Marine Exploration From the1700s to the 1900s Marine Science 2012

Capt. James Cook Capt. Cook charted the mouth of the St. Lawrence River in Quebec, the coast of Newfoundland before heading to the south Pacific Ocean. He is known for charting the waters of the South Pacific using a chronometer, making his charts the most accurate of the time. In fact, they were so well done that they were used as late as World War II by the Allies.

The Marine Chronometer

Capt. James Cook He was one of the first captains to take a naturalist along on his voyages. In a series of voyages, he was able to see the Antarctic ice fields, and to land on Hawaii, Tahiti, New Zealand and other islands of the South Pacific. Cook always respected the native people on the islands, however, he was involved in a skirmish in Hawaii and was killed.

The Challenger Expedition Mid-1800s This was the the longest continuous expedition whose only focus was marine science. (3 and 1/2 years.) It collected data 1800 feet below the surface of the ocean and recorded such things as: salinity, temperature, currents, density and more. Upon returning to England, it took 19 years to publish the results of the trip in 50 volumes.

H.M.S. Beagle The Beagle was commissioned to survey the coast of South America with another ship. On its second voyage, it took along a naturalist named Charles Darwin. On the 5 year trip, Darwin collected thousands of samples and upon returning to England, it took him 22 years to write about his findings.

US Exploring Expedition 1836 This expedition explored the Antarctic Coast and confirmed that Antarctica is a landmass, not just ice. It was the first expedition from America.

Matthew Maury Father of Physical Oceanography – US Navy. The first person to sense world wide surface wind and current patterns. His 1849 discoveries and publications made fast trips around S. America possible for the California Gold Rush. tnhistoryforkids.org

MODERN OCEANOGRAPHY

THE METEOR 1925 – The German Meteor expedition studied the South Atlantic for 2 years. They found the ocean bottom had a rugged profile rather than being flat as previously thought. They used the newly created echo sounder to bounce sound waves off the bottom of the ocean. schroeder1250.de

The Atlantis 1931- Atlantis was the first ship built for ocean studies by the United States. It confirmed the findings of Maury concerning the Mid- Atlantic Ridge. oldsaltblog.com

The HMS Challenger Newly built in 1951 1951 – The new HMS Challenger was built. It took a 2 year voyage to precisely measure the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian Oceans and the Mediterranean Sea. They found the oceans’ deepest spot and it is named the “Challenger Deep.”

The R/V Trieste 1960 – Don Walsh and Jacque Piccard went to the bottom of the Challenger Deep in a bathyscaphe called the Trieste. dolomite.demon.co.uk

Glomar Challenger 1968 - The Golmar Challenger is a research vessel that is responsible for finding evidence of seafloor spreading by drilling into the ocean bottom farther than 20,000 feet. daviddarling.info

JOIDES Resolution JOIDES Resolution replaced the Glomar Challenger in 1985. It was much more advanced and could drill 27,000 feet into the ocean floor and examine what it finds with onboard geological labs. Joint Oceanographic Institutions for Deep Earth Sampling (JOIDES).

Polar Exploration 1893 –Fridtjof Nansen studied the north polar ocean in the Fram, a specially designed ship that could withstand crushing sea ice. It was designed to be frozen in the sea ice and drift with it. Nansen discovered that there is no land under the arctic ice cap.

Fridtjof Nansen

Fram, held in the ice, March 1894

Nansen and Johansen finally depart on their polar journey, 14 March 1895. Nansen is the tall figure, second from left; Johansen is standing second from right.

A lead of water opens in front of Fram, May 1896

The Arctic Ocean, showing a theoretical course of a drift from the New Siberian Islands to the Atlantic Ocean

Routes taken during the 1893–96 Fram expedition:    Fram's route eastward from Vardø along the Siberian coast, turning north at the New Siberian Islands to enter the pack ice, July–September 1893    Fram's drift in the ice from the New Siberian Islands north and west to Spitsbergen, September 1893 – August 1896    Nansen and Johansen's march to Farthest North, 86°13.6′N, and subsequent retreat to Cape Flora in Franz Josef Land, March 1895 – June 1896 Nansen and Johansen's return to Vardø from Cape Flora, August 1896    Fram's voyage from Spitsbergen to Tromsø, August 1896

Expedition members after Fram's return to Christiania in August 1896.

USS Nautilus 1958 - USS Nautilus, a nuclear submarine sailed under the polar ice cap.

US Oceanographic Institutions Woods Hole, Mass. - Northern most NOAA installation on the Atlantic. Located on Cape Cod. Scripps Institution of Oceanography - La Jolla, California. Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory - at Columbia University in NYC. Naval Research Laboratories - Washington, D.C. area

Dept. of Commerce National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA): National Ocean Service National Weather Service National Marine Fisheries Service Office of Sea Grant