The Laurentian

I was down by the river the other day when I noticed the markings of the NOAA (National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration) basically the US equivalent of Environment Canada, but with a bigger budget 🙂 I had never seen their research vessel before, and was in the right place with my camera.

Here’s what their website says about the Laurentian: http://www.glerl.noaa.gov/lmfs/vessels/laurentian/laurentian1.html

Vessels:
The Laurentian – Research Vessel

Vessel — LAURENTIAN
Home Port — Muskegon, Michigan
Institution — Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory
Lake Michigan Field Station
Address — 1431 Beach St.
Muskegon, MI 49441
Contacts — Dennis Donahue (Mgr.)
TEL: 231 759 5173 / 231 759 2314
FAX: 231 759-2414
CELL: 231 750-6399
EMAIL: donahue@glerl.noaa.gov,

Length (ft.) — 80
Beam (ft.) — 21.8
Draft (ft.) — 8.5
Date Constructed — 1974
Speed (knots) — 10
Hull type — steel
Displacement (tons) — 129

Crew Size (including Captain) — 4
Science officer in crew? — Y

Crew provides shipboard
science support ? — Y

Number of scientists vessel
can accommodate — 10

Vessel Field Season
From April to November

Number of Operational Days
in Calendar Year 2001 — 75

Cruise schedule finalized in — March
revised and updated
constantly
Vessel time made available to
outside researchers — Y ( %)

Time made available on:
a) charter/contract basis? — Y
Fee charged? ($US per day) — Y
b) “payment in kind” basis
for example, time on
another vessel? — Y
“Piggyback” sampling by outside
researchers permitted when possible? — Y ( if chief scientist OK’s)

Navigation and Communications
Radar — Sperry MK12,
Raytheon R404
Loran/ GPS — Trimble 104,
Magnavox MX200
Radio — Raytheon Ray 55, SSB Sea 222
Depth Sounders — Ross D-600D; Ross 250C
Other — Sperry ST Autopilot, Gyro

Lift Capacity and Water/Sediment
Sampling Equipment

Winches/Cranes –BT winch – 350 lb, Stbd Dual winch 1200 lb, stern winch lb, conducting cable winch 200 lb, articulating crane 1200 lb
CTD’s / BT’s — Seabird
Niskin Bottles — 10 5-liter, 2 30-liter
Corers — Piston (on request)
Grabs — Ponars
Other — Side scan sonar

Lab Space (sq. ft.) — 488

Lab Equipment (equipment available on recharge basis)
Electrical Power —
Water Supplies —
Refrigerators / Freezers —
Incubators / Water Baths —
Vacuum Pumps / Filtration —
pH meters —
D.O. meters —
Conductivity —
Other —

Fish and Plankton Sampling Gear
Trawl Net(s) —
Plankton Nets —
Other —

Meteorological Equipment
Wind Speed/Direction — Y
Temperature — Y
Barometer — Y
Other —