Monday 09 February, 2004

This morning Andrea Ogston and her team retrieved the third tripod without a problem. We then returned to the location of the missing tripod. We arrived around noon, and at this point the small boat was launched. Chief Mate Bryon Wilson and Able Seaman Dave Grimes, took the boat out along with Cathy Presto and John Crockett. They were equipped with a fathometer or depth sounder to image the seafloor and locate the tripod, as well as grappling hooks to hopefully hook the tripod from the small boat. The idea was that once the tripod was secured, the Melville could slowly back up to the tripod at which point the small boat crew could hand the line to the Resident Technician on the fantail. From there, those on deck would recover the tripod. They were able to see the tripod on the fathometer, using a fix based on a reading from the transponder, however, the seas were choppy and made it impossible for the small boat crew to hook the tripod. After a couple of hours searching, a squall line approached quickly and eventually drenched the team and observers on deck. Following the squall, they recovered the small boat and went to the plan B.

Plan B consisted of using the ship to drag two large hooks attached to weights along the seafloor over the hypothesized tripod site. This must be done very carefully as wire from the ship´s trawl winch (being used to drag the hooks) could easily be caught in the ship´s propellers or "props." After deployment of the hooks, the ship circled the site and ran out trawl wire simultaneously. Then, by winching in the wire, we hoped to create a noose around the tripod and, in the process, the large hooks would catch the frame. During the first attempt, there was great hope as the first hook re-surfaced with the tripod float near it. Everyone waited quietly as the second hook was brought up, hoping that it might have the tripod, but Geoff the Res Tech (Resident Technician) who was standing on the fantail and was first to see the hook surface said in a calm, serious voice "nothing." The day was reaching into the night, and there was still no luck. It was a tense and frustrating situation for all; the data and instruments were so close, but still just out of reach.

They decided to give plan B a second try, but this attempt ended uglier than the first. There was hope for a while, but a complication arose when the trawl wire was pulled up. One of the hooks was entangled with the trawl winch cable. The trawl wire was kinked and twisted in such a way that this section of it would no longer be usable. As a result, it was necessary to set up a rope-hold system to keep tension on the wire that hopefully held the tripod. Since the winch line was no longer functional, the remaining cable had to be reeled in by using the capstan; a mechanic spindle that winds in line as some one keeps tension on the loose end. This extraction process was long and slow, but caution was taken to prevent injury and there was still hope that a tripod was on the end. In the end, the hooks came up empty and the tripod remained on the seafloor. It was frustrating to see so much time and effort put in but to no avail.

Weather
(Today's weather and location at 0900)

Air Temperature: 27°C (80°F)
Water Temperature: 29°C (84°F)
Salinity: 32.998 PSU
Barometric Pressure: 1010.2 cmbar
Precipitation: 30.5 mm (last 24 hours)
Relative Hummidity: 76%

Location
Longitude: 144.18053° E
Latitude: 8.58569° S

Menu
Breakfast: Bacon, ham, eggs, potatoes, fresh fruit
Lunch: Tuna or turkey croissant sandwiches, French fries
Dinner: Prime rib steak, salad, seasoned potatoes, fish
Dessert: Chocolate brownies