Photo of the Week: Above Deck
Archaeology team gets training on using Scripps's new coastal vessel
The R/V Bob and Betty Beyster is the newest addition to the Scripps fleet of oceanographic research vessels. After arriving in April following a generous philanthropic effort, the vessel is now in heavy rotation.
Recently it was used to train members of the Scripps Center for Marine Archaeology on how to utilize and deploy new instrumentation. The vessel has a multi-beam sonar to map the seafloor in high resolution, and a mini remotely operated vehicle to explore the ocean at depth. The mini-ROV is an underwater robot tethered to the vessel and maneuvered by the researchers on the boat, that sends images and video back to the ship. Being able to test and train on this equipment on the Beyster allows for greater efficiency when out in the field. The Scripps Center for Marine Archaeology will utilize this instrumentation to map archaeological sites and explore sites deeper than divers are able to go.
The SCMA team consisted of graduate student Margaret Morris, who is studying marine geophysics and archaeology, as well as professors Isabel Rivera-Collazo, John Hildebrand, and Tom Levy. Hildebrand and Levy were learning the systems for a project taking place in Greece this fall.