Life on board the Kilo Moana has been pretty eventful so far. The first week of travel from the port of Honolulu to the first OBS site felt long but it gave us plenty of time to get to know each other and the crew members. The thrill of sailing into the middle of the ever-so-elusive Pacific Ocean that we had only read about and seen pictures of has been the biggest thing on everyone’s mind.
The first thing that I noticed soon after we entered deep waters was the color of the ocean. It was really, really blue! It is one thing hearing people describe it or read its description in the books but it is another witnessing it firsthand. To think that the bottom of this ocean is almost four and a half kilometers under us and the whole thing is absolutely flourishing with life is mind blowing and it is a thought that I still haven’t got used to. It also made me think about the sailors from perhaps 3-4 centuries ago who sailed in wooden ships without any proper facilities and also had absolutely no idea what they were going to find or how long it was going to take them to get to their unknown destinations. I certainly have a renewed appreciation now for sailors all over the world, and of course the navy.
There are a number of interesting things that I’ve learned so far on the ship. While sitting with a laptop or other electronic device in a room, we had to make sure that there was no vent above us since water would always drip down from them. We were also instructed by the captain to not carry anything that would require two hands while climbing the stairs which is of course because an unexpectedly strong sway of the ship could throw us off balance causing an injury. Similarly, in our private rooms/cabins, it was important that we closed the wooden drawers and turned the lock because if we didn’t, the swaying ship once again would keep flinging them open! We also had to be gentle opening and closing doors in the ship at all times of the day since off-duty crew members would be asleep. All of these little things seem commonplace but are very interesting and of course essential for living on a ship for prolonged periods of time. Lastly, it was also interesting to learn about the commonly used terminology on such ships. The front deck, the one that faces the direction of travel, is called the ‘bow’ while the deck towards the tail end is called the ‘stern’. Similarly, the right side of the ship when you are facing the direction of travel is called the ‘starboard’ side and the deck on the left is the ‘port’ side.
I have never been much of a ‘night-life’ guy but I have to say I am thoroughly enjoying the night life on this ship so far when it comes to watching the sunset, the stars, and most surprisingly, the bio-luminescence! I have seen the bio-luminescence in pictures where these microorganisms gather near beaches and light up the shallow waters for some time. However, from a moving ship and in deep waters, it looks like little flashes of light as if someone is turning a flashlight on and off. When it comes to sunsets, in the last two weeks, I have seen more spectacular sunsets than in the last two years! I brought my camera and also a tripod in hopes of capturing perhaps the milky way but of course the ship is not steady enough to take those long 20 to 30 second exposure shots. However, the joy of watching the stars in literally zero light pollution is indeed something else!
I am looking forward to the remaining two and a half weeks of this expedition! The OBS recoveries have gone very smoothly so far with only 13/30 more to go. Who knows what other marvels the vast sky and the deep blue sea have in store for us!
— Aditya Khare
Pacific ORCA 