Endeavor marks 500th voyage

October 30, 2011

Photo by Shaun Kirby

Ocean Engineering student Kelsey Huyghebaert (left) and Marine Biology student Chrisostomo Gomez (right) haul in research equipment onto the Endeavor during the vessel’s 500th voyage.

NARRAGANSETT—The University of Rhode Island’s research vessel Endeavor returned to port this past Tuesday, number 500 in the ship’s long career of transporting scientists throughout the world’s oceans and reporting back millions of pieces of quality, oceanographic data. The most recent trip, however, took a step further by bringing undergraduates along to experience life onboard conducting research.

“It was a unique experience for us because all of our students at the GSO have Bachelor’s degrees,” said Dr. David Smith, Associate Dean at GSO. “We are trying to give undergraduate students the opportunity to see how it is to work at sea doing real science.”

“The undergraduates were just out there willing to help and interested in learning,” he added.

Smith and Chief Scientist Dr. Thomas Rossby took five undergraduates out on the Endeavor for a week-long sojourn to research the Gulf Stream. Along with two post-doctoral students, the expedition was divided into three projects which took the Endeavor from Rhode Island Sound down to northern edge of the Sargasso Sea.

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