We decided to do a citizen science project called Sealabs where, as we cross the Atlantic we will take water samples and send the numbers back to Sealabs.

When we picked up the kit at the ARC office/platform where the Sealabs team told us everything we needed to know to collect the data and how to use the Sealabs app that sends our measurements recorded using the kit (one of our crew had previously downloaded the app). The kit consists of a metal tube, in which there is a small rope with a carabiner attached to it, and a sensor that’s attached to the cork.

 So basically what I do to take a reading is it take the cap off the metal tube which has the sensor attached to it, pull out the daisy chain in the line, and attach the carabiner to the back of the boat. then I toss the tube and let it drag in the water for 30 seconds pull it back in, record temperature immediately using the sensor, record everything else, then I rinse everything, put the cap back on the sensor, put the sensor and line back in the tube, and put it away in my cabin.

The data points we are measuring are: water temperature in Celsius, PH (potential of oxygen), EC (electrical conductivity), TDS (total dissolved solids), salt, SG (specific gravity), and ORP ( oxidation reduction potential).

All of this data (in addition to the location and date it was collected) is used by sealabs to monitor the health of the ocean ecosystems.

The data will eventually become available to scientists and other scientific organizations.

 

So far  we have done five and it has been quite fun and educational.

We will continue to Saint Lucia 🇱🇨 

Adiosh