmissiometry to follow shortly. Users are able to gather water samples at 12 depths selected by scientists in the lab as the vertical profile is done. The electronic data are available for display in real time and are recorded on the shipboard computers.

R/V Slover has had several successful cruises in the past few weeks, including box coring for a class, scientific sea trials, and Chesapeake Bay water quality studies. After several months of outfitting the vessel and training on all systems, the R/V Slover is approaching full operating status.

For additional information on the R/V Fay Slover, schedules, pictures and data from previous research excursions, go to this web site:

www.ccpo.odu.edu/~stan/pages/Slover-Main.htm