Jason At-Sea Responsibilities

Chief Scientist

A successful ROV cruise relies on a healthy interaction between the Chief Scientist, ROV Expedition Leader and the Master of the support ship. The Chief Scientist defines the scientific mission of the expedition and conveys to the Expedition Leader what equipment needs to be employed in order to meet the scientific goals. It is good practice for the Chief Scientist to keep the entire scientific party aware of the cruise objectives and to provide advance notice (24-hour basis) of the operations plan.

Expedition Leader

The Expedition Leader is in charge of all ROV operations during the at-sea portion of the mission. This includes vehicle launch and recovery, maintenance and scheduling operations personnel. His primary concerns are for the safety of personnel and the long-term care of the assets (vehicles, equipment) on board.

Decisions to alter operations due to weather considerations are made by the Expedition Leader in conjunction with the Master of the vessel. The Master, of course, has ultimate authority over all scientific gear deployments.

Pilot Training

Pilot training occurs 2 hours out of every 24 hours submerged. Pilot training will occur on the designated Training Pilot's watch, coordinating this time with the Watch Leader.