NOAA Mission Discovers Historic Shipwreck Off Turks And Caicos Islands; ‘The Story Was Lost To History’

NOAA Mission Discovers Historic Shipwreck Off Turks And Caicos Islands; ‘The Story Was Lost To History’

Maritime archaeologists today announced they have recently identified the wreck of the historic slave ship Trouvadore off the coast of East Caicos in the Turks and Caicos Islands. NOAA’s Office of Ocean Exploration and Research significantly funded several years of archaeological research leading to the discovery by Don Keith and Toni Carrell, from Ships of Discovery, an underwater archaeology research institute.

The Spanish vessel Trouvadore was participating in the slave trade, outlawed in the British Indies, including the Turks and Caicos Islands. In 1841, after the vessel was grounded on a reef, Caicos authorities arrested the crew, and most of the 192 African survivors settled on Grand Turk Island.

Keith and Carrell believe the African survivors of the Trouvadore are the ancestors of a large portion of current residents in the Turks and Caicos Islands. For example, traditions on the Islands have a recognizable African origin. The Turks and Caicos National Museum is recording these traditions through oral histories and is educating the community about their ancestral history.

“What makes a people different and distinct is their unique history,” said Keith, who has worked in the islands for 30 years. “The people of the Turks and Caicos have a direct line to this dramatic, historic event – it’s how so many of them ended up being there. We hope this discovery will encourage the people of the Turks and Caicos to protect and research their local history, especially the history that remains underwater.”

“Although the sinking of the Trouvadore was a major event on the Island, the story was lost to history over the following century and a half,” said Carrell. “After we uncovered records of the shipwreck several years ago, we were stunned to realize that Turks and Caicos residents had never heard of the shipwreck that brought their ancestors to the Island.”

In 2004, using historical accounts of where the Trouvadore went down, along with remote sensing and visual searches, archaeologists focused on a ship near a local landmark known as the Black Rock. Records showed the vessel had sunk at Breezy Point, approximately two miles from the Black Rock Wreck location.

“But with the wind blowing constantly from the east, and a current running from that direction, the ship would have drifted,” Keith said. “That could have happened after it was lightened by salvage, as well.” Keith and his team used careful measurements of the hull and after years of research to amass compelling circumstantial evidence, concluded in August that the Black Rock Wreck could only be the Trouvadore.

Keith and Carrell knew from the start it would be difficult to find artifacts to identify the ship. “People of these islands traditionally have used resources from sunken ships. There are houses built on Grand Turk from ship remains,” said Keith. “We knew the ship had been salvaged upon sinking, and we weren’t going to find a bell with ‘Trouvadore 1841’ on it.”

The archaeologists learned about the Trouvadore while tracing the current locations of artifacts from the Islands that were sold to museums in the U.S. and Europe over a hundred years ago. Examining records about “African idols” that were sold, they found the account of the Trouvadore wreck.

“It’s rare and exciting to find a wreck of such importance that has been forgotten for so many years,” said Frank Cantelas, marine archaeologist for NOAA’s Office of Ocean Exploration and Research. “By identifying the Trouvadore, Don and Toni have really made a contribution to history and given the Islands’ people a better sense of place.”

Keith and his colleagues also discovered the wreck of the U.S. naval vessel Chippewa, lost in 1816. The researchers discovered a line of carronades, a unique type of cannon carried by the Chippewa, near the reef off Providenciales, which the vessel reportedly struck. The Chippewa and the Onkahye, sunk in 1848, were part of America’s efforts to stop the African slave trade and piracy by patrolling the Caribbean. Keith plans to continue work on the Chippewa wreck site and hopes to discover the Onkahye nearby.

NOAA understands and predicts changes in the Earth’s environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and conserves and manages our coastal and marine resources.

WEATHER NOTE

Nenana, Alaska, Receives Nation’s 1,000th NOAA Weather Radio Transmitter

Central interior Alaskan residents, visitors, barge captains and railroad operators now have access to weather information anytime, thanks to a new NOAA Weather Radio All-Hazards transmitter recently installed on Toghotthele Hill in Nenana, the 1,000th of these transmitters installed by NOAA.

Residents of the Nenana area can tune to 162.4 MHz on NOAA Weather Radio for the broadcasts from NOAA’s Weather Forecast Office in Fairbanks. NOAA Weather Radio All-Hazards, known as "The Voice of the National Weather Service," is a continuous 24-hour source of the latest weather forecasts and warnings.

"Citizens can now have weather information available at their fingertips any time in the Nenana area," said John Dragomir, meteorologist in charge of the National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office in Fairbanks. "The Nenana transmitter significantly increases the weather service’s ability to reach Alaska’s central interior directly with weather warnings and forecasts. A NOAA Weather Radio in the home, car, truck, boat and other vehicles helps protect families, individuals and property."

This radio broadcast has been made possible through a partnership between NOAA, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the city of Nenana. USDA Rural Development provided $39,438 to the City of Nenana for this project. Matching funds and in kind contributions came from the City of Nenana. USDA Rural Development has awarded 97 Weather Radio Transmitter grants for installations in 27 states and Puerto Rico since 2001.

USDA Rural Development acting Alaska state director Chad Padgett said "USDA Rural Development is pleased to partner with the National Weather Service, Nenana mayor Jason Mayrand and our great community supporters of this Program. We are pleased to administer this grant program because NOAA Weather Radio promotes public safety and awareness, and most importantly, saves lives."

"Prior to this opportunity, we had to call the weather service directly in order to receive weather warnings," said Mayrand. "Often we would hear of hazardous weather conditions through the grape vine. With the new transmitter in place not only do Nenana residents have access but also a large population of people that live in more remote regions of Interior Alaska."

"Now that the NOAA Weather Radio All-Hazards network has one thousand transmitters, we have the capability to send critical warnings and environmental information to 95 percent of the U.S. population," said Dr. John L. "Jack" Hayes, director of NOAA's National Weather Service. "NOAA Weather Radio All-Hazards alerts the public to natural or man-made disasters, and keeps them informed until the danger has passed."

