Postcards from the Field Alvin
Alvin and Atlantis

Studying the Deep Sea in the Alvin

What's it like to visit the deep sea in a manned submersible?  These postcards will share some of that excitement with you.  Dr. Timothy Killeen will be making a dive in the Alvin to a location in the deep sea off of the US Pacific coast, and sharing some photos and thoughts with you here.  The Alvin is a manned submersible, which is supported by the Research Vehicle Atlantis. Check out a photo album of images from the dive, and view the postcards below!

Alvin Heads Back to the Surface from Tim Killeen, September 8, 2009

Searching for Microbial Mats from Tim Killeen, September 8, 2009

The Journey to the Ocean Floor from Tim Killeen, September 8, 2009

Planning for the Dive from Tim Killeen, September 7, 2009

The Scene at Astoria from Tim Killeen, September 7, 2009

Last modified September 9, 2009 by Becca Hatheway.

You might also be interested in:

Cool It! Game

Check out our online store - minerals, fossils, books, activities, jewelry, and household items!...more

Alvin Heads Back to the Surface

To return to the surface, Bruce jettisoned two sets of weights and we began to ascend, again very gracefully. Again, we saw all kinds of jellyfish, strange fluorescent creatures, and floating particules...more

Searching for Microbial Mats

Once on the sea floor, Bruce started moving around to search for the microbial mats. Alvin moves a little like a blimp - you give it some momentum in a particular direction and it will keep going. It turns...more

The Journey to the Ocean Floor

We clambered into the Alvin. Once inside, there wasn't much space for the three of us to move around. The "cabin" is a sphere made out of welded titanium metal and it's about the size of a small walk-in...more

Planning for the Dive

After leaving Astoria we steamed to the "Hydrate Ridge" - an area at a latitude of 44N and longitude of 125W, about 45 miles off the coast of Oregon, where the sea floor is at a depth of 780 meters. The...more

The Scene at Astoria

The team is assembling for a short cruise aboard the Atlantis, leaving Astoria, Oregon on a scientific cruise to Hydrate Ridge. At Hydrate Ridge, the deep submersible, Alvin, will explore the sea bottom...more

Joanna Hubbard

This is my 10th year with the Anchorage School District as a science teacher, currently working with K-12 teachers around the district rather than in a classroom. My most recent classroom time was as a...more

Thomas Edison

Thomas Edison was an American inventor who lived between 1847-1931. He patented 1093 inventions in his life, including the incandescent light bulb, which provided a practical means of electical lighting...more

Windows to the Universe, a project of the National Earth Science Teachers Association, is sponsored in part is sponsored in part through grants from federal agencies (NASA and NOAA), and partnerships with affiliated organizations, including the American Geophysical Union, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Earth System Information Partnership, the American Meteorological Society, the National Center for Science Education, and TERC. The American Geophysical Union and the American Geosciences Institute are Windows to the Universe Founding Partners. NESTA welcomes new Institutional Affiliates in support of our ongoing programs, as well as collaborations on new projects. Contact NESTA for more information. NASA ESIP NCSE HHMI AGU AGI AMS NOAA