The Global Reef Expedition surveys aim to document what is happening on our coral reefs below water level, but on transit to our dive sites and in between dives, it is hard not to notice the abundant sea birds that
On Wednesday, a group of school children from Fakarava came for a visit to the Golden Shadow. The crew showed them around the ship and Living Oceans Foundation Fellows told the children about the science and coral reef research that
Scientific research is the bread and butter of the Living Oceans Foundation, but public outreach is another key component of our work. During the last two weeks that we have been researching in the Tuamotu Archipelago, we have been joined by a
After two weeks, we’ve completed reef assessments around Rangiroa, Aratika, and Raraka and are now examining Fakarava. Tuamotu reefs are dramatically different from Society Islands. Besides the near absence of crown of thorns seastars (we’ve seen a handful in the
There are risks in every work environment, so working on and around boats brings with it unique safety concerns. We stress safety at the beginning of every mission, and give reminders of various risks throughout the mission. In order to
Several of the scientists on the ship are from the US and were obviously not able to make it home for Thanksgiving. This is a time when many of us would go home to visit family and have a big
We spent three days at the beautiful Rangiroa atoll. If you read the Aerial Reconn blog, then you will know that this atoll is large. It is so large that when you are in the center, you are unable to
Very few of us are fortunate enough to have opportunities to explore and discover the world, and I certainly consider myself to be extremely privileged to have the full time job as Captain of the research vessel Golden Shadow, living
There are a lot of moving parts involved with a research mission. If one of these parts does not work, say the engines of the Golden Shadow, everything else shuts down. That has been the case so far on this
Our coral reef research in the Tuamotu archipelago began with an aerial survey, at an elevation of 500-1000 feet above sea level, using the Golden Eye seaplane. The Tuamotu islands constitute the largest archipelago in French Polynesia, spanning an area
