Viking Magazine - August 2022 - 17

top-of-the-line systems for power,
energy management, navigation
and communication. Many of the
upgrades have reduced the ship's
emissions, energy expenditures and
noise, which in turn make it the most
environmentally friendly sailing vessel
in the world.
In addition to Kongsberg Maritime,
instruments and gear have also been
provided by the University of Bergen,
the Institute of Marine Research and
the Norwegian Meteorological Institute.
Thanks to these improvements, the
analysts on board benefi t from fi rst-rate
tools like scientifi c and meteorological
sensors, as well as data-delivery
equipment that's cloud-based, which
means the teams get their fi ndings in
real time.
Working Toward a Shared Goal
At the end of the One Ocean
Expedition, 22 students will have been
split into 11 legs. On the fi ft h leg was
Stefan Thiele, a postdoctoral fellow
and researcher in the Department of
Biological Sciences at the University
of Bergen. Aft er boarding in Rio de
Janeiro, he sailed for nearly two months
and worked as a scientifi c assistant.
He was tasked with giving talks to
passengers, conducting workshops,
interacting with visiting scientists,
representing the work being conducted
and, perhaps most important, taking
samples.
" We did all the active sampling,
[like] fi ltrations for microplastic,
microbiology and environmental
DNA, and the deployments of the
CTD (Conductivity, Temperature and
Depth sensor), the plankton net, the
Secchi disk and, if we were allowed, the
hydrophone to record whale sounds, "
says Thiele, a 40-year-old native of
Rodewald, Germany, who has worked
for a decade as a marine microbiologist.
Assistants were also responsible for
taking care of the automated sampling
machines, such as the FerryBox-which
measures the ocean's temperature,
salinity, oxygen, chlorophyll and
colored dissolved organic matter-as
well as the echo sounder, carbon
dioxide measurements, meteorological
station and wave height sensors, and
collecting water samples for oxygen
isotope analyses.
Thiele says while aboard the
Statsraad Lehmkuhl, he experienced
everything from t-shirt weather in
Patagonia to frigid temps in the Straits
of Magellan to rough seas near Cape
Horn. Now back home in Bergen, he
explains that the most challenging
part of the One Ocean Expedition was
obtaining scientifi c permissions from
some countries because of restrictions
or paperwork issues, which caused
the team to lose some good sampling
opportunities. But, the staunch
advocate for sustainability shares that
the most rewarding parts were the
discussions he had with the young
sailors.
" While most conversations with
passengers were interesting, I enjoyed
these the most because I felt they
understood a lot about sustainability
and what is going wrong on the planet, "
Thiele says. " While some either didn't
care much, or were instantly thinking
in economic ways and feasibility, the
young crew had a lot of good ideas, and
the spirit to change and dream. " ▼
@sonsofnorway
August 2022
17
LEARN
MORE
There are several
ways to get real-time
updates and follow the
ship's journey:
oneoceanexpedition.com
facebook.com/
statsraadlehmkuhl
@Statsraad_Lehmkuhl
http://www.oneoceanexpedition.com http://www.facebook.com/statsraadlehmkuhl http://www.facebook.com/statsraadlehmkuhl
Viking Magazine - August 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Viking Magazine - August 2022
