A Bittersweet Finale

,This week I went out into the field for the very last time during my tenure at Florida State. I needed to collect sediment samples to establish my final experiment and I was joined by fellow graduate student, Rachel, and the incomparable Dr. Ingels. This was special, as Dr. Ingels supported me in the field on my first sampling effort for my dissertation, and he was there for my final field collection. As many of you are aware, record temperatures have been sweeping the United States, and this week was no different. When we got back to the car after a few hours in the field, the thermometer read 101F, and I believe it was 90F when we launched the boat. Additionally, there was no breeze during the first half of the day, which made for a pretty brutal field experience. However, a milder second-half and lots of breaks to cool down with seawater soaks and partially frozen field apparel (great idea from the field team to put some of our gear in the cooler to freeze them and cool down) made for a memorable and reasonable day on the water. In total, we collected 32 sediment cores which are now sitting in glass jars in a large aquarium at the lab awaiting further experimental conditions. These cores will remain untouched until next week, as the animals and bacteria need time to reorganize themselves (they like to live within certain layers of the mud and by transporting them to the lab, they may have been jostled around). 

Tomorrow I will go check on the experimental conditions and clean the aquarium. Over time, more water will evaporate from the aquarium, which will change the water's salinity (since only water evaporates there is more salt per volume of water), and I will need to carefully monitor and readjust the levels to maintain a constant environment. Additionally, I will use a gravel suction device to remove any sediment that escaped from the jars and ended up on the bottom of the aquarium tank. This happens when the jars first enter the aquarium, due to the pressure difference between the tank and the jars, and when the surface tension of the tank's water breaks, it can force small amounts of mud out of each jar. Tomorrow I will remove the excess mud from the aquarium tank, which will improve overall visibility.

Next week this experiment starts in full, and I can't wait to share updates with you throughout. Stay tuned.

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