Volume 12, Number 3, 2004
The last time Robert McCarthy had stepped aboard a research vessel was almost 15 years ago, when he was a graduate student in the College of Marine Studies.
But, his hiatus from the sea didn't stop him when he was presented the opportunity to spend four weeks last summer in the ice-covered waters of the Arctic Ocean aboard the U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker Healy. McCarthy, who earned his master's and doctoral degrees from the College, says he "just packed a lot of warm clothing and a lot of film," and he was off.
A teacher at Gov. Mifflin High School in Shillington, Pa., he returned to sea as a member of a UD research team led by Andreas Münchow, MS '88M, '92PhD, associate professor of physical ocean science and engineering in the College. According to Münchow, experiences like the one offered to McCarthy are increasingly encouraged as a way to inform the public about scientific research and to promote science education.
UD's team was part of a collaborative effort involving 35 scientists from Oregon State University and the Institute of Ocean Sciences in British Columbia to study the movement of fresh water in the Arctic Ocean. As teacher-on-board, McCarthy wrote a daily log geared to high school students, describing his experiences aboard the 420-foot research vessel. Every day, his log was uploaded to a web site dedicated to the project, enabling his students and the public to travel along with him.
McCarthy stood watch from 3:30-11:30 p.m. each day to ensure that the shipboard equipment was recording data properly. He says it was a challenge to adjust to the Arctic's 24 hours of continuous daylight. "When my shift was over, it didn't feel as if it was late at night," he says. "I didn't have the visual clue that it was almost midnight."
McCarthy spent mornings taking photos and writing a rough draft of his day's article, which he later revised and edited. In those logs, he explained how and why the scientists used various pieces of equipment aboard the ship. He also described the weather and the scenery, as well as how the Coast Guard crew maintained morale while far from home.
McCarthy says highlights of the cruise included scraping ice off an iceberg and tasting it, collecting special stones and shells to bring back as souvenirs to his wife and children and what he calls the "ride of a lifetime" in one of the two helicopters aboard Healy.
But, he says, the best part of the voyage was watching the ship break through the ice. While cruising at 3 knots (about 3.5 mph), Healy can break through 4.5 feet of ice.
"We were privileged to stand right at the bow, where we could look straight down," McCarthy says. "The ship would momentarily slide up onto the ice a few feet, before the sheer weight of the ship would break through the ice. It was very cool and very loud!"
He summarizes his Arctic experience as the opportunity of a lifetime. "To be that far up in latitude, on board a state-of-the-art research vessel, was something I'll treasure forever," he says.
To read more about the trip and to learn about Arctic research, visit [http://newark.cms.udel.edu/~cats].