MARITIME NOTE

Safety at Sea

If properly prepared, sailing off-shore can be an exhilarating and rewarding experience. Conversely, if not prepared, it can be miserable and dangerous. Because we prefer 'exhilarating and rewarding', we do everything in our power to be properly prepared. This section is meant to give the reader insight into emergency procedures aboard Vision Quest. The overall plan is to avoid emergencies, but as we all know, 'stuff' happens and you need to be ready!

Of course, the safety and well being of the crew is the highest priority. However, for emergency procedures we must put the boat first. The reason for this can be understood when you think about what would happen to the crew if there was no boat. I am primarily talking about fire and sinking.

Please keep in mind as you read this that these are general guidelines. Every situation is different and requires that the captain and crew adapt the procedures to the given situation. Also note that when a true emergency occurs, an incorrect response often leads to making a manageable situation worse.

Generally speaking, if there is a fire, or the boat is taking on water, the crew must tend to the boat first. This is a higher priority than even aiding a crew member in need. The crew must be disciplined to keep their priorities in order and think before taking action.

an example...

Lets say that you are having a nice sail with your young son or daughter (just the two of you) on a nice summer day a couple of miles offshore. Then the unthinkable happens, your child falls overboard right in front of your eyes! In the first few seconds, your instincts may tell you to jump in to save them. This is where training comes in. You take some time to think about what you need to do and realize that if you jump in after them, chances are you both will drown. You realize that the proper response is to throw floatation and execute your man over board (MOB) procedures. Because you have practiced this a number of times, you are able to bring the boat to your child and save them.

The above example demonstrates that having emergency procedures and practicing them before they are needed saves lives. This is good, but what if you were able avoid the situation altogether? These are some of the things that should have been thought about before ever leaving the dock:

• Should I bring another experienced sailor with me in case something happens?
• Do I have adequate lifelines?
• Should my child be tethered to the boat?
• Can they swim?
• Do they have a life jacket? Are they required to where it?
• What is the weather like? Is it going to change?
• Do I have emergency procedures and know how to execute them?

As you can infer from this example, seamanship starts before you leave the dock. You could even say that seamanship starts before you launch your boat; even before you buy your boat!

Priorities

Priorities need to be kept very simple. The reason for this is that when the weather is rough and the crew is hungry and exhausted, complicated things are harder to remember. So, here's the top three:

1. Don't sink
2. Don't catch on fire
3. Don't fall overboard

Also (not in any order):

• Avoid bad weather
• Know what to do if you can't avoid heavy weather
• Watch for gear failure
• Minimize passage time
• Collision Avoidance
• Keep the crew well fed and rested
• Crew Training
• Avoid injury
• Avoiding Seasickness
• Abandon Ship!

Of course there are many more things to pay attention to, in fact whole books can and have been written on all of these subjects. In the next few sections I will outline some of the things we have done aboard Vision Quest to address these concerns. This is by no means a comprehensive discussion and I will try to keep it to the points that I think people will be most interested in.

Sinking!

Vision Quest is equipped with many features to prevent taking on water. We also have specialized tools and procedures to use if we end up starting to sink.

• Rugged companionway door with positive latch
• Positive latches for the cockpit lockers
• Pre-cut window repair boards that can be used to patch a blown out window. These will be mountable from inside the boat.
• High capacity hand operated bilge pump that can be operated from the cockpit.
• High capacity hand bilge pump that can be operated from inside the cabin with all hatches and windows shut.
• Electric Bilge pump
• Buckets!
• Hull breach toolbox with materials that can be used to repair cracks in the hull.
• Procedures for determining the source of the leak - quickly.
• If it is obvious that the boat is going to sink and our attempts to stem the flow of water are not successful then we can begin our abandon ship procedures and take to the life raft.

Fire!

Fire prevention is the key here. All of our diesel fuel is stored in proper fuel tanks and we do not carry any fuel on deck in jerry cans. We will have a small amount of gasoline (1 gallon) for our outboard motor that we will store in a safe place (probably on one of our transom steps). Propane is properly stored in a locker designed for the purpose which vents overboard. The decks and cabin will be kept clean and orderly.

If a fire does break out, we have 4 fire extinguishers located in strategic places to fight it. The extinguisher in the galley is a fairly large one of the ABC type that can also be emptied into the engine compartment via a fire port if we have an engine fire. Procedures will be in place for the various scenarios and we will practice them.

Man Overboard!

Man overboard is more likely than fire or sinking and is an absolutely critical issue. The prevailing wisdom is that if you fall overboard you are going to die. The reason for this is that it is usually dark and stormy when this happens and it is extremely difficult to find someone in the water, let alone get the boat back to them and retrieve them. This is the case even in mild conditions and can be compounded greatly if the victim is unconscious.

Again, the best way to handle this is prevention. The crew will always be tethered to the boat when working on deck and at night. Even sitting in the cockpit during the day, crew members will have to be tied to the boat unless it is very calm and there is more than one person in the cockpit.

If someone does fall over, they will presumably have their inflatable harness on. These harnesses' inflate automatically when they hit the water and have a manual backup should the auto-inflate mechanism fail. These harnesses are also equipped with a strobe light and whistle to help the boat find them. Each crew member will practice retrieving a man overboard using the most accepted techniques in the racing community. So far, I have never seen anyone fall overboard except in sailing videos. I want to keep it that way!!

Weather Routing

It is important to pick your 'weather window' before you leave. The general consensus is that June is the best time to cross because the winter storms are over and percentage of hurricanes is very low.

Weather routing is critical. You want to avoid extreme weather situations while at the same time avoiding areas of little to no wind. These calms are good for ocean going trawlers, but not so for sailboats with a limited fuel supply. Vision Quest likes to have 15-20 knots of wind just aft of her beam and these are the conditions we will be seeking.

