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Page 8. MAINE COASTAL NEWS February 2014 Waterfront News DEEP DIVING SUB ALVIN CLEARED TO RETURN TO SERVICE


Navy certifi cation is fi nal step in ALVIN upgrade project


After a three-year overhaul and major upgrade, the United States’ deepest-diving research submersible, ALVIN, has been cleared to return to work exploring the ocean’s depths. The sub has been out of service since December 2010, undergoing a major upgrade that included the replace- ment of its personnel sphere with a newly fabricated, larger, more capable hull. The Woods Hole Oceanographic Insti- tution (WHOI) operates the Navy-owned sub for the National Deep Submergence Facility (NDSF) on behalf of a consortium of universities and research organizations conducting deep ocean research (UNOLS). On January 8, 2014, the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), Execu- tive Director of Undersea Warfare for the Department of the Navy, Steven Schulze, certifi ed that the sub could safely operate to depths of 3800 meters, with the expectation that a certifi cation dive to 4500 meters will be completed later this year.


“There has been tremendous coor- dination between the Navy, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and the National Science Foundation to ensure ALVIN’s safe- ty and integrity,” said the Navy’s Director of Advanced Undersea Integration, Don Hoffer. “ALVIN is a national asset and the Navy is pleased to be a part of the team that returned the vehicle to service.” “Achieving Navy certifi cation is a ma- jor milestone in the ALVIN upgrade project, enabling the vehicle to get back to its critical mission of taking scientists to the deep sea,” said WHOI VP for Marine Facilities and Operations Rob Munier. “This signifi cant accomplishment is a testament to the rig- orous engineering collaboration between WHOI and NAVSEA and the unwavering support of NSF. Certifi cation helps ensure that ALVIN’s excellent record of safety will continue for many decades to come.” ALVIN carries a pilot and two science


observers on missions that last approximate- ly eight hours. Certifi cation was the fi nal step in Stage


I of the ALVIN upgrade project, funded by the National Science Foundation and WHOI. The project included upgrades to major components to the increased depth rating of 6500 meters, including installation of a new, larger personnel sphere with im- proved interior ergonomics; fi ve viewports (instead of the previous three) to improve visibility and provide overlapping fi elds of view; new lighting and high-defi nition imaging systems; new syntactic foam pro- viding buoyancy; and an improved com- mand-and-control system. Upgrades also included improvements to ALVIN’s launch system and storage hangar on board its sup- port vessel, the R/V ATLANTIS. The Navy certifi ed ALVIN using its Deep Submergence Scope of Certifi cation (DS- SOC) process, reviewing the design, con- struction, and materials used to ensure the vehicle performs as expected. The Navy uses the same processes to certify manned undersea systems for submarine rescue and submarine-based Special Operation Forces delivery systems.


“The successful partnership between


NSF, Navy and WHOI ensures that research- ers will continue to have direct access to the deep ocean for the next generation of sci- entists and scientifi c challenges,” said Bob Houtman, section head in NSF’s Division of Ocean Sciences. ALVIN will be put into service in mid- March for a “science verifi cation” cruise led by Peter Girguis of Harvard University, who is chair of UNOLS’ Deep Submergence Science Committee, tasked with oversight of the NDSF. Girguis, along with a team of scientists from across the U.S., will test the various data acquisition and sampling systems in and around a combination of cold seep and deep-water coral sites in the north- ern Gulf of Mexico, between New Orleans and Gulfport, Mississippi. The scientists


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Artist rendition of the newly upgraded HOV ALVIN showing interior layout. Among other improvements to the sub, the new, larger personnel sphere has


improved interior ergonomics and fi ve viewports (instead of the previous three) to improve visibility and provide overlapping fi elds of view. (Illustration by E. Paul Oberlander © Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)


onboard will provide others in the research community with their written descriptions and assessments of the sub’s performance. Following that expedition, Alvin is sched- uled to conduct three research expeditions in the Gulf of Mexico, examining the impacts of the DEEPWATER HORIZON oil spill, determining the effects of ocean acidifi - cation on deep-water corals, and studying deep water seeps. During the second half of 2014, Alvin will be on the U.S. West Coast, for dives on Juan De Fuca Ridge and later at the East Pacifi c Rise and Dorado Outcrop off Costa Rica.


