Ariana's Yellow Tube of Science

Our ninth float, Ariana Grande,  has been deployed

 

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Ariana Grande— West Hawai’i Explorations Academy (WHEA) in Kona, HI

Location: 169° 59.8048’ W; 77° 47.9938’ S

Time: Wed 01 FEB 2023 07:34 UTC

Temperature: -2.2°C, Wind 22 kts WNW

Float Number: 21803

Float Type: Apex

Float Program: GO-BGC

This float was adopted by the Deep-sea 11 class of West Hawai’i Explorations Academy (WHEA) in Kailua-Kona, HI. One of the students, Makana—who is a junior at WHEA, asked if we could apply an image of Ariana Grande on the float if possible. Since we can’t put stickers or photos on the floats, I did my best to draw an image of Ariana. I hope you like it, Makana!

This map shows the location of the float deployment, less than 100 km north of the Ross Ice Shelf.]

This map shows the location of the float deployment, less than 100 km north of the Ross Ice Shelf.

photo of the float Ariana Grande being supported by a crew member on the deck of the ship.

Ariana Grande is ready to deploy. Photo by Jenn Magnusson

photo of the Ariana Grande artwork

My best attempt at a likeness of Ariana Grande. photo by Jenn Magnusson

One of my responsibilities as chief float deployment manager (self-titled) aboard the IBRV Araon is to clean the sensors of each float before deployment. Each float has two sensors— a nitrate probe and a biooptical sensor— that must be carefully cleaned before deployment to ensure that they are free from any debris or residue that might affect their measurements. Before each deployment, I clean the sensors with nanopure water and wipe them carefully with lens paper. It only takes a few minutes, but it ensures that the profiles that come back are as accurate as possible.

photo of the nitrate sensor at the top of the float

Nitrate probe measures nitrate in the water. Photo by Jenn Magnusson

photo of the biooptical sensor at the bottom of the float

The biooptical sensor measures fluorescence and particle backscatter to assess organisms living in the water. Photo by Jenn Magnusson

I keep thinking that it would be great if Ariana Grande would see that she’s got a namesake out in the world of science. Maybe she could retweet one of our posts and the float would go viral! She could even sing a song about it. I’ve taken a stab at writing one…maybe it will give her some inspiration. It’s called, “Yellow Tube of Science.”

Drifting through the Ross Sea
A small, obscure appliance
A marvel of technology
A yellow tube of science

Fluorescence and salinity
It measures with reliance
Everything in proximity
To the yellow tube of science

Sinking toward the seafloor
With flotational defiance
It helps us all to see more
This yellow tube of science

Back up to the surface
To the satellite alliance
The data are its purpose
The yellow tube of science

I don’t know…I’m still workshopping it. Maybe some of the Adopt-a-Float classes can help me come up with some more verses. There are lots more words that rhyme with science!

photo of crew launching the float Ariana Grande over the side of the ship

Launching the Yellow Tube of Science in the evening sun. photo by Jenn Magnusson