We use sophisticated route planning software (Max Sea) and weather chart software (Ocens Weathernet). These tools allow us to get up to date high seas analysis and forecasts for our area. We will also be using a professional weather router whom we will remain in contact with via email. This person will recommend the proper course to steer to get us into favorable weather patterns. If we lose our satellite phone and SSB radio, we will have to watch the barometric pressure, clouds, and seas to try to figure out our best course (just like the old days!). If we can raise a ship on the VHF radio, we can ask them for a forecast as well.

Heavy Weather

As discussed above, we will do everything we can to avoid heavy weather. Regardless, since we are crossing the North Atlantic and we will be out there for over 3 weeks, we will probably encounter at least a gale or two and some squalls. I would rather not get caught in a storm, but we will be prepared for that as well. Rather than get into a long discussion about tactics, I'll just summarize some of the tools and techniques at our disposal.

• Storm Sails made of very heavy orange sail cloth
• Inner Forestay for keeping the storm head sail closer to the center of the boat.
• Drogue and associated tackle for keeping the boat under control while surfing down large waves ('running off').
• Sea Anchor for riding the storm out 'bow to'.
• 'Heave to' techniques
• 'Crew preservation' as mentioned in the crew sections below
• Secure, solid, and simple boat with redundant systems
• Plenty of tools and spare parts for repairs

Gear Failure

Vision Quest has been outfitted in such a way that she can continue on her way when she loses a main system like the engine, rudder, or electrical power. We have spare sails and the ability to patch and mend them should they be damaged. We carry spare rope of all lengths and sizes and all kinds of other tools and materials to repair and patch things as they fail.

There is one thing that has no backup though and that is the standing rigging ...commonly known as the mast and boom for you land lubbers! Losing the mast would put us into a critical situation. Again, this would probably happen when it is rough out. Prevailing wisdom is that when the mast comes down, you need to cut it away and let it sink as soon as possible so that it doesn't ram into the boat and make a hole. This would be an example of one emergency causing another!

In the event that we lose the mast, we would try to build a jury rig with our spinnaker pole and anything else that we are able to salvage. This would hopefully be enough to get us to the nearest point of land. We have enough fuel to motor for 600-800 miles which will help allot but we may be more than 1000 miles away from land. Also, the nearest landfall may be unattainable due to wind and wave conditions. Depending on how much luck we have with the jury rig, amount of fuel we have, and weather conditions, we may very well have to call for help. If this is the case, we would probably be picked up by a ship and have to leave the boat behind.

The good news is that if your rig (mast) is meticulously maintained and inspected by professional riggers and constantly inspected for signs of stress, losing the rig is very unlikely. It is also important not to stress the rig too much in rough and windy conditions; this is done by reducing sail area and not 'beating' the hull too badly in head seas.

Passage Time

The chances for bad weather, gear failure, crew injury, etc go up the longer you are at sea. For this reason, one of our prime objectives is to keep the boat moving toward her destination as fast as safely possible. This is good for moral and keeps the crew busy. Basically we 'pretend' that we are in a race but we temper it with avoiding bad weather and not pushing the boat so hard that something may break. I guess what I'm saying here is that we won't be 'dilly-dallying' around!

Collision Avoidance

It is a big ocean out there, but you would be surprised how closely ships and other yachts pass by you. On Vision Quest, we consider a ship at ten miles range to be a threat and we often track them from twenty or more miles away using our radar.

We carry a radar reflector on our mast which increases the chances of the ship seeing us on their radar. We also have navigation lights on top of our mast which improves visibility at night. This is nice, but we can't depend on a busy ships crew seeing us; we need to be on the lookout for them! When we do spot a ship (or yacht) either by eye, or on the radar, we immediately begin the tracking process.

Basically what you do is watch for a changing bearing. If the bearing to the ship is gradually changing, then you will generally pass well clear of each other. If the bearing is not changing, then you are on a collision course and the ship needs to be contacted on the VHF radio while they are still a fair distance away (miles). This usually works and you mutually decide who will change course and all is well. Sometimes you can't raise them and must change course yourself.

Quick and decisive action is necessary while the ship is miles away ...it is amazing how fast they are going! If we can't get out of their way, and can't contact them, we will begin firing flares and sounding horns, which will hopefully 'snap them out of it' and get them on the radio!

Taking Care of the Crew

The goal is to have a well rested and fed crew that are happy and performing their best. The following list outlines the main things that prevent mutiny!

• Pick well balanced, experienced people that you can get along with. Preferably people that have sailed together before.
• Maximize sleep and relaxation time
• Provide good food that is healthy and satisfying
• Keep the boat clean, dry, and orderly
• Always have dry comfortable clothing
• Dry comfortable pillows, sheets, and blankets
• Regular crew meetings, especially if there is any controversy or 'drama'.

Crew Training

In the case of this voyage, the selected crew all know each other and have sailed together on at least one significant passage. Before leaving and periodically during the voyage each crew member will practice many things including:

• Man overboard recovery
• Sinking drills (a marker is placed where the leak is and they have to find it)
• Abandon Ship / life raft deployment drills
• Fire fighting drills
• Medical emergency training (at least two certified crew)
• Sail reefing and changing drills
• Sea anchor and drogue deployment and retrieval
• Emergency steering
• Emergency hull, sail, engine, and systems repair

Injury & Sickness

The best way to avoid injury is to stay well fed and rested. This way, crew members will remember to move slowly and deliberately and always have one hand available to hang onto the boat. A well fed and rested crew will also make better decisions, thus potentially avoiding an injurious situation. The other thing to keep in mind is to try and avoid severe weather and keep the boat under control. A quick story is in order.

A story: On our way to Bermuda during a celestial navigation course, we spent several days in a strong gale. There were several incidents involving losing balance and items flying across the cabin. The worst one I witnessed was a 'twofold snafu'. One night while the captain was preparing dinner, the boat lurched and a huge bottle of olive oil flew across the cabin. Luckily no one was hit, but is spilled all over the place. After a long time trying to wipe this stuff up (bad for moral) we still had an olive oil 'sheen' on the floor that we just couldn't seem to remove. The next day, one of the crew was making coffee and another lurch ...an entire can of Maxwell House all over the cabin! Now we had coffee grounds mixed into the olive oil that was left over from the night before on the floor ...a wicked mess (bad for moral).

