Scripps Oceanography research vessel Sally Ride is framed by Lion Rock (left) and Point Sal in this photo shot by physical oceanographer Falk Feddersen earlier this week as the ship sailed a transect during the Inner Shelf Dynamics experiment.
Supported by the Office of Naval Research, the two-month-long study of the inner continental shelf along the central California coast involves three research vessels—Scripps' Sally Ride and Robert Gordon Sproul and Oregon State University's Oceanus, all part of the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System (UNOLS) fleet —and four small boats.
"One of the novel things about this project is that there are a truly absurd number of vessels doing a coordinated experiment," said Scripps physical oceanographer Jennifer Mackinnon. "I’ve never seen so many ships work together for a common purpose, in such a small space."
The ships have deployed dozens of sensor platforms on the ocean floor and are gathering data using drifters, aerial drones, sonar, radar, and other technologies.
More photos, posts about ongoing work, and details of the overall project are available on the Inner Shelf Dynamics blog.
Additional images
Looking North from above Vandenberg at Point Sal.
Researchers ready for the casting of a profiler.
Overnight drifter tracks.
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