The Log | School News

Karson Revistis 'Lost City' Through a Virtual Cruise

Jeffrey A. Karson, professor of geology, participated in a precedent-setting 10-day “virtual cruise” to the newly discovered Lost City hydrothermal vent field of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge beginning in July.

Karson and Research Associate Nick Hayman were part of an interdisciplinary team of researchers comprised of 21 scientists, graduate students and undergraduates participating from command centers at the University of Washington, the University of Rhode Island and on the NOAA (National Oceanic Atmospheric Administation) ship Ronald H. Brown thousands of miles away at sea, via telepresence.

Seafloor exploration of the hydrothermal vent field was conducted using remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) launched and controlled from the ship. Principal investigator Robert Ballard, URI professor of oceanography, communicated shipboard to Chief Scientist Deborah Kelly, stationed at a specially designed command post in Seattle, where Karson and Hayman also were stationed. While scientists watched the underwater explorations from the ship, live video and data were transmitted via satellite and the Internet to the land-based command posts, making it possible for shorebound scientists to observe and participate in real time. Live broadcasts of the satellite images were available from the partnering Web sites making field study of the Lost City cruise accessible for educators and students anywhere on Earth.

—Donna Picard, Nicholas School