Blogs

Congratulations to all CMOP students that graduated this year!

Melissa (Missy) Gilbert was spotted receiving her diploma at Oregon Health & Science University's commencement. Missy received a master's degree in Environmental Science and Engineering from OHSU's Division of Environmental & Biomolecular Systems. Missy's advisor was Joe Needoba, Ph.D. and her master thesis was titled "Nutrient Loading and Transformations in the Columbia River Estuary Determined by High Resolution In Situ Sensors." Missy now works as a research associate with OHSU's Aquatic Biogeochemistry and Plankton Ecology Group.

Nievita Bueno Watts has joined the CMOP team as our new Director of Academic Programs. Watts’s responsibilities will be to develop, refine and grow CMOP’s education program in K-12, undergraduate and graduate levels. She will work closely with Vanessa Green, who will continue her leadership role with increased focus on student recruitment and the REU program.

"Nievita’s strengths in the education pathway and broadening participation will help us build an overall CMOP education program that is vibrant up to and beyond year 10," says Antonio Baptista, director of CMOP.

Watts received her Ph.D. in Science Education from Arizona State University, writing her dissertation in broadening participation of Native Americans in earth science.

May 3. We tried out the Owen tube for the first time today. Before casting we marked the wire every 1m so that we could roughly determine the depth during the cast. The Flood ETM was predicted for 0930. The Winched Profiler was in the water that morning and we detected an ETM with the FLNTU and the LISST sensors. We lowered the Owen Tube off the stern with the A-frame until we could feel the big 300lb weight touch the bottom and then raised it up slightly until the weight was off the bottom. This weight hangs ~1m below the Owen Tube. We then sent the messenger down the line and closed the tube, brought it back on deck, pushed the weight over to the Owen Tube, flipped the tube vertical, placed it in the rack, and started the stopwatch.

May 1. We were delayed a little crossing the bar into the Columbia River estuary by the rapid river flow, but once the current settled down we moved into the estuary and motored up to a site near SATURN-01 in the north channel of the estuary.

April 30. We spend the morning testing equipment in Newport harbor. We deployed the Winched Profiler device for the first time, and we put the CTD in the water to test the sensors and the pump. It took us a while to figure out how to install the batteries properly in the SBE-25 CTD system that I rented from UMCES Horn Point Lab. We figured that out and then went to Fred Meyer to buy more D-cell batteries, cable ties, bungees, electrical tape and duct tape (all the important stuff!). We had a safety briefing at 11 and everyone tried on a survival suit. At 1600 we pulled anchor, left Newport and started motoring up the coast. The weather was rough and many of us got seasick including me! Remarkably, new grad student Lindy Fine did not get sick. She already seems to have her sea legs.

April 29. Loading day. I traveled to Oregon with graduate students Lindy Fine and Dong Yoon Lee yesterday. This morning with help from Joe Needoba we loaded a U-haul truck with equipment at OHSU in Hillsboro and then drove to Newport Oregon to meet the ship. We then spent the rest of the day loading a lot of equipment and supplies onto the R/V Oceanus in Newport, OR, and testing equipment and sensors. Murray Levine, Fred Prahl, and David Langler drove over from Corvallis to help set up our new 12L Owen Tube, which was fashioned from an externally-closed Ocean Dynamics horizontal niskin bottle (see picture). We deployed the new Owen Tube several times to work out our sampling routine. Later that evening we started setting up our amazingly heavy CTD frame, which is designed to handle the extreme currents in the Columbia River estuary without being washed away from the ship.

1. Bottom, D. L., C.A. Simenstad, J. Burke, A.M. Baptista, D.A. Jay, K.K. Jones, E. Casillas (2005). The Role of the Estuary in the Decline and Recovery of Columbia River Salmon.

2. Burla,M.(2010). The Columbia River estuary and plume:natural varibility, anthropogenic change and physical habita for salmon(Doctoral dissertation), Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR.

This morning, Tawnya Peterson was interviewed for the radio show titled "The OHSU Effect" on KXL 101.1 FM. The show illustrates how OHSU's people and programs positively effect the health of Oregonians on a daily basis. Dr.

R/V Oceanus Click to Enlarge CMOP's old friend the research vessel Wecoma was recently retired and replaced with her sister ship the R/V Oceanus. The 35-year-old Oceanus, owned by the National Science Foundation and originally operated by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, was acquired by Oregon State University to replace the Wecoma. She will operate along Oregon and Washington coastlines and assist CMOP's research into how climate change and human activities are affecting coastal areas.

Take a photo tour of the ship.