First Submersible Dives

I was going to post last night but I was unexpectedly extremely busy. The general description of what the Alvin ops group does is they operate the submersible in order to help scientists do what they want. It becomes quite annoying when the scientists don't understand the limit to what we can do and why. Either for safety reasons or for efficiency reasons we will say no you cannot fit more than what you already have on the sub. There is a platform called the basket on the front of the sub, and that holds all the science gear which the hydraulic arms of the sub utilizes on dives. It has to be oriented in a way that doesn't hinder pilot vision, doesn't become a hazard by entanglement. Before last night there was a plan discussed between the Expedition leader and Principle investigators (Alvin team and scientists) about what they want for each dive. Last night however, the plan was changed last minute and we were working until 2300. It's not an issue I enjoy the work, but when we have to stay up that late and we have to be up at 0500 to inspect and prep the sub it becomes a concern. It's a dynamic environment and I enjoy that. You never know what to expect, and when things need a solution I have a whole mechanical shop with tools and machines to work with. During prep this morning there was a ballast blow box that was malfunctioning, so we replaced it with the spare which I took apart and reassembled. Of course I was always supervised but knowing that I did the work makes it a little crazy. It passed all the pressure tests and worked after it was installed, so I felt good about it. There are also a lot of pelagic white tip sharks hanging out around the ship now it's a cool sight.