Anaerobic Chamber on new stand in the isotope van of the R/V Hugh Sharp

After three day cruises to our main sampling site in the middle of Chesapeake Bay this summer, we are finally ready for a week long cruise to survey the Dead Zone from the Chesapeake Bay Bridge to the mouth of the Potomac River.  We spent the day today packing our gear into the Horn Point Laboratory box truck and Jeff Cornwell’s pickup truck.  Ralph, Gordy and Chris helped us move the big, heavy anaerobic chamber into the box truck.  Jeff and I diluted our radioisotopes (3-H leucine for bacteria production rate measurements, and 35-S sulfate for sulfate respiration rate measurements).  The R/V Hugh R. Sharp arrived at the Cambridge Sailwinds dock at ~1900.   Sherry Pike-Saville, our radiation safety officer, drove the box truck to the ship and transferred the radioisotopes to the ship isotope van.  Tim North, Mary Moore, and Wynn Tucker from the R/V Sharp constructed a beautiful wooden stand to support and secure the anaerobic chamber in the isotope van.  Ian Hewson and his team arrived after a traffic-plagued drive from Cornell U.  We all set up set up  our gear and many of us drove back to HPL to get the things we forgot.  We had our safety briefing with Captain Bill Byam at 2300.  Then I finished setting up the anaerobic chamber, and once it was completely set up we left the dock at 0100.  Whew!