North Atlantic Ocean
The Endeavour endeavors onward towards the Azores, Europe’s westernmost outposts. The lush green isles we will be hiking tomorrow are a world away from the open blue waters of the North Atlantic we are skimming across today. We can only imagine the deep realm we are atop as we pass over canyon floors three and half miles below us. Here in the negative space of the ocean, nutrient and light energies are at opposites and there is seemingly little or no productivity and few lifeforms to speak of. The stray sea-going bird passes us by. Beginning tomorrow however, the islands will provide us with excellent platforms from which to set out in search of mid-ocean life.
Oceanographer Jim Kelley tells us of the flow of currents that create the North Atlantic Gyre within which we are now traveling. His lecture on ocean circulation about the Azores and of pioneers in oceanography helps to build our understanding of our planet’s aqueous surface. Afternoon presentations on how the Azoreans carried on Moby Dick-style whaling into the Computer Age and about preservation of famous Azorean volcanic lakes help to prepare us for the week’s upcoming explorations.
This second of two sea days from Lisbon to Ponta Delgada has turned out to be quite pleasurable. With light airs, a glistening sea under the autumn sun, and a gently rolling ocean passing beneath us, we are able to enjoy our time at sea and a barbeque on deck. As we comfortably voyage toward the setting sun from continental Europe, we can’t help but imagine the intrepid 15th Century Portuguese sailors who ventured off the map into the vast blue Atlantic and stumbled upon the cluster of islands called the Azores.
The Endeavour endeavors onward towards the Azores, Europe’s westernmost outposts. The lush green isles we will be hiking tomorrow are a world away from the open blue waters of the North Atlantic we are skimming across today. We can only imagine the deep realm we are atop as we pass over canyon floors three and half miles below us. Here in the negative space of the ocean, nutrient and light energies are at opposites and there is seemingly little or no productivity and few lifeforms to speak of. The stray sea-going bird passes us by. Beginning tomorrow however, the islands will provide us with excellent platforms from which to set out in search of mid-ocean life.
Oceanographer Jim Kelley tells us of the flow of currents that create the North Atlantic Gyre within which we are now traveling. His lecture on ocean circulation about the Azores and of pioneers in oceanography helps to build our understanding of our planet’s aqueous surface. Afternoon presentations on how the Azoreans carried on Moby Dick-style whaling into the Computer Age and about preservation of famous Azorean volcanic lakes help to prepare us for the week’s upcoming explorations.
This second of two sea days from Lisbon to Ponta Delgada has turned out to be quite pleasurable. With light airs, a glistening sea under the autumn sun, and a gently rolling ocean passing beneath us, we are able to enjoy our time at sea and a barbeque on deck. As we comfortably voyage toward the setting sun from continental Europe, we can’t help but imagine the intrepid 15th Century Portuguese sailors who ventured off the map into the vast blue Atlantic and stumbled upon the cluster of islands called the Azores.
