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The crew of RV Thomas G. Thompson deploys a Multiple Opening/Closing Net and Environmental Sensing System (MOCNESS) in July 2019 on the Shelfbreak Productivity Interdisciplinary Research Operation at the Pioneer Array (SPIROPA) expedition.

As MOCNESS tows behind a research ship, each net can be opened and shut independently so that it samples a discrete patch of water. The researcher chooses exactly when by using the environmental sensing system. This is an array of sensors mounted on the instrument frame that relays water conditions up to the ship in real time. The data also help researchers match what they find in their sample to the physical properties of the seawater.

The crew of RV Thomas G. Thompson deploys a video plankton recorder (VPR) in July 2019 on the Shelfbreak Productivity Interdisciplinary Research Operation at the Pioneer Array (SPIROPA) expedition.

The VPR is an underwater video microscope system that that takes images of plankton and particulate matter as small as 50 microns and up to a few centimeters in size. The instrument is used to help scientists quickly measure the distributional patterns of plankton without destroying their delicate forms, as can happen when using nets and bottles.

The crew of RV Thomas G. Thompson deploys a REMUS autonomous underwater vehicle in July 2019 on the Shelfbreak Productivity Interdisciplinary Research Operation at the Pioneer Array (SPIROPA) expedition.

Remote Environmental Monitoring UnitS, or REMUS, are low-cost robotic vehicles designed by WHOI’s Oceanographic Systems Lab to operate with a simple laptop computer. Initially conceived for coastal monitoring, these torpedo-shaped vehicles are now used as platforms for a wide variety of instruments at a range of ocean depths. REMUS are particularly well suited for surveying and mapping, travelling methodically over an area like a lawnmower to sample key ocean characteristics.

The crew of RV Thomas G. Thompson recovers a conductivity, temperature, depth (CTD) sensor with a rosette of Niskin sampling bottles in July 2019 on the Shelfbreak Productivity Interdisciplinary Research Operation at the Pioneer Array (SPIROPA) expedition.

A CTD is the primary tool oceanographer use to determine the essential physical properties of seawater. It gives scientists a precise and comprehensive charting of the distribution and variation of water temperature, salinity, and density that helps to understand how the oceans affect life.