NOAA Scientist Sharon Walker quickly turned around this plot of the overnight tow-yo to better inform the July 17 dive location.

NOAA Scientist Sharon Walker quickly turned around this plot of the overnight tow-yo to better inform the July 17 dive location. Image courtesy of NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, Galápagos Rift Expedition 2011. Download larger version (jpg, 403 KB).

Overnight tow-yo operations to better localize plume source
July 17, 2011

Though a second exploratory ROV dive on Site 2A provided the Team with a better understanding of the complex geology on the seafloor, we have yet to locate the source of the intense hydrothermal plume in the water column. We conducted a slower and higher resolution tow-yo overnight in hopes of better localizing the plume source and improve our understanding of mid-water anomalies to the east. Immediately after the CTD was back on deck, Senior Survey Tech Colleen Peters sent the data to Sharon Walker in Seattle. We owe Sharon a big thanks for working well into the early morning to process the data in time to select today's ROV dive target.