Items in the cabin, like big bottles of olive oil, need to be secured at all times! The mess on the floor made the cabin slippery and 'icky'. Although, no one got hurt, they very well could have from the flying olive oil or slippery floor. Another less tangible result was that instead of sleeping or doing worthwhile chores, the off-watch crew had to deal with this mess for hours. Lost sleep and bad attitudes could cause a bad decision later. Again, a manageable incident being compounded into one that was less manageable. We now laugh about this and every time the olive oil comes out, so do the jokes!

Now, back to injury. We carry lots of over the counter medications and first aid supplies. We also carry prescription medications like antibiotics, seasickness medication, epi-pens, etc. We use a land based remote physician service that we can contact through email or satellite telephone. The remote doctors can guide us through the treatment and already knows what medications we have on board (they prescribed them).

Seasickness

Seasickness is a critical safety concern. Many people do recover after a day or two, but some do not. They can become dehydrated and incoherent within a matter of a few days. They are so sick that they can barely move and will definitely make poor decisions if they do decide to do something. If someone get's this sick, medical attention is often required and the remaining crew have to pick up the slack. If two crew get this sick, your ability to handle the boat will be severely compromised. When you are over 500 miles from the nearest land and out of helicopter range, the situation can become critical. You get the idea!

Like most emergencies, prevention is the key. Each crew member needs to have their own plan for dealing with seasickness. If medication is involved, they must have tried it beforehand to make sure that it doesn't cause any adverse effects. These types of medicine are designed to prevent seasickness, not cure it. Therefore, it's good practice to take it before rough weather hits.

If a crew member becomes incapacitated, we will have medications on board and access to a remote doctor over the satellite phone. This will hopefully be enough to get them recovering before the situation worsens.

Abandon Ship

I put this topic last because it is the absolutely last thing we do. In fact, the only time the boat is to be left for the liferaft is if it is almost completely underwater or engulfed in flames.

The key to abandoning ship is to have procedures in place where you simultaneously have someone making 'mayday' calls while others are launching the life raft and retrieving the abandon ship bag (grab bag).

The grab bag is critical. It contains everything needed for short term survival and rescue signaling. Without it, chances of survival are very low. With it, chances of quick rescue are very high. Therefore, the crew must know that our lives depend on that bag ...so don't forget it, don't lose it, and risk your life if you have to making sure you get it!

The links below have the procedures and grab bag contents so I won't go into that here except to say that it contains a device called a GPIRB. This device, when turned on will tell the authorities who we are and where we are and a rescue mission will begin in short order. The GPIRB is the all important key to survival (other than the raft itself of course).

As you can see, the grab bag is an all or nothing proposition. The good news is that in a dire situation where there could be panic, despair, and injury; you only have to remember one thing ...get the bag and don't lose it when getting into the liferaft!

Open Letter From INTERTANKO

Thursday, December 11th, 2008

OPEN LETTER

To President Lee Myung-bak, President of the Republic of Korea,

From INTERTANKO

We, the International Association of Independent Tanker Owners, have noted with considerable dismay the Second (Appeal) Decision of the Korean Maritime Safety Tribunal (KMST) and its findings of fault on the part of the two ship’s officers of the “Hebei Spirit”; Captain Jasprit Chawla and Chief Officer, Syam Chetan.

As a responsible and accountable international shipping association, which represents over 80% of independent tanker owner interests worldwide, we first wish to offer all our sympathy to the people of Korea who were so badly affected by the spill of oil which resulted when the runaway Samsung crane barge struck the legitimately anchored tanker “Hebei Spirit”.

We are aware that both Captain Chawla and Chief Officer Chetan were acquitted in the Daesan Court of the First Instance in June this year of all charges of criminal negligence. We are also aware that this Court Judgment is presently under appeal and understand that the Daesan Court of Appeal will be giving judgment as early as Wednesday 10 December.

We are further aware that the First (Inchon) KMST Decision has already been submitted in evidence in the Daesan Court of Appeal proceedings, and that it is likely that the Second (Appeal) KMST Decision will also be submitted in evidence in these proceedings. We are advised that Courts in Korea attach great weight to KMST Decisions. Noting this, and having considered in some detail the Second (Appeal) Decision of the KMST that is now before us as well as the First (Inchon) KMST Decision, we believe them both to be technically flawed and therefore that they draw unjust conclusions.

We wish also to express our concern that the KMST reports have not been produced in accordance with the internationally recognised IMO Interim Guidelines (MSC/Circ 1058) and IMO Code for the Investigation of Marine Casualties and Incidents. One of the cornerstones of this Code is the requirement to co-operate and consult with all interested parties before a final report is made.

We therefore urge the Daesan Court of Appeal to carefully consider all of the evidence, and in particular the judgment of the Daesan Court of First Instance, and not to rely solely on these KMST Decisions when reaching its decision. We also appeal to the Court to pay full respect to all its international treaty obligations to seafarers in rendering its decision. After it has made a careful and balanced review of all the evidence, we hope that the Court will reach a fair and just decision, not just in the interests of Captain Chawla and Chief Officer Chetan, but also as a demonstration to seafarers trading to the Republic of Korea that they can expect the highest standards of fair treatment and justice.

It would be highly regrettable if the outcome of these proceedings were to prove detrimental to Korea’s international reputation and to its status as a tanker shipping nation, to its shipyards which rely on business from international tanker owners and to its refining and chemicals industry whose oil is delivered by the international tanker fleet.

With the greatest of respect,
INTERTANKO,
8th December 2008.

5 more days til Christmas!
Have one really great weekend!

