Two deck hands prepare Okeanos Explorer to come into port as she nears the Golden Gate Bridge. The EX1006 “Always Exploring” cruise ended today when the ship came into port in San Francisco harbor.

Two deck hands prepare Okeanos Explorer to come into port as she nears the Golden Gate Bridge. The EX1006 “Always Exploring” cruise ended today when the ship came into port in San Francisco harbor. Image courtesy of NOAA Okeanos Explorer Program. Download larger version (jpg, 227 KB).

NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer Comes Into Port
October 29, 2010

Science operations end as NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer comes into port. Manta net operations to sample for plastics were completed last night for a total of 40 manta net tows conducted at 28 stations over the course of 10 days. The Continuous Plankton Recorder was pulled out of the water early this morning after sampling plankton over more than 1,950 nautical miles on this cruise. The EM302 multibeam sonar was turned off this morning and by early afternoon Okeanos Explorer crossed underneath the Golden Gate Bridge and docked in San Francisco Harbor, bringing the EX1006 “Always Exploring” cruise to an end.