Training at Sea
All-Atlantic Floating University Network
NEW OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED FOR 2025
1.OPPORTUNITY FOR A MARINE TECHNICIAN (SHMIDT OCEAN INSTITUTION). APPLICATIONS DEADLINE 11/03/2025
Schmidt Ocean Institute’s 110m R/V Falkor (too) has a vacancy within the ship’s Science Department for a Marine Technician to work aboard sailing approximately two months on, two months off to support the Institute’s collaborating international teams of scientists sailing out of South America, Africa and beyond.
All nationalities are welcome to apply. Details about this job and other vacancies can be seen on SOI’s Employment website.
2. CALL FOR OCEAN CAPACITY EXCHANGE SHIPBOARD TRAINING. APPLICATIONS DEADLINE 31/03/2025
5 berths allocated to participants from the @seanetwork – Cruise NoSoAT , november-december 2025- Application deadline: 15 march 2025!
More information and applications here!
3. POGO_OCEANX-OCEANQUEST FELLOWSHIP. APPLICATIONS DEADLINE 31/12/2024
Anew excellent opportunity by a joint POGO_OCEANX-OCEANQUEST fellowship for shipboard training on the AROUND AFRICA MISSION!
More information and applications here!
COMPLETED CRUISES
4. RV AGULHAS -II, 24/June-4/July 2024: 2 BERTHS OFFERED. APPLICATION DEADLINE 15/04/24 23H CET
SEAMESTER CRUISE, UNIV. S. AFRICA, 24/JUNE-4/JULY 2024. Chief Scientist of SEAmester: Isabelle Ansorge (Univ. South Africa). In the scope of the Agulhas System Climate Array (ASCA) spearheaded by DSTs SAEON Egagasini node, coordinated by Tammy Morris. ASCA is a multi-institutional, international collaboration and designed to provide the first long-term observations of Agulhas Current volume, heat and salt transport and its variability from seasonal to interannual timescales. ASCA’s objectives are to determine how the Agulhas Current and its role in the global conveyor belt varies over time.
Application forms to apply as student or lecturer are available at www.seamester.co.za.
All costs on board are covered, including accommodation the night before and the night after the survey. Candidates must secure funding for travel to and back to Cape Town. However, POGO can potentially cover the travel costs for one of the selected candidates IF the candidate, in addition to the requirements above, is a national of and involved in oceanographic work in a developing country (list of eligible countries here). Application procedure is very simple: fill in the appropriate form and send it to isabelle.ansorge@uct.ac.za by the 15th of April 2024, 23h00 CET. Candidates must clearly state on the email if they will require support from POGO for travel costs.
5. RV BELGICA, 27June-9July 2024 – 3 BERTHS OFFERED APPLICATION DEADLINE 12/04/24 23h CET (CANCELLED)
SEAMESTER CRUISE, UNIV. S. AFRICA, 24/JUNE-4/JULY 2024. Chief Scientist of SEAmester: Isabelle Ansorge (Univ. South Africa). In the scope of the Agulhas System Climate Array (ASCA) spearheaded by DSTs SAEON Egagasini node, coordinated by Tammy Morris. ASCA is a multi-institutional, international collaboration and designed to provide the first long-term observations of Agulhas Current volume, heat and salt transport and its variability from seasonal to interannual timescales. ASCA’s objectives are to determine how the Agulhas Current and its role in the global conveyor belt varies over time.
Application forms to apply as student or lecturer are available at www.seamester.co.za.
All costs on board are covered, including accommodation the night before and the night after the survey. Candidates must secure funding for travel to and back to Cape Town. However, POGO can potentially cover the travel costs for one of the selected candidates IF the candidate, in addition to the requirements above, is a national of and involved in oceanographic work in a developing country (list of eligible countries here). Application procedure is very simple: fill in the appropriate form and send it to isabelle.ansorge@uct.ac.za by the 15th of April 2024, 23h00 CET. Candidates must clearly state on the email if they will require support from POGO for travel costs.
3. RV BELGICA, GHENT UNIVERSITY, BELGIUM, SEPTEMBER 2023 – NORSEAT CRUISE
Chief Scientist – Marc de Batist (Univ. Ghent). 1-12 September (Zeebrugge- Zeebrugge, Belgium). Collecting vibrocores offshore the Shetland Islands in order to recover event deposits related to past North Sea tsunamis. 2 BERTHS OFFERED. Applicants profile: highly motivated MSc or PhD student in geology, with a good background in sedimentology. UGent covered all costs on board, including accommodation the night before and after the survey. Candidates must secure funding for travel to and back from Belgium. However, POGO can cover the travel costs (i.e., return flight to Belgium and domestic travel within Belgium) for one of the selected candidates IF the candidate, in addition to the requirements above, is a national of and involved in oceanographic work in a developing country (list of eligible countries here). Application procedure is very simple: an email is all that is required, sent to marc.debatist@ugent.be by the 23rd july 2023, 23h00 CET, with a copy to (lmp@ua.pt), including the candidate’s name and contacts, a short CV and a motivation letter explaining why they want to participate in this cruise. Candidates must clearly state on the email if they will require support from POGO for travel costs.
