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We spent the night searching in vain for the dye from dye study #2, and decided to conduct another dye release. At 1100, dye was released from the Point Sur in a ring shape at the same location as the last release.  This time, however, it was released in lower salinity water later during the ebb tide.

A second dye release was conducted several miles north of station CR-15 at 1100. It was released in a ring with a 1 mile diameter. After deploying the dye and taking our first water samples, both ships lost track of the dye location and began searching. The Point Sur used an undulating mini-bat CTD with a fluorometer attached. The New Horizon searched with fluorometers attached to the surface water flow-through system and to the CTD rosette. The dye was released just before a strong ebb, and the drifter we deployed seemed to be caught in the freshwater plume and moved many miles to the WNW. However, a particle tracking model predicted that the dye would move to the south.

We collected water from the dye plume again at 0400, sampling at 9 m (below the dye) and at 6 m (within the dye).  This station was numbered dye06.  We then sampled at four points to the N, S, E, and W of this station dye06 at a distance of 1 mile.  We did not detect dye at these other stations.  We then lost track of the dye, as did the Point Sur.  We decided to move the ship to station CR-30 and wait until morning to start the next dye study. 

Morning came and the seas did not improve much. The Point Sur is in the area riding out the storm with us. Forecasts call for better conditions in the afternoon. Keep your fingers crossed!

What a fun exercise this has proven to be! It's pretty ambitious to inject a cloud of fluorescein dye in the Pacific ocean and expect to find it again, but it is doable. By applying wind data, drifter pathways, circulation model solutions to a general understanding of how the ocean functions, we have been able to find our dye patch. Not perfectly, mind you. The ocean still holds some of her secrets from us, but her general nature is clear -- thankfully. 

We began our sampling at station CR-40 at 1100, and things were working pretty smoothly.< However, during the CTD cast at the next station (CR-35), sustained 35 kt winds caused us to suspend our operations. ;We spent the night offshore riding out the storm. Everyone is a little seasick.

We are out of cell phone range, and for some reason my email does not work over the HighSeasNet internet system, so I'm posting this note here to let everyone know what we are up to. With luck the conditions will improve sometime tomorrow and we can start working again.

Sustained 35 kt winds have caused us to suspend our operations.   We are offshore riding out the storm.   Everyone is a little seasick.  We are out of cell phone range, and for some reason email does not work over the HighSeasNet system, so I'm posting this note here to let everyone know what we are up to. With luck the conditions will improve sometime tomorrow and we can start working again.

The Point Sur arrived at ~0930, and as soon as the boxes were transferred we left the dock and headed out into a wavy ocean.  Winds were at about 10 kts, causing some degree of seasickness for most of the scientists.  I was sick too, but was able to keep functioning thanks to my scopolamine patch.  Several others were not so lucky.  The emergency alarm sounded at about 1030 and we all grabbed our life vests and mustered in the dry lab for a safety meeting.  After some comments from Murray and Gus we wa

I had the best of intentions to update my blog with the glider mission status. Then we crossed the Columbia Bar into the ocean.