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KUSTOM STEEL


Last November, the ALVIN operations team, along with observers from the U.S. Navy, conducted certifi cation dives off San Diego, CA, where the sub was taken to pro- gressively greater depths to prove that all of its systems are safe for operation. “The modifi cations made to ALVIN during this upgrade and overhaul have ex- ponentially improved its capabilities,” said Pat Hickey, ALVIN manager and one of the chief test pilots. “The new LED lights save power while illuminating a far greater area than before, and the bigger and repositioned windows improve visibility. By reposition- ing the manipulators we increased our work area, and the larger science basket allows us to load up to 400 pounds of exterior equip- ment and samples. An additional lateral thruster now allows the sub to hover like an underwater helicopter.” While ALVIN is capable of operating to depths of 4500 meters, time and location constraints during the certifi cation trials prohibited dives to those depths. Later this year, WHOI, NSF, and the Offi ce of Naval Research will schedule a dive to 4500 meters to achieve the maximum certifi ed depth of


4500 meters for Stage I. The current ALVIN certifi cation depth supports all planned sci- ence activities in 2014.


Stage II of the upgrade is dependent on funding and improvements to lithium-ion battery technology. That stage will bring the remaining systems (i.e. battery, variable ballast, and hydraulics) to the 6500-meter capability, and the sub will then be certifi ed to that depth.


This year marks ALVIN’s 50th year in


operation. Commissioned in 1964 as one of the world’s fi rst deep-ocean submersibles, ALVIN has made more than 4,600 dives. The sub has undergone many upgrades over the years, including replacement of its steel personnel sphere in 1973 with one made of titanium, enabling access to a greater percentage of the seafl oor. The sub’s most fa- mous exploits include locating a lost hydro- gen bomb in the Mediterranean Sea in 1966, exploring the fi rst known hydrothermal vent sites in the 1970s, and surveying the wreck of RMS TITANIC in 1986. In addition, the sub has enabled dozens of new discoveries and countless insights into the way deep-sea geology, chemistry, and biology function independently and interact as part of Earth’s overall planetary system. The Woods Hole Oceanographic Insti- tution is a private, non-profi t organization on Cape Cod, Mass., dedicated to marine research, engineering, and higher education. Established in 1930 on a recommendation from the National Academy of Sciences, its primary mission is to understand the ocean and its interaction with the Earth as a whole, and to communicate a basic understanding of the ocean’s role in the changing global environment. For more information, please visit www.whoi.edu.


Penobscot Marine Museum’s Rare Historic Photographs of Down East On View at Mount Desert Island Historical Society


SEARSPORT – The Mount Desert Island Historical Society is hosting Penobscot Marine Museum’s exhibit “Hancock County through Eastern’s Eye,” a collection of rare photographs of towns and villages in Han- cock County, Maine taken in the late 19th and early 20th


centuries. The exhibit features


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images that have never been exhibited in public, with captions researched by more than twenty historical societies, libraries, and individuals.


This exhibit is taken from the Eastern Illustrating & Publishing Collection, which was given to the Penobscot Marine Museum in 2007, after it was rescued from a fl ood at its previous home in Rockport. Now


approaching 50,000 negatives, the Eastern collection includes scenes not only of Maine but of the rest of New England and upstate New York as well. In 2011, PMM launched its online database making this collection and others available for research, education, genealogical research and fun!


The exhibit will be on display at the Sound School House, 373 Sound Drive/ Route 198, Mount Desert, Maine, beginning with an opening reception from 4:30 pm to 6:00 pm on Thursday, January 9, 2014. The exhibit will be open from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, Monday through Friday and runs through February 28, 2014 .


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