Quick Fix

Engineer Kyle Covert, who works on the WHOI-operated research vessel Knorr, made modifications to a rock dredge during a month-long cruise to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge this spring. Dredges act like small shovels at volcanic features on the sea floor, scooping up rocks in chain-link bags that crew members haul back to the ship’s deck for examination. During this cruise, researchers were looking for evidence of more recently-erupted lava, which they call “fresh glass,” for its shiny appearance.(Photo by Ellen Roosen, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)