Selected @SeaNetwork participants: (1) Camila Stempels, Argentina; (2) Yan Weber Mesquita, Brasil).
2. RV BELGICA, JUNE 2023 – , GHENT UNIVERSITY, BELGIUM, SEPTEMBER 2023
SCHMEAGOL CRUISE. Chief Scientist – David Van Rooij (Univ. Ghent). Contourite systems in the Porcupine Seabight, within the Belgica Mound Province and the Gollum Channel System. EM304 multibeam and TOPAS PS18 system using boxcores and gravity cores – 2 BERTHS OFFERED. Selected @SeaNetwork participants: (1) Catarina Fernandes, Portugal; (2) Luiz Gustavo Valle, Brasil).
1. SEAMESTER CRUISE, UNIV. S. AFRICA, JUNE 2023.
Chief Scientist: Isabelle Ansorge (Univ. South Africa). Agulhas System Climate Array (ASCA) spearheaded by DSTs SAEON Egagasini node. ASCA is a multi-institutional, international collaboration and designed to provide the first long-term observations of Agulhas Current volume, heat and salt transport and its variability from seasonal to interannual timescales. ASCA’s objectives are to determine how the Agulhas Current and its role in the global conveyor belt varies over time. – 1 BERTH OFFERED Selected @SeaNetwork participant: Arisha September (Namibia).
Testemonials
Catarina Fernandes
My name is Catarina Fernandes, and I’m a Master student of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences at University of Aveiro (UA). Recently I had the incredible opportunity to be aboard the new RV Belgica for the SHMEAGOL project, this endeavor being my first international large-scale offshore campaign.
I wish to express my sincere gratitude to the Pan-Atlantic @SeaNetwork for affording me the extraordinary opportunity to contribute to the investigations conducted within the Porcupine Seabight (southwest of Ireland), alongside a multidisciplinary team consisting of accomplished scientists, technicians, and students from Ghent University’s Research Centre for Marine Geology (RCMG), the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ), Ulster University, and the Partnership for Observation of the Global Oceans (POGO).
During the course of this expedition, I had the chance to acquire and work with an extensive range of data, encompassing multibeam, TOPAS and Sparker datasets, as well as corroborate and verify previously identified targets through the application of box and gravity cores. Furthermore, we collected CTD (Conductivity, Temperature, and Depth) and ADCP (Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler) measurements by means of the VLIZ glider Yoko and conduct meticulous Marine Mammal Observations, in adherence to the guidelines stipulated in the Irish Underwater Sound Guidance protocol.
This experience not only exposed me to the international landscape of scientific research but also broadened my horizons in the realm of marine geophysical investigation. I am extremely grateful for the privilege of collaborating with these exceptional minds and dedicated professionals, and the interactions and knowledge shared during this expedition have left a remarkable impact on my scientific journey.
Luiz Gustavo Valle
My name is Luiz Gustavo Valle, I’m from Brazil and currently working with paleoceanography changes in the Atlantic Ocean using geochemical and geophysics properties of sediment cores as part of my masters project. Having the opportunity to participate aboard the RV Belgica during the 2023/12 campaign means a lot for me, once going aboard on a research vessel was one of my professional goals. The training was a wonderful experience to improve my abilities with different methods (seismics using sparker, sub-bottom profile, multibeam, boxcore, gravity core, CTD, Niskin bottles) that were carried out. The importance of these opportunities of training at sea is to have a chance to know new persons/researchers that work with similar things as you, helping to develop knowledge, responsibility and teamwork. Without a doubt, it will be an experience that I will carry with me for the rest of my academic/professional life, working as a marine scientist. This POGO training can contribute substantially to the advancement and the internationalization of Brazilian paleoclimatic and paleoceanographic studies and developing strong research projects in this area in my parent institution.
Arisha September
My name is Arisha September, a 22-year-old Master student in Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences at the University of Namibia funded by the Kelp Forest Foundation. My current study is focused towards establishing a baseline of marine fauna present at a site in Lüderitz, Namibia allocated for large scale cultivation of Macrocystis Pyrifera by Kelp Blue.
I have been very fortunate to have had the opportunity to participate in the 2023 SEAmester VI cruise aboard the astonishing SA Agulhas II. The cruise is aimed towards providing theoretical and practical experiences to young and aspiring marine scientists in various fields as well as nurture an environment to establish amazing connections among students, researchers and the Lecturers and it was nothing short of that. Life at sea and life as a marine scientist certainly is not the same as it is portrayed through readings and people’s testimonies, SEAmester has surely given me the opportunity to create my own definition of that.
