SMART Science at Sea 9th-10th November

Cian Ryan, an Engineering Student from Cork Institute of Technology writes about his experiences during SMART Science at Sea Training Trip onboard the RV Celtic Voyager, 9-10th November.

I started off the trip with that nervous, uncomfortable feeling as my train was ten minutes late. Running to Albert Quay five minutes, late all I could think of was the crew and organisers giving me a look of disapproval. The greeting I got was the complete opposite, being warmly greeted at the gangway by Oisin and then in the dry lab by Paula, John and Roisin. The atmosphere on board was so relaxed and friendly and getting to know everyone took little under an hour.

The learning was split into 4 different disciplines -benthic ecology, fisheries, oceanography and geosciences - with Roisin, John, Paula and Oisin an expert in each field respectively. After a 15 minute safety tour, we were under way on the RV Celtic Voyager steaming for Cork Harbour. Studying engineering, I thought the material would be difficult to take in; however I was proven wrong again. The first 90 minutes was theory as the ship was steaming to our destination.  We were then given  a tour of the wet and dry labs aboard the vessel.

After the theory session the ship anchored and we got a chance to deploy an ROV (remotely operated vehicle). We were shown all the controls and we could also see in great detail the sea bed. We got to deploy the CTD (Conductivity Temperature Depth Device) with Paula and plot salinity and temperature with respect to depth. It was great to see what we had just learned in theory in practice as we could see the fresh and salt water layers Paula had described in our results. We also took plankton samples and got to work out the visibility of the water. The anchor was hauled and we had a quick break as we headed to our first sample station. Walking into the galley something smelled very good and at a quick glimpse I could see freshly made donuts on the table waiting. It was at this point I knew I was in for a great weekend.

Drinking a hot cup of tea and tucking into a fresh donut, the lunch menu caught my eye. A two course meal prepared by Mark the on board chef; orange soup to start and baked potatoes with prawn cocktail for main.

We stepped out on deck to watch the highly trained crew extract a sediment sample using a “day grab”. Oisin showed us how to prepare and record the samples, noting grain size and composition. Roisin sieved the sample for any benthos for further study later.

The next part of the trip is what I was really looking forward to, the live trawl. Being an experienced sea angler I was eager to see what the trawl would bring up in the harbour. We trawled for 15 minutes from Whitegate to just before Fort Carlisle. When the trawl came up it didn’t look like much, just shells and lots of sea weed. One of the great things about the trip was that it’s very “hands on” and we got to sort the trawl ourselves into the different species. Any discovery was explained on the spot by either John or Roisin, which really helped me take in the theory. There was over 15 species in the trawl and all lengths and weights were recorded. The age, which was found by dissecting the fish, was also recorded. Having sorted the fish on the trawl we studied some of the fascinating benthos with Roisin which are all sorts of worms, crabs, clams and starfish.

At the end of the day, our teams were given an assignment to undertake an environmental impact assessment on a proposed pipeline south of Cork Harbour. We had to plan a research trip for one day to assess the impact of the pipeline. Using charts plotted by the Celtic Voyager we selected our sample stations and trawl locations. Everyone was very busy because the winning team got to use their plan the next day.

The next day we pitched our plans to the board of directors. Planning the trip in teams was great because it helped me remember most of the theory from the day before. The second day was similar to the first, however it was  up to us to do more sampling while Oisin, Paula, John and Roisin were supervising us.  We even got to see dolphins in the distance, the other two trips saw minke whales and lots of dolphins up close to the ship. I suppose we were just a bit unlucky.

Throughout the trip the instructors were very informative and also relaxed and approachable.  The food was a huge bonus and the chef Mark was also great craic. The Celtic Voyager is very high tech and has huge capabilities I’m very lucky to have been able to go on this trip. I would strongly advise anyone who gets the opportunity to go on the trip to take it.

Cian Ryan