The Science of Marine BiologyThe Science of Marine Biology

Latitude/longitude systemLatitude/longitude system• Developed by Greeks• Latitude = east-west• Longitude = north-south• In degrees

• 1 degree=60 minutes• 1 minute = 60 seconds

• Latitude lines never intersect so called parallels- 0*parallel = equator

• Longitude lines called meridians- 0* meridian goes through the Royal Naval Observatory in Greenwich, England (the prime meridian)

• Other cultures such as Egyptians, Pacific Islanders, the Vikings and Arab traders also studied the oceans as well

• Early explorer video

• Polynesians underwent the earliest known regular long-distance, open-ocean out of sight of land voyages

Middle Ages (800 A.D -1400)Middle Ages (800 A.D -1400)

• A time of “intellectual darkness”

• Become an illiterate society

• Believed Earth was flat

• Only European voyages were Vikings

Viking Explorations Viking Explorations (790 A.D. – 1100)(790 A.D. – 1100)

• Established trade routes with Britain, Ireland, Southern Europe, North Africa, and Central Asia.

• Discovered Iceland, Greenland and North America (Newfoundland, Canada)

• Contributed to European ship design

Chinese ExplorationsChinese Explorations

• Invented the magnetic compass (1125)

• Traded with Korea, Japan, and Australia

• Contributed central rudders and watertight compartments to ship building

European Explorations (1400-1700)European Explorations (1400-1700)

• Renaissance period- centered in Italy

• Ocean expeditions were conduced for economic, political and religious reasons

James Cook and the Birth of Marine James Cook and the Birth of Marine ScienceScience

• An English sea captain• One of the first to make scientific

observations on his travels and to include a full time naturalist

• Beginning in 1768, he explored all of the oceans

• Used the chronometer- an instrument that helped to determine his longitude and latitude and make accurate charts

• First European to see the Antarctic and to land in Hawaii, New Zealand, Tahiti and other Pacific islands.

• Killed in 1779 in a fight with native Hawaiians at Kealakekua Bay Hawaii

Charles DarwinCharles Darwin

• English Naturalist on the Beagle -1831

• Described atolls- rings of coral reef

• Studied plankton and barnacles

United States Exploring ExpeditionUnited States Exploring Expedition

• 1838-1842

• The “Wilkes Expedition”

• 2 out of 6 ships returned

• Confirmed Antarctica was a continent

• Explored 280 islands

• Collected 2,000 unknown species

• video

Matthew Maury- Father of Physical Matthew Maury- Father of Physical OceanographyOceanography• US Naval Officer• 1834-1841 3 world tours• 1842 appointed superintendent of Dept of

Charts and Instruments of the Navy department

• Began publishing his work• His system for recording oceanic data was

adapted worldwide especially his studies of currents and winds

The Challenger Expedition- BritishThe Challenger Expedition- British

• First expedition entirely devoted to marine science- 1872 to 1876

• Sailed 80,778 miles

• Report took 23 years to complete

• Discovered the Mid-Atlantic ridge and the Marianas Trench

• Took the first soundings deeper than 4000 meters

• Discovered marine organisms in the deepest part of the ocean

• Sampled and illustrated plankton• Catalogued and identified 715 new

genera and 4717 new species• NASA named space shuttle after it

Oceanography ExplosionOceanography Explosion• Due to Industrial Revolution and the

advancement of technology• Rise of steam engines and iron ships• Development of the diesel engine, electric

motor and lead-acid battery lead to the development of submarines

• Wealthier countries = more research $ therefore applied research increased dramatically as well as pure research

• The Cold War and global conflict fueled scientific discovery

Important 20Important 20thth Century Expeditions Century Expeditions

• German Meteor expedition- 1925• One of 1st modern oceanographic research

cruises• Crossed Atlantic 14 times in two years• Mapped Atlantic seafloor with echo-

sounding technology- 1st one of its kind

• Atlantis expedition- U.S.- 1931• 1st ship built specifically for ocean studies• Confirmed and mapped the Mid-Atlantic

Ridge• Space shuttle named after it

• New H.M.S. Challenger II- 1951

• 2 year voyage to the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans

• Found deepest part of ocean (the Challenger Deep) in the Marianas Trench- 10, 838 meters

