15 September 2006

re: I8S/I9N pre-cruise planning

Dear I8S/I9N participants and other interested people:


We, and scientists from R/V Roger Revelle cruises before and after the I8S/I9N cruise, enjoyed a valuable and productive pre-cruise meeting this week with representatives from the ship, the SIO Marine Facility, SIO Ship Scheduling, and SIO Shipboard Technical Support.

There are some important items in this long list we put together from the meeting. Your attention is appreciated.


Best Regards, Janet and Jim


  1. SIO provided an updated I8S/I9N schedule. Unless there is an untoward event such as a mechanical casualty or an emergency, the start-of-load date and the end-of-unload date are final (see list below). We are rechecking the cruise plan, including the estimated times for the long steams. As a result of this final check of the cruise plan, we my ask SIO to move - by only a day or so - the planned departure date from New Zealand, the dates of the Perth/Fremantle port call, and/or the arrival date in Colombo. We will send a “final” schedule in the next week or so.

    Schedule as of 14 September 2006 (updated!):

    31 JAN 2007, 1200 local time (“final”)

    R/V Revelle available to begin loading for I8S/I9N, Dunedin, New Zealand
    (probably best to wait until 01 February to actually start our loading)

    06 FEB 2007, 1600 local time

    depart Dunedin, NZ, for I8S
    (we expect a steam of ca. 11 days to the first I8S station)

    21 MAR 2007, 0800 local time

    arrive Perth/Fremantle, Australia
    (we expect a steam of ca. 4 days after the final I8S station)

    25 MAR 2007, 1600 local time

    depart Perth/Fremantle for I9N
    (we expect a steam of ca. 4 days to the first I9N station)

    04 May 2007, 0800 local time

    arrive Colombo, Sri Lanka
    (we expect a steam of ca. 4 days after the final I9N station)

    06 May 2007, 1200 local time (“final”)

    all I8S/I9N personnel, equipment, AND HAZMATS to be off R/V Revelle;
    labs and quarters cleaned, etc.

    Yes, Colombo is still the final I9N port. We were told that the port is presently secure.

  2. The Chief Scientist of the cruise before I8S/I9N has graciously given permission for I8S/I9N hazardous materials (e.g., chemicals, lithium batteries, and radioisotopes) to be loaded in San Diego, provided there is sufficient space. There are some special considerations:

    1. Because of the large amount of chemicals, SIO asks that effort be made to obtain some I8S/I9N chemicals in New Zealand. This should be feasible for common chemical substances at common or non-critical concentrations and purities. So please order some of your chemicals from New Zealand suppliers if you can.
    2. Thanks for your lists of chemicals. These were very helpful. SIO has now provided a form for these lists. Rather than try to copy your info onto these forms and risk mistakes (we are not chemists) we ask each group bringing chemicals on board to copy their information onto these lists and return to Jim Swift (jswift@ucsd.edu). A blank form is attached. NOTE: The ship requires these hazardous materials lists no later than 01 November. Therefore, so that we can address any items of concern, we ask that your forms be returned to Jim by 23 October. Thanks.
    3. There are many I8S/I9N groups loading hazardous items in San Diego, plus several groups from the previous leg, with overlap of various chemicals between groups. PLEASE: See that your chemicals [and shipments] are copiously labeled with ship, cruise (“CLIVAR” and/or “I8S/I9N”), responsible/contact person, etc. You might even color-code your items.
    4. The Revelle has a busy schedule after our cruise, with full loads of people and equipment. We do not have permission to leave ANY ITEMS on board after our Colombo port stop. This includes all hazardous materials. The ship's captain has authority to detain science groups until their hazardous materials have been unloaded.
  3. We will be operating south of the Antarctic Treaty line (60 deg S) for approximately the first 17 stations (approximately the first 4-5 days once we begin sampling on I8S). This is a ZERO DISCHARGE region as far as chemical waste is concerned. If you are generating chemical waste which can legally be disposed of north of the treaty line, you must provide your own containers (of appropriate construction and appropriately labeled) for all of that waste. [Of course, if you are generating chemical waste which cannot be legally discharged at sea, you must provide said containers for all such waste generated at sea, plus provide for their removal in Sri Lanka. For example, the groups using mercuric chloride may need to attend to this.]
  4. The maximum number of science team berths on Roger Revelle is indeed 37. Leg 2 (I9N) will likely be full.
  5. R/V Roger Revelle will be loading in San Diego 18-30 November, and is departing 01 December, 1600 local time. JIM WILL BE OUT OF TOWN AND WITHOUT EMAIL DURING THIS PERIOD. IT MAY ALSO BE THAT JANET WILL BE OUT AT SEA IN LATE NOVEMBER-EARLY DECEMBER AND ALSO OUT OF EMAIL CONTACT. If this is the case, then we will be appointing a person to act in our stead during loading at SIO to handle last-minute decisions. Watch for an email message about this.
  6. YOU are responsible for your shipments. For a specific example, you are responsible for your shipment clearing customs in a foreign port and for the shipment to be delivered portside. SIO has clearly defined the rules and procedures. See http://shipsked.ucsd.edu/contacts/agents/foreign_shipment.html for shipping information. The “MarFac Agents” link on this site will soon be updated with information for our cruise. Regarding hazardous items note that incoming hazardous items without MSDS paperwork cannot be accepted by MARFAC or the ship's captain. [Also, incoming shipments of any type cannot be accepted unless MARFAC (and the agent in other ports) have received required shipment information prior to delivery.]
  7. Those bringing any radioactive materials on board (e.g., gas chromatographs contain some) need to contact SIO radiological safety officer Sandy O’ Brien (sobrien@ucsd.edu). The requirements must be met, and she knows and enforces the requirements. No exceptions. If you are bringing an instrument aboard which uses a laser, this must also be overseen by Sandy. No one on our leg may bring radiocarbon or tritium along for experiments because we will be measuring these in seawater samples and cannot risk contamination. [Advance warning: If you have a watch or other timepiece which glows in the dark (one which, if left in a dark drawer will still be glowing when you open the drawer in darkness hours later), you will be asked not to wear it in or near the main deck hangar on the Revelle. The reason we ask this is that such watches emit enough tritium to contaminate the tritium samples. Note to MARFAC and the Revelle: We ask this favor of the entire ship's company. Thanks.]
  8. Speaking of radioisotopes, the leg before ours is using tritium, radiocarbon, and radiosulfur. (Groan!) Fortunately, Sandy is aware of our paranoia (she is equally paranoid), and knows and is implementing all the proper procedures, including the pre-cruise testing of the ship for contamination.
  9. Remember, both New Zealand and Australia heavily regulate importation of wood. This includes all wooden items on the ship, or shipped to/from the ship, while in their ports. If you don't have prior experience meeting the requirements, this is a good time to find out what you must do.
  10. Those of you who remember the grease dripping off the CTD cable will be pleased to know that we are scheduled to have CTD cables which do not exhibit this problem.
  11. Those of you requiring cold/frozen storage will be pleased to know that ample capacity (of the standard lab types) will be available.
  12. Of course, no member of the science party or crew can possess alcoholic beverages of any kind while aboard the Revelle. This will be VERY STRICTLY enforced. (Participants will receive and must sign a form related to this policy.) But to answer questions which have come up: Yes, if you buy a bottle or few of wine to take home, so long as the quantities are small/reasonable, and so long as you declare and surrender them to the Captain immediately upon bringing them aboard the ship, they can be stored by the Captain and returned to you when you leave the ship.