{"id":365567,"date":"2022-04-04T06:00:32","date_gmt":"2022-04-03T20:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/?p=365567"},"modified":"2022-04-04T06:00:32","modified_gmt":"2022-04-03T20:00:32","slug":"a-once-in-a-lifetime-deep-sea-research-expedition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/a-once-in-a-lifetime-deep-sea-research-expedition\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Once-in-a-lifetime\u2019 deep-sea research expedition\u00a0\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"
Leilani Sablan, University of Guam graduate biology student and UOG Sea Grant biologist, prepares to board Ocean Exploration Trust\u2019s\u00a0exploration vessel\u00a0Nautilus, on March 13 from Oahu, Hawaii.(Photo courtesy of Leilani Sablan)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

University of Guam graduate biology student and UOG Sea Grant biologist Leilani Sablan set sail into the Central Pacific on March 14 to take part in a deep-sea research expedition, joining a team of scientists, engineers, navigators, mappers, and remotely operated vehicle pilots.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sablan was selected to be an ocean science intern onboard the\u00a0exploration vessel\u00a0Nautilus\u00a0of the Ocean Exploration Trust\u2014a nonprofit founded by Robert Ballard, a National Geographic Society explorer-at-large who is best known for his discovery of the\u00a0Titanic\u00a0in 1985, among many other significant shipwreck discoveries.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sablan will be helping to log data at Kingman Reef and Palmyra Atoll within the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. These deep-water areas are within one of the largest marine protected areas in the world, according to the Ocean Exploration Trust.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s phenomenal to think I will be assisting in scientific exploration and discovery in Kingman Reef and Palmyra Atoll. These are some places I would never think I\u2019d find myself\u2014ever\u2014in my life, and I feel this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,\u201d Sablan said.\u00a0\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nA deeper look<\/strong>
\nSablan\u2019s main responsibilities involve recording operational, scientific, and engineering observations; capturing ROV camera footage; and logging samples.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The crew of approximately 30 individuals seeks to accomplish 13 ROV dives to characterize seamount and ridge features, which will help determine if mesophotic areas result in greater biological diversity in comparison to deeper areas with same or similar features, Sablan said. The team also plans to compare specimens and video data to those of past expeditions in the region to help inform the identification of dense and diverse deep-water coral and sponge communities.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Opportunity for growth\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>
\nAlthough deep-sea exploration is outside her field of study, said Sablan, who studies Guam\u2019s endangered green sea turtle population at UOG Sea Grant, she said this new experience will help her grow as a researcher and appreciate the different disciplines of marine science.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cLani is a terrific student and researcher,\u201d said Peter Houk, UOG Marine Laboratory professor and academic adviser to Sablan. \u201c[\u2026] The\u00a0Nautilus\u00a0journey is about more than participation and assisting a great effort. It\u2019s also about personal growth, and I\u2019m sure she\u2019ll benefit from the experience.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Fran Castro, associate director of UOG Sea Grant, who originally encouraged Sablan to apply, said it makes her proud to see students from Guam participating in these types of activities around the region.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThis at-sea venture is a great opportunity for up-and-coming scientists like Lani,\u201d Castro said. \u201cShe\u2019s a go-getter, and I\u2019m glad she jumped at the chance to take this once-in-a-lifetime experience on how to live and work on research vessels.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

UOG undergraduate biology student Pheona David will be the next intern to participate in an expedition onboard the\u00a0Nautilus\u00a0this month within the Papah\u0101naumoku\u0101kea Marine National Monument.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The expeditions can be followed at\u00a0www.facebook.com\/nautiluslive.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The\u00a0Nautilus\u00a0Science & Engineering Internship Program\u00a0is open to undergraduate and graduate students through Ocean Exploration Trust as part of the Nautilus Exploration Program. It is sponsored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.\u00a0(PR)<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

University of Guam graduate biology student and UOG Sea Grant biologist Leilani Sablan set sail…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":365569,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-365567","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365567","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=365567"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365567\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/365569"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=365567"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=365567"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=365567"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}