Leg 2 Wrap Up!

"Leg 3" of the survey has officially started! Nancy, as we affectionately call the ship, departed from St. Thomas and is currently sampling in and around the US and British Virgin Islands as well as Puerto Rico for the next couple of weeks to continue our larval reef fish monitoring in the area (EST 2007-2011, 2013 and 2015!). The focus of this survey is quite different than the previous month (chasing eddies, lobsters and tunas!) and we will continue to share our journey along the way.

So to wrap up the first portion (NF1602), our Legs 1 and 2 chief scientist shared some of her thoughts:

John, our SEFSC Principle Investigator (PI) on the back deck

Evidence of our very international sci-crew

"The past month aboard the NOAA Ship Nancy Foster has been compiled with unforgettable moments! After many years of trying to have a port visit with our neighbor country (Cuba), we successfully docked in La Habana as well as in Cienfuegos!! As marine scientists, we are often ultra-focused on the science, but often the social angle gets lost in the mountains of paperwork we have to navigate to accomplish our research. Our trip to Cuba was possible thanks to many many people in the University, as well as multiple people in both of our governmental institutions - each doing their part to inch our collaborations forward. Our blog portrays the most fun aspect of going to sea, but just to set foot on the ship, A LOT happens behind the scenes!

"So without much further ado, THANK YOU to all that made the month of MAY possible! If you are one of those people reading the blog (you know who you are), we truly appreciate your efforts and hope you enjoyed the blog so far!"

We have some May photos for your enjoyment... stay tuned for most of June as Nancy returns to the eastern Caribbean!!

Miami-Cozumel (Leg 1)
L-R: Ofelia, Lulu, John, Yoandry, Raul, Aki, Grant, Jason, Matthieu, Leif, Atsushi
Front: Sarah and Estrella

Cozumel-Cienfuegos (Leg 2)
L-R: Estrella, John, Trika, David, Aki, Leif, Cati, Ofelia, Jason, Ryan
Front: Raul, Yoandry

Yoandry, Grant, Lulu, and Raul pose during a station on the back deck

Selfie!! Leg 1 scientists on the back deck at the end of the leg.

Cati, Ofelia, Raul, and Aki take in the view from the bridge deck as the ship pulls into Cienfuegos, Cuba.

L-R: John, Raul, Jason, David, Leif, Ryan, Aki, Trika, Cati, Ofelia, and Estrella in Cienfuegos.