RV Flip

SUBMERSIBLES AND SELF-SUBMERSIBLES AND SELF-CONTAINED DIVINGCONTAINED DIVING

SubmersiblesSubmersibles

• 3 basic types• 1. Bathysphere- developed by William

Beebe and Otis Barton in the 1930’s• Steel ball with a window and an umbilical• Only went vertically- attached by a cable to

a ship• 1932 Beebe and Barton reached 661

meters

The bathysphere (1930)

• 2. Bathyscaphe• Similar to bathysphere except it was

attached to a large float instead of to a cable and ship

• Limited horizontal motion because of propellers

• Deepest diving submersibles ever made• Trieste traveled to the bottom of the

Challenger Deep

• 3. Deep-Diving submersibles• 2-3 person vessels• Moderate to deep depths• Good horizontal movement• No float tanks• Less fragile• Robotic arms• Alvin most famous-discovered the Titanic-

Jason Project- operated by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (US Navy)

Johnson Sealink Submersible

• Advantages of submersibles• Great depths• Duration of dives are longer

• Disadvantages of submersibles• Very expensive• Need of support vessels and diving teams• Very large, so not able to have access to

many places

Self-Contained DivingSelf-Contained Diving

• 1st was hard-hat (helmet) diving- Englishman named Augustus Siebe- 1840• Good for underwater labor, not good for

research because it was heavy and required a support team and vessel

427 ft in Lk Michigan

NOAA, US Monitor

• Englishman Henry Fleuss introduced the first workable scuba in 1878• Recirculated pure oxygen which is only useable to

a depth of 10 meters or 33 ft

• Frenchman Jacques Cousteau and engineer Emile Gagnan developed the scuba system used today in 1943• Delivers compressed air and only provides it when

the diver inhaled• Easy to use, lightweight, simple, little support

needed

• Advantages of SCUBA • Less expensive• Very simple- don’t need a team• Portable and small• More dexterity

• Disadvantages of SCUBA• Usually limited to about 40-50 m (130-165

ft)-compressed air and to about 150 m with synthetic breathing gases

• Duration is smaller due to cold, pressure, and fatigue

Hardsuits - 1913Hardsuits - 1913

• In between a submersible and scuba

• More protection from temp. and pressure

• More mobile than submersibles

• Deeper dives

• Expensive

• Also need some team support as well

ROVs, AUVs, Electronic Navigation, ROVs, AUVs, Electronic Navigation, and Satellitesand Satellites

ROVsROVs

• “Remotely operated vehicle”

• Small unmanned submarine with propellers, video camera and an umbilical

• Operator at surface

• Can have arms, claws and other tools

AUVsAUVs

• “Autonomous Underwater Vehicle”

• Untethered robotic device

• Self-contained power systems

• Controlled by an attached computer

• Maneuverable in 3 dimensions

Electronic navigationElectronic navigation

• 1st was LORAN (Long Range Navigation)- 1960s

• Developed into Loran-C- based on radio signals from the coast- needed to triangulate to get ships position

• Accurate within a few meters• But only worked where Loran transmitters

were located• Accuracy depended on distance from

transmitter

Satellites –Satellites – sea surface observations. sea surface observations.

a) Satellites orbit the Earth and assist a) Satellites orbit the Earth and assist oceanographers with global oceanographers with global observations observations of the oceans.of the oceans.

b) Satellites assist oceanographers in b) Satellites assist oceanographers in understanding the influence and understanding the influence and effect of effect of the oceans on the globalthe oceans on the global

climate systems.climate systems.

c) Information gathered from satellites c) Information gathered from satellites helps to validate computer models helps to validate computer models that numerically simulate climatic that numerically simulate climatic events.events.

1) Three types of sea surface 1) Three types of sea surface observations made by satellites observations made by satellites o o benefit oceanographers:benefit oceanographers:

a) Provide a) Provide long-time continuous long-time continuous measurementsmeasurements of variables of variables such such as sea-surface height, as sea-surface height, shape, shape, temperature, and temperature, and color over color over the entire planet.the entire planet.

b) Can b) Can detect algae blooms and detect algae blooms and river plumbs, monitor river plumbs, monitor pollutionpollution, and assist , and assist oceanographers in oceanographers in understanding the understanding the influence influence and effect of the oceans on and effect of the oceans on the global climatethe global climate system. system.

c) Scientists can look at large areas of ocean in a very short time.

GPSGPS

• “Global Positioning System”- 1990s

• Developed by U.S. Military

• Receives signals from satellites

• Accurate within 1-2 meters