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Scientific Daredevils

May 27, 2012

Tracking and measuring currents has always been a focus of ocean science. Early oceanographers needed stamina and agility at sea, as well as a bit of recklessness. Here, Edmond Watson works over the side of WHOI’s first research ship, the sailing vessel Atlantis, sometime around 1938 to deploy his electric current meter. Current meters are a primary tool of physical oceanography and are frequently placed on moorings to measure the strength and direction of water movements at all depths. Photo from Down to the Sea for Science, by Vicky Cullen, celebrating WHOI’s 75th anniversary in 2005. (Photo courtesy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Archives)