RS

NASA Mission To Be Crystal Ball Into Oceans' Future, Mirror To The Past

NASA Mission To Be Crystal Ball Into Oceans' Future, Mirror To The Past

ScienceDaily (July 21, 2008) — Imagine the lives that could be saved from flash floods and drought, the millions of dollars in fuel costs that could be avoided for fishing vessels, and the homes that could be spared from the effects of coastline erosion if only scientists could more accurately predict the dynamics of Earth's often unpredictable oceans. Armed with increasingly more accurate forecasts, weather services in countries across the globe are improving time-sensitive warnings of cyclones, flooding and high sea winds, as well as information about when it's safe to scuba dive, sail, or fish 48 kilometers (30 miles) or more beyond coastlines.

NASA and several other international organizations have joined forces to launch into space a "crystal ball" to give scientists an extended satellite data record. The data can be used to improve ocean forecasting and to test the accuracy of climate and weather models using knowledge of past ocean conditions.

The newly-launched Ocean Surface Topography Mission/Jason 2 is made up of next-generation, state-of-the-art, satellite-based instruments that will provide a global view of Earth's sea surface height every 10 days. Scientists will use these data to create complex simulations of how ocean currents, tides and eddies might behave. Similarly, the data will also allow scientists to "hindcast"--that is, to test how accurate the simulations of past ocean forecasts were.

"To borrow from an old saying, 'it's the motion of the ocean' that is of most interest to us as scientists, and our ability to forecast it and learn lessons from it," said one of the mission's science team members, Robert Leben, an associate research professor at the University of Colorado in Boulder. "The further we can look into the past with the record of ocean measurements, the better we can predict future events. That is to say, if one day we can look back at a 20- or 30-year data record, we can more accurately say what will happen in the next 10 or 15 years because we will have a data record that indicates trends or correlations that lead to specific or expected outcomes. OSTM/Jason 2 is going to add to knowledge we've gained from the Topex/Poseidon and Jason 1 missions and put us closer to this goal."

To create the simulations, also called models, that predict ocean behavior, scientists combine information about factors such as wind speed, wave height, sea level pressure, temperature and air pressure with data gathered by satellite altimeters that measure the height of the oceans' surface (more commonly known as sea level). Radar altimeters, like those on OSTM/Jason 2, measure sea level by sending a radar pulse to the sea surface and clocking the time it takes for the signal to reflect back. All these data are fed into a computer program, allowing scientists to see into the future or to gain further insight from simulations of the past when hindcasting.

OSTM/Jason 2 is slated to orbit Earth and collect this important data set for at least three to five years. It will provide scientists with significantly more data to test their models, and extend the record of information available about ocean circulation and how the ocean affects global climate. During the mission's lifetime, scientists hope to add to what they currently understand about weather phenomena like El Niño and La Niña. During an El Niño, the eastern Pacific Ocean temperatures near the equator are warmer than normal, while during La Niña the same waters are colder than normal. These fluctuations in the Pacific Ocean temperatures can wreak havoc on climate conditions around the Pacific and beyond, leading to increased rainfall or drought.

"A longer period of data from the OSTM/Jason 2 mission can tell scientists more about how El Niño and La Niña are coupled not only to seasonal or yearly changes but to decade-to-decade oscillations of the Pacific Ocean," said Leben. "Owing to data from the mission's forerunner Topex/Poseidon and Jason 1 missions, scientists have already determined that decadal fluctuations in the Pacific enhance the frequency and intensity of shorter-term ocean events such as El Niño and La Niña. Just think of what more we'll learn as we collect future data from OSTM/Jason 2."

Knowing more about the oceans' behavior, including what El Niño and La Niña climate conditions may bring, will improve our quality of life and benefit industry. "For example, forecasts of ocean currents can predict the oceans' salt balance, which can be used to study the global water cycle," said science team member Yi Chao, a satellite oceanographer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. Water evaporates from the ocean surface, and water from rivers and land-runoff cycle back into the ocean, so more precise forecasts of these movements will boost our knowledge of and ability to manage our most precious natural resource. This mission can help us determine the role of ocean circulation in completing the global water cycle."

"On the commercial front, offshore industries such as oil and gas exploration and production require accurate information about ocean circulation to minimize the impacts from strong currents and eddies," said Leben. "Search and rescue officials, marine operators, recreational boaters, and marine animal researchers all benefit from increasingly more accessible near real-time data."

"The Topex/Poseidon and Jason 1 missions got us off to a great start," said Chao. "When the two missions operated together in tandem, they doubled the coverage area and sharpness of the resolution of the sea level data so that we could 'see' more detail. This higher resolution is critical for extending the global sea level data into coastal zones, which of course are regions of great societal importance. OSTM/Jason 2 will provide another opportunity for a tandem mission with Jason-1."

Leben pointed out that with this new mission, the focus moves from research objectives to practical ways to apply the data that benefit society in tangible and essential ways.

For more information on OSTM/Jason 2, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ostm .

WEATHER NOTE

‘America Is Safer When Our Schools Are Safer’:
U.S. Schools Receive Life-Saving NOAA Public Alert Radio

Federal agencies have begun distributing more than 182,000 Public Alert Radios to preschools, Head Start programs, K-12 nonpublic schools and nonpublic school central offices, K-12 school district offices and post-secondary schools. In two earlier phases, the federal government distributed radios to all 97,000 K-12 public schools across the country, bringing the program to a close this September with life-saving radios in every school in the nation.

The radios sound an alarm to alert school personnel about hazardous weather and other emergencies, even when other means of communication are disabled.

The radios are distributed by the Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration with funding from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and assistance from the departments of Education and Health and Human Services.

Commonly known as NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards, these Public Alert Radios provide alerts and safety steps on a wide range of emergencies—from an approaching tornado, a telephone outage disrupting 911 emergency services, local roads overrun by flash floods, a derailed train posing a hazardous material threat, or the urgent need to be on the lookout for an abducted child.

The program also encourages school officials, emergency managers, human service providers, and Citizen Corps Councils across the country to partner and align their efforts with local emergency plans to build overall community preparedness. By coordinating with their local emergency managers and Citizen Corps Council, schools also can obtain technical and other assistance to improve their school safety plans and other emergency preparedness efforts.

