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Not So Simple

March 29, 2014

Taking pictures of Alvin on the surface is relatively easy compared to photographing it at work. This device, nicknamed “ElevatorCam, includes the yellow floats in the background and is what’s needed to capture images of the sub on the seafloor. This deep-sea timelapse camera system provided by senior scientist Dan Fornari and the Multidisciplinary Instrumentation in Support of Oceanography (MISO) Facility also includes: a 16 megapixel digital still camera, two high-output strobe lights (top), three lead-acid batteries in mineral oil orange boxes), strobe electronics in a pressure housing (silver cylinder), and an oil-filled junction box where all the electrical connections are made, all mounted on a recoverable elevator platform. The system is currently on R/V Atlantis to photograph Alvin during the sub’s science verification cruise in the Gulf of Mexico.(Photo by Chris Linder, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)