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Pulling Out All the Stops

May 9, 2018

Preparing the human-occupied submersible Alvin for launch follows a carefully scripted, multi-page checklist that requires careful attention to detail in order to ensure the safety of everyone inside the sub and on the deck of the research vessel Atlantis. In one of the final steps, the launch coordinator outside the sub removes six safety pins from stacks of iron weights that will help carry Alvin down to the seafloor. The coordinator then shows each pin with its flag labeled “Remove Before Flight” to the pilot sealed inside the sub’s personnel sphere. Here, pilot-in-training Danick Forsman confirms to launch-coordinator-in-training Drew Bewley that he sees all six pins and is ready to dive. (Ken Kostel, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)