For additional information on the Public Alert Radios for Schools program, see the Web site at http://public-alert-radio.nws.noaa.gov. The general public can learn about these radios at http://www.weather.gov/nwr.<READ MORE>

MARITIME NOTE

OSHA Updates Safety Equipment Regulations
August 22nd, 2008 Posted by Amelia

On August 19, the U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published a proposed final rule to clarify the requirement for personal protective equipment and training for workers. The item was published in the Federal Register.

The new OSHA regulation affects personal protective equipment or PPE in general industry, maritime and construction trades.

Employers are invited to comment on the proposed regulation for 30 days. OSHA regulations have long required employers to furnish PPE to workers at no charge. Such protective gear may include work gloves, safety glasses or goggles, safety masks and other protective equipment. Even though the equipment is not shared among employees, the employer must bear the expense of providing it.

Since 1990, OSHA regulations have permitted inspectors to issue separate fines for each instance where an employee was not using a required PPE. In a factory, if 10 employees were not using safety glasses, OSHA could issue 10 fines to the employer. OSHA claims that it only did so in cases where the employer flagrantly disregarded its legal responsibilities for the safety and health of workers.

The most recent regulation addresses several court decisions that the language of the ordinance may not permit OSHA to issue multiple violations. Employers are still responsible for issuing personal protective equipment to all workers, and ensuring that it is used. However, in some cases, under the previous regulations, if 10 workers in a single location are found not to be using protective eyewear, the courts threw out 9 of the 10 OSHA citations and penalties, and only permitted one.

The new regulations would close that loophole, requiring employers to pay all 10 fines. The proposed revisions are primarily concerned with PPE and training related to known health hazards, such as asbestos and lead. The proposed changes will make no difference to employers’ legal obligations; however, they will ensure that OSHA has the necessary tools to assess higher penalties when safety inspectors deem it necessary.

Have a great weekend! RS

Changes In Winds Could Have Been Cause Of Abrupt Glacial Climatic Change

Changes In Winds Could Have Been Cause Of Abrupt Glacial Climatic Change

ScienceDaily (July 21, 2008) — Spanish and German researchers have carried out a collaborative study that shows how during the last glacial period, small variations in the surface winds could have induced significant changes in the oceanic currents of the North Atlantic, and could even have played a role in the abrupt climate change that occurred at the time.

Scientists from the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) and the Potsdam-Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany have carried out a study which identifies small alterations in the superficial sea winds as the factors with a key role in the abrupt climatic change that occurred over the last glacial period whose origin is not yet fully understood.

This study, carried out by researchers Marisa Montoya and Anders Levermann, concluded that there is a precise point from which a small variation in the speed of sea winds corresponds to a dramatic change in the Atlantic circulation intensity. According to Marisa Montoya, “If the glacial climate had been in the vicinity of that point, small wind changes could have caused sudden and significant climatic changes during that period”

The study was based on climatic simulations called Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) (the period of maximum extension of the perpetual ice sheets that took place over 21.000 years ago). These simulations have demonstrated the existence of a threshold after which a small change in wind speed causes disproportionately large changes in the sea current speed. The results indicate that these changes in wind speed could have had a particularly important role in the abrupt climatic change of the last ice age.

Climate simulation of the Last Glacial Maximum is one of the principal challenges for experts in this area. The comparison of results from these simulations with climatic reconstructions based on data gathered from natural elements, such as sea sediments or the oldest ice samples; permit the evaluation of the climatic models in conditions independent from the ones used for their design. The results confirm the relevance of the small variations and help further substantiate the hypothesis about the physical mechanisms responsible for the climatic changes observed in the reconstructions.

Both, the climatic simulations as well as the reconstructions, indicate that variations in the Atlantic Ocean circulation could have been the key mechanism responsible for the abrupt climatic change that took place over the ice age. This circulation plays a fundamental role in the regulation of climate on a global scale, since it transports large quantities of relatively warm water from low latitudes to northern regions, softening the climate of countries like Norway or Ireland in comparison with other regions in the same latitude, but with much harsher climates, like Alaska or New York. This study therefore suggests that the changes in oceanic circulation could have been caused by changes in the speed of surface winds.

WEATHER NOTE

Weather radio's early warnings can be lifesavers

August 11, 2008

By Erik Potter Post-Tribune staff writer

Eleven minutes.

For about $50, a weather radio could have given Griffith residents an 11-minute heads-up that a destructive, potentially deadly tornado was bearing down on their town.

"(That) can be a long time," professor Bart Wolf, chairman of Valparaiso University's geography and meteorology department, said. "That can mean the difference between life and death if it's a bad enough storm."

It could mean the difference between getting caught in an upstairs bedroom or finding shelter in the basement.

At 8:17 p.m. Monday, 11 minutes before the twister began brawling its way through Griffith, a tornado alert went out from the National Weather Service office in Chicago. It was immediately broadcast across Lake County from the local weather transmitter in Hebron.

"At 8:16 p.m., National Weather Service radar indicated strong rotation in a severe thunderstorm near Calumet City, moving east at 59 mph," the alert said. "The tornado will be near Highland, Griffith, and eight miles north of Schererville by 8:25 (p.m.)."

If you hadn't already run for the basement by then, the alert went on to say that you should run directly to the basement, avoiding any windows on the way if possible.

"All-hazard alert" radios have come a long way in the past decades.

More than just alerting to severe weather, the electronic boxes will squawk when there's a flooding alert, a chemical spill or other environmental hazard, or a terrorist threat or attack.

Moreover, the newer radios can be programmed to sound the alarm for specific counties.

The new Specific Area Message Encoding. weather radios can be told to wail only when there's an alert for the county you live in.

The Hebron transmitter covers Lake, Porter, LaPorte, Newton, Jasper, Pulaski and Starke counties, so the ability to narrow the information that the radio gives out is helpful for the Porter County resident who doesn't want to hear about flash-flood alerts in Starke County at 2 a.m.

And while there are 53 tornado sirens in Porter County and several sirens in at least nine Lake County communities that offer free tornado warnings, these outdoor sirens have one major drawback: they're meant for people outdoors.

