Spending three weeks onboard the CCGS Amundsen in Baffin Bay is a unique experience… The icebreaker’s mission since 2003 is to provide the logistics for scientific campaigns and allow access to the inhospitable waters of the Arctic Ocean. The ship uses its weight (8171 tons ) and thrust to crush the sea ice. It is powered by six diesel engines totaling 15,000 horse power to progress in thick icepacks often exceeding 1 meter. It feels like being constantly in a magnitude 2 earthquake. Many times on this trip I pondered: How can men build such amazing vessels? The design, operation, and navigation are fascinating.
After spending several months preparing our ocean gliders activities very carefully (see http://greenedge-expeditions.com/takuvik-glider-team-carries-test-deployments-slocum-gliders/), we finally left Quebec city on board the Amundsen icebreaker. We spent the entire week of transit making final preparations for deployment. We installed all the communication gear. We measured what we call the dark offsets of each of the scientific sensors (i.e. the baseline noise measurements). We ran, for the nth time, simulated missions under a virtual ice floe (either the gliders have this capability of simulating missions, or we use a pocket-sized computer which is identical to that inside the glider).
Passionate about oceanography and the marine environment, Flavienne obtained a Ph.D. in Biological Oceanography and Marine Environment in 2002 from the Université Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC) in Paris under the supervision of Marcel Babin. After completing her doctorate, Flavienne moved to Halifax, Nova Scotia where she spent 7 years working with John Cullen at Dalhousie University. During this period, her expertise led her to Hawaii where she participated in a project to cultivate diatoms on an operational scale. In 2009, Flavienne joined Yannick Huot’s lab at l’Université de Sherbrooke. She also was a key member of the Photosynthesis and primary production working group during the Malina project (2008-2012). Continue reading Flavienne Bruyant: the Amundsen Coordinator→
To understand the dynamics of the phytoplankton spring bloom and determine its role in the Arctic Ocean of tomorrow, including for human populations.