The past ten days on the SA Agulhas II has exposed me to both theoretical and practical knowledge of various topics in the marine science fields including oceanography, wind patterns and ocean circulation, the global conveyer belt in relation to temperature, salinity and density, microplastics, microbial ecology, eDNA and so much more. The practical section included hands on experience with super cool tools and techniques used to obtain samples. This included deploying a CTD and collecting samples, analysing nutrients, collecting samples using various nets, DNA extraction, measuring geochemistry, benthic species collection using a dredge and/ or grab and weather observations. This has allowed me to develop a new set of skills not only in marine science but for life at sea too.
The coolest part for me as a Namibian being exposed to and taught most often about our cold Benguela Current was to compare the two different environments. Although they are both very different and diverse in characteristics and yield in different results, seeing the same “Science” being applied to it and understanding its important roles it plays was cool.
I have surely learnt a lot on this trip, not only through practical’s and lecture sessions but from the students and scientists as well and I’m certain that these connections will play an important role in my future as a marine scientist. All the moments from breakfast to dinner, lectures to star gazing, playing cards in the lounge to chatting with me cabin mates and from working on deck to dancing in the lounge has been unforgettable. This experience will without a doubt contribute towards my studies and assist in my journey towards understanding our changing oceans and developing sustainable methods of resource utilization.
Arisha September
My name is Camila Stempels Bautista, I am an oceanographer, and I am currently pursuing my PhD in Geology (Universidad Nacional del Sur) at Instituto Argentino de Oceanografía (IADO, CONICET-UNS), Bahía Blanca, Argentina. In early September, I had the incredible opportunity to participate in the RV Belgica 2023/16 oceanographic campaign in the framework of the BELSPO-funded project NORSEAT (Storegga and beyond – North Sea tsunami deposits offshore Shetland Islands), where we spent 12 days on board, conducting research in the surroundings of the Shetland Islands.
The sampling and on-board analysis were conducted by a multidisciplinary team of scientists, technicians, and students, from the University of Ghent, the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ), the Geological Survey of Belgium (RBINS‐GSB), the University of Coimbra, the University of Dundee, the Heidelberg University and the @SeaNetwork. I would like to express my gratitude to the @SeaNetwork, for allowing me to be part of this wonderful and successful oceanographic campaign.
Throughout this expedition I had the privilege of participating in the sedimentological description of cores obtained using a vibrocorer (courtesy of VLIZ), leading to the discovery of potential tsunami deposits. Additionally, I contributed to the acquisition of multibeam and Parametric Sub‐bottom Profiler TOPAS data. Furthermore, alongside Maarten, Andreas, and Yan, we planned the lines where multibeam and TOPAS data acquisition was carried out, using the RV-Belgium navigation system.
I always had the dream of taking part in a large oceanographic campaign, but I never imagined this beautiful experience. I am deeply grateful for the honor of contributing to such a captivating project, and for the wealth of knowledge that this expedition has given me.
Yan Weber Mesquita
My name is Yan Weber Mesquita, 25 year old oceanographer, and currently developing my PhD in Oceanography (Geological area) at the Oceanographic Institute from University of São Paulo (Brazil). The project I am working at is looking at spatial and temporal deposition patterns of microplastics at Admiralty Bay – King George’s Island – Antarctica. From 01st to 12th of September, I’ve had the opportunity to participate on the research cruise from NORSEAT project (Storegga and beyond – North Sea Tsunami deposits offshore Shetland Islands) from University of Ghent – Belgium.
The aim of the cruise was to sample sediment cores from 25 spots in 3 embayments around the Shetland Islands, UK. The idea was to find sediment deposits from tsunami waves on these areas, as well as proxies and markers of sea level evolution, which are main goals of the NORSEAT project.
After three days in transit from Belgium to the Shetlands, hard work started with vibrocoring shift on deck (helping to get the cores, cutting, closing them for further analysis), monitoring of the multibeam and Sub-Bottom profiling shift (mapping the surface and subsurface of the seabed on the areas) and line planning shift (where a few lucky people got to learn how to plan and desing the ship’s route for seabottom mapping). When transit back to Belgium started, the result of 6 days of work were summed up, the campaign was very successful, surpassing expectations with 31 stations sampled and a lot of subbottom and bathymetry data to be processed.
Along with bits of hearing about the project, learning about the area and geological processes, exchanging stories and knowledge with the professors and MSc and PhD students, everything was contributing for my carrer in the area. It was a stellar time to spend at sea, meeting very nice people, and (the best part) being in contact with marine science in theory and on practice.
I would like to thank @SeaNetwork and Partnership for Observation of the Global Ocean (POGO) for the opportunity of joining this scientific cruise, and contributing to my academic journey in oceanography.