If you're sitting inside watching a DVD, said Phil Griffith, director of the Porter County Emergency Management Agency, you're probably not going to hear the siren. If you're watching a DVD, you're not going to see the severe weather logo and information crawling along the bottom of your TV screen.

A weather radio can fill that gap between the media warnings and tornado sirens.

"A weather (radio) alert is the way to go indoors," Griffith said.

Weather radios can be purchased at many area retailers, including Radio Shack and Best Buy.

Contact Erik Potter at 648-3120, or epotter@post-trib.com. Comment on this story at www.post-trib.com.

If you buy one

The new Specific Area Message Encoding, or S.A.M.E., weather radios allow you to program county codes so you receive alerts only for the counties you're interested in. The radio transmitter serving Northwest Indiana is WNG 689 in Hebron, operating at 162.450 MHz. The S.A.M.E. codes for this area are:

Lake 018089

Porter 018127

Newton 018111

Jasper 018037

LaPorte 018091

Starke 018149

Pulaski 018131

MARITIME NOTE

Coast Guard Responds to Fishing Vessel Around on Flemming Island

JUNEAU, Alaska - The Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit in Valdez, Alaska has responded to and is investigating the grounding of the fishing vessel Northern Mariner, which ran aground on the north side of Flemming Island Thursday night.

Two overflights by Alyeska and a Coast Guard helicopter from Air Support Facility Cordova revealed that the Northern Mariner is partially submerged at high tide and there is a 6-foot by two-foot sheen coming from the vessel. The sheen is believed to be from residual oil from the engine room.

The grounded vessel has 25,000 gallons of diesel, 50 gallons lube oil and 300 gallons of hydraulic oil. Fuel tanks are believed to be intact.

There is a reported one-foot hole in the hull and the engine room is flooded.

Three hundred feet of containment boom has been placed around the vessel by responders from Alaska Chadux.

Ship Escort/Response Vessel System’s (SERVS) vessels arrived in the area Friday morning and deployed protective staging in the vicinity of the salmon hatchery in Sawmill Bay and the adjacent village of Chenega, Alaska. SERVS also transported bladders for lightering operations and are standing by.

R&R Diving deployed two vessels and personnel to prepare pumps for lightering the fuel oil and plan to start late Friday afternoon as tanks arrive to hold the oils.

The owner is also working to determine the status of and appropriate disposition of over 350,000 pounds of pink salmon that was onboard.

A Coast Guard Marine Inspector and a pollution investigator are on scene to monitor lightering and salvage operations. Coast Guard, Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and owner’s representatives have established a command post at the Marine Safety Unit in Valdez to coordinate all activities.

The Northern Mariner, a 110-foot fishing vessel homeported in Seattle, began taking on water Thursday night with four people aboard. The crew then intentionally grounded the vessel to keep it from sinking and abandoned the vessel in a life raft. The Good Samaritan vessel Tenacious recovered all four crewmembers safely and transported them to Whittier.

The cause of the vessel taking on water and the subsequent grounding are being investigated.

RS

Weathering Mother Nature's sucker punches

Weathering Mother Nature's sucker punches

BY MOLLY WOULFE
TIMES FEATURES WRITER
June 06, 2008

Brace yourself.

As your eyes skim these words, the earth's crust is cracking, hissing and heaving under your feet. Chances are these tectonic shifts are triggering an earthquake. Somewhere.

It's just another day on our unpredictable planet. That's the unsettling theme of "Nature Unleashed: Inside Natural Disasters," a new interactive exhibit on display through Jan. 4 at the Field Museum. Quakes, tornados, hurricanes and volcanos happen. Our job is to respond, adapt and prepare.

For Tom Skwerski, it's a tale as old as time. No one -- sorry, Tom Skilling -- can predict the weather. Even a forecast based on meteorological data is an educated guess.

Despite global-warming theories, these natural catastrophes "have been going on for billions of years," said Skwerski, project manager of exhibitions for the museum. "They're normal for our planet. They're signs that our planet is working. ... As they affect us, we consider them natural disasters."

Consider volcanos, which can violently shake and reshape landscapes. Despite bad press -- ash and lava, anyone? -- they may be the cradle of life. Hot springs in their vicinities teem with microbes, single-cell organisms thought to be the oldest life form on earth.

Like plants, these ancient bacteria drew on the sun's energy and released oxygen, a photosynthetic process that refined the atmosphere for complex species like humankind. Volcanoes also release gases and water vapor necessary for life, and volcanic soil is famously rich, supporting crops like olives and grapes.

Without volcanoes, "we probably wouldn't have life as we know it," Skwerski said.

Nor would we know the fury of Mother Nature. A film at the exhibit entrance could be billed as her "Greatest Hits," a scary compilation of famous eruptions, twisters and tsunamis. The hurricane segment is ultra-intense, spanning the storms that left an estimated 8,000 people dead in turn-of-century Galveston, Texas, to the ongoing trauma of Hurricane Katrina.

A formidable quartet

Divided into four galleries, the Field-curated exhibit explores a quartet of weather phenomena -- earthquakes, volcanoes, hurricanes and tornados respectively -- and seeks to present the human side of the story through archival photos, videos and memorabilia. Each section recaps specific events, including the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and the eruption of Mt. St. Helens in 1980.

Some revelations are nerve-rattlers. For example, a high-tech seismic monitor tracks quakes in real time and shows they're second nature to Mother Nature. Earth logs about 50,000 a year, from imperceptible twinges to the magnitude 8 quake that devastated the Sichua province of China on May 12. The death toll has passed 70,000 and up to 11 million could be left homeless.

Despite their frequency, earthquakes defy science, ranking among the most volatile of natural phenomena. In most cases, the earth's crusts can move as slowly as a millimeter a week. That's about the same growth rate as a human fingernail, Skwerski said. Then they collide unexpectedly, releasing enough energy to topple buildings.

