Pre-Cast Off!

     Most of you know that for the month of June, I am participating on a summer groundfish cruise with NOAA in the Gulf of Mexico. The job entails 12 hours shifts, getting really fishy, and living life on a boat! So I'll try to keep you updated on my adventures at sea and experience with NOAA. I'm sailing June 7th out of Pascagoula on a 170 foot research vessel with 30 other scientists, engineers, deck hands, cooks, and officers. Check below for our projected cruise! We will be "cruising" throughout the gulf pulling a large 40 foot shrimp net in order to catch different marine organisms. From there we will weigh, sort, measure, and sex individuals of each species. Apparently, we will get lots of neat by-catch...a shark perhaps?
     So what will life be like on a boat? I'm not really sure yet, but I know that there are two full time cooks, a work out room, satellite tv and internet, and apparently, a huge movie collection. It's going to be a lot of hard work, and I'm sure a lot of fun! Hopefully, this experience will allow me to gain connections in the marine science field, and finally, get my foot in the door!

The Boat!

The Projected Groundfish Survey