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Sibling Ships

The 274-foot R/V Atlantis (left) and 177-foot R/V Oceanus dock at the WHOI pier in November 2005. A similar sight greeted retired WHOI Capt. Larry Bearse when he first reported for his new job sailing for WHOI. “What ship are you going on?” his friends asked. “It’s got to be that ship there,” Beasrse replied, pointing to the big ship, “because that little thing’s not going across the ocean.” Bearse quickly discovered what scientists and crew found out when they sailed aboard Oceanus. “It turns out she’s an excellent sea boat,” he said. Oceanus was retired this month, after 36 years and nearly 500 scientific missions.(Photo by Bird’s Eye View, for Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)