Hurricanes and tornadoes are a little easier to track, but still susceptible to variable factors like air pressure, wind, speed and temperatures. The exhibit brands Katrina an "unnatural disaster," pointing out that human error sealed New Orleans' fate in August 2005. As a survivor says in an audio segment, "I had a bad feeling."

Built below sea level, the Big Easy quickly flooded when Katrina swept ashore. Then manmade levees broke and most of the city went underwater. Slow rescue efforts, hampered by some locals' reluctance to evacuate, contributed to the death toll of more than 1,800. Artifants on display include a damaged print, a clarinet and a newpaper salvaged from abandoned homes.

A popular draw is the two-minute video projected "in the round" that sets visitors in the path of an incoming tornado. Shot by storm chaser Tim Samaras, guests can see the funnel cloud approaching and witness the destruction in its wake.

Curators, sending the show on tour, rounded out the cyclone section with a battered hotel door, a tree stump stripped of its bark, and other artifacts that bear mute witness to one of the fiercest tornados in recent history. An EF5 tornado -- one that can reach wind speeds almost half the speed of sound -- demolished the town of Greensburg, Kanas, on May 4, 2007. Residents, determined to put a positive spin on the aftermath, are rebuilding Greenburg as a "green" town.

WEATHER NOTE

Be Prepared for Severe Weather When Camping

One of the scarieset things that can happen to a person when they are camping is to have severe weather approach. I’ve been lucky and have not had it happen when I was camping but during a road trip to take my son to college orientation in another state we ran into bad weather with tornados and it was really scary. The radio announcer kept announcing the tornado’s path by county but I had no idea what county I was driving in. Plus it was so windy and rainy that visibility was near zero.

We thought about pulling off the road under an overpass but there was no room under the nearest one we found. It was already filled with vehicles. About an hour earlier we had picked up a state highway map at a rest stop but it was in the trunk. So, while my son climbed into the backseat of the car and pulled it down so he could reach into the trunk to find the map, I used an “emergency turnaround” on the highway to go back to a restaurant we had seen a few miles back. When my son found the map and pinpointed our location, we realized we were about 10 miles south of the location of the tornado. We were also nearly to the restaurant which is where we waited out the rest of the storm.

The reason for telling that story is that we had no idea of where we were and felt helpless because we didn’t know if the tornado was 50 miles away or 50 feet away. We should have been aware of the weather we were driving into; in other words we should have been better prepared.

I started thinking about this story and that April is tornado awareness month last night as I sat in my basement waiting out a tornado warning and figured it was a good time to remind all of us to be prepared for the threat of severe weather when camping.

A weather radio is a good investment. Many of us aren’t watching television or listening to a radio when camping which makes a weather radio a good thing to have along so it can alert you if threatening weather is heading your way. The Midland WR-300 Weather Radio costs around $50 and has a 4 1/2 star rating on Amazon.

A few other things to do and to remember:

When checking into a campground ask about their severe weather procedures and where the nearest shelter is (in most campgrounds it’s the bathrooms).

Check the daily forecast to see if severe weather is being predicted (weather forecasts are usually posted at the campground office and often at camp host sites as well).

Make sure the entire family knows what to do in case of severe weather. A great resource to read and review is the National Weather Service’s Preparedness Guide which you can access by clicking here.

30/30 Lightning Safety Rule - go indoors if, after seeing lightning, you cannot count to 30 before hearing thunder. Stay indoors for 30 minutes after hearing the last clap of thunder (if you can hear thunder you are close enough to be struck by lightning.)

If you are caught outdoors when lightning strikes try to find a low spot away from trees, fences and poles but if you are caught in a wooded area take shelter under a short tree.

If you are caught outside when a tornado strikes like flat in the nearest ditch or depression and cover your head with your hands.

If you come across flood waters (swiftly running water just 6 inches deep can knock a person off their feet) turn around and go another way, climbing to higher ground if possible.

And, although tornadoes and lightning seem like they are the deadliest, it’s actually flash flooding that causes the largest number of deaths each year.

Filed under Camping Tip of The Week, Camping and RV'ing by

MARITIME NOTE

Two People Saved After Boat Sank

June 07, 2008

U.S. Coast Guard

NEW YORK-Two people were rescued from a life raft after their sportfishing vessel sank approximately nine miles off the coast of Moriches, N.Y., at about 5:45 p.m., today.

Greg Mastonardi, owner of the 33-foot Topaz sportfishing boat First Light, was transiting between Egg Harbor Inlet N.J., to Shinnecock Inlet, N.Y., with passenger Mark Edwards, when he called Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound to notify them his boat was taking on water and his dewatering pumps were having a difficult time keeping up. The Coast Guard instructed Edwards and the other passenger to put on their life jackets.

"We launched a 47-foot motor life boat from Coast Guard Station Shinnecock, a 27-foot rescue boat from Station Moriches, and a HH-60 rescue helicopter from Air Station Cape Cod immediately," said Peter Winters, a civilian search and rescue controller at Sector Long Island Sound.

Nine minutes later, Mastonardi notified search and rescue controllers at Sector Long Island Sound that water was overtaking the vessel and he was going to have to abandon ship.

"We asked them to activate their Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) right before we lost communications with them," said Winters. "Seatow overheard Mastonardi call to Sector Long Island Sound and told us they were nearby. We passed their position to Seatow and they headed towards the location."

Seatow arrived at 6:03 p.m. where they pulled Mastonardi and Edwards from their life raft to safety. The First Light sank in 108-feet of water.

The 27-foot rescue boat is currently escorting the Seatow vessel back to Coast Guard Sector Field Office Moriches to safely bring Mastonardi and Edwards.

The First Light was carrying 250 gallons of diesel fuel, though no pollution was reported on scene.

Winters attributes the timely success of this rescue to the alert mariners aboard Seatow, and the Coast Guard Rescue 21 system, which is composed of two, 400-foot towers at Station Shinnecock and Coast Guard Station Montauk that are able to assist in cases just like this.

"We managed to get a latitude and longitude from them," said Winters. "After we lost communications with them we used Rescue 21 to create a fix on where they would be. It was right on the money."

RS