No shit, Sherlock. A staggering achievement – fishing for a 2m thing in 5000m water with a 10,000m line … very, very well done. https://t.co/gvKiU23H9B
— Sheldon Bacon (@sheldonbacon) March 10, 2017
I could not have said it better myself. Last weekend the wire cable from which the CTD is suspended on the RRS James Cook snapped, sending the entire thing to the bottom of the sea. Even worse, the crew had strapped 32 additional instruments onto the cage to calibrate them for the upcoming mooring deployment! I have no doubt the language onboard was extraordinary in that moment. Fortunately cooler heads prevailed in the 55 hours that followed and the entire cage was recovered. THE ENTIRE THING.
This is just an incredible story that demonstrates the resourcefulness of the people who work on oceanographic research ships. Read the whole story (and more about the RAPID expedition) at https://rapidexpedition2017.blogspot.co.uk/
The marvels of modern electronics! Not like the old days where you might know the location to within a few hundred, if not thousands, of meters.
When you think of it, this is what the deep sea drilling ships did (or do, if they are still operating) when they need to change drill bits. Take the pipe out of the hole on the seafloor, haul it all up, change the bit, then lower it into the same hole 5km below….