21 March

Long-Term Ocean Climate Observations (LOCO) – D301/302

Cruise Diary – 21^stMarch 2006	Emergency drill
Tuesday - Spring has started on the northern hemisphere and fall in this part of the world but the only thing that we experience is that it is getting hotter and hotter while moving closer to the equator. The surface water temperature has risen to about 28 degrees and we are very happy that the air conditioning functions properly. Gradually the rainy and windy weather changed into calm and sunny weather with only a long swell from behind. Ideal conditions to have a fast transit to our first working station.
Preparations continued. Theo trains Petra, Tycho and Matthijs in handling the instruments that will hopefully come to the surface in the coming days and GeertJan and Erica guide Socratis and Ulrike in the preparations for the chemical analyses. There were two breaks during the day. In the morning we had our first emergency drill. Everybody had to gather at a specific muster point where the presence of all was checked and, in particular, their clothing. In the case of an emergency you always need to bring warm clothes and a hat, also in these tropical areas. So if you don't, you are sent back to your cabin to gather these essentials as some of us experienced. After mustering we all went to both lifeboats and were trained to get in and secure ourselves.
In the afternoon there was a presentation for everybody on the scientific contents of this cruise. Why, where and how our work will be done the coming period was the issue. The Dutch part is centered around observations on currents and hydrographic properties in the narrowest part of the channel. That is where our array of moorings measures continuously and needs servicing every 1-2 years. In addition, studies on vertical particle fluxes and bottom-water exchange are done.	Scientific ‘presentation’
The English part of the cruise studies the current field to the south of Madagascar, using similar methods. Both are interested in long term variability and how variability in these areas is connected to large scale variability in the Indian ocean and it's exchange with the Atlantic.