Daily Journal

23 July, 2005:

Today I’m writing for Eileen Purcell, who is feeling a bit under the weather. We left San Diego this morning under cloudy skies and with cool breezes. We will enjoy the refreshing weather while we can. Before we left the air conditioners were taken apart and put in good order. The extreme heat will stress both the ship’s electronics and our very precious water supply.

The rocking of the ship takes some getting used to the first day, even for some of the seasoned science veterans. Learning to stand and walk easily on a moving surface will be difficult until we all get our ‘sea legs.’ Ever notice, perhaps in a movie, that a boat in the ocean can be rocking with no wind at all? The rolling motions of the ocean, or swells, are caused by winds traveling across the ocean. This long-distance wind is called fetch. Local winds are what cause the tiny ripples and whitecaps on the surface of the swells.  –Ida Royer