I've been interested in boats and going to sea since I was about 12 years old. The family next door to our house owned a small cabin cruiser, and they got me interested in boats by sponsoring my membership in the junior yacht club in the town where I lived. From the time I was about 13 until I went off the college, I sailed small boats on Puget Sound in Washington State. In fact, in the junior yacht club, we built the boats that we sailed. My next door neighbor also really started my interest in sailing around the world. He and his family began an around the world cruise on their 38 foot ketch in 1963. After two years of sailing aroung places like Tahiti and Bora Bora, they returned, but because of their dreams of an around the world adventure, I've wanted to do that ever since. Of course, my ship is a lot bigger than their sailboat was, but I'm still getting to fulfill a dream that I've had for a long time.
Whales have intrigued me for a long time. But I would say that my real interest has been in studying and trying to understand how the ocean and the atmosphere works. I am more interested in the physics of the ocean (how and why currents flow, for example) than I am in the biology. My interest in the ocean started when I was young also. I think I had my course set on oceanography, even when I was in junior high school (8th/9th grade). I certainly have never regretted the choice, as I have studied many very interesting phenomena and I've seen and been to many places in the world that many people don't even know exist. -- From Captain Nelson
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42) Lindsey Eppelman asks, "Is it hard to stay away from your family so long?"
Good question. Yes, it is difficult being separated from my family. Unfortunately, a sea-going profession usually means that family separations occur, and they can be long. But this isn't the first time that my wife and I, and now my children and I have been away from each other. The separation was the most difficult for me, when I had to go to sea, just after my wife and I married, and then again just after my daughter was born. Now, I guess you could say that we are all used to the separation, but none of us like it. The part that I probably miss the most is the chance to watch my children grow up and pass the big "milestones" in their lives, like turning 13 (my son) and 16 (my daughter), and to be there to participate in their activities (when they want me to, of course). But this trip on the MALCOLM BALDRIGE will be the last time that I will get to go to sea in my NOAA career, so after I am relieved in the summer, 1996 I will rejoin my family and we'll get to know each other again. Sometimes being away for a long time is good, as everyone gets a chance to be a real individual and to do things on their own, without having someone (like Dad) telling them what to do all the time. Then when you get together again, relationships are fresh and new. -- From Captain Nelson
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43) T.J. Collazo wants to know, "What's your favorite whale?"
I would have to say that I have two favorite whales; the killer whale, and the narwhal. I've seen killer whales in the wild (like the one that swam alongside the ship, and that Bob and Lisa described in their other answers) and also in aquariums, like Sea World in San Diego. The one thing that I like best about killer whales is their unique markings - the combination of black and white patterns that seem to function as camouflage.
Now the narwhal, I've never seen in the wild. Actually, I've only seen pictures of narwhals. The narwhal is a relatively small species of toothed whale that lives in the Arctic. The narwhal is white, like a beluga whale, but the most unique, and intriguing feature of the narwhal is the long spiral tusk that extends from its upper jaw. Perhaps the narwhal is the "unicorn" of the sea - a creature from mythology that we can observe in real life. -- From Captain Nelson
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44) Everyone wants to know, "What do you eat on board?," especially Tony Brus. Erica Horde also asks, "What do you eat?"
We eat a variety of food, just like if we were at home. The biggest difference from being at home, is that we can't go out to the supermarket to buy groceries whenever we feel like it, when we run out, or when we want something different to eat. We have to plan ahead. For this around the world cruise, we had to buy all of the frozen foods (meats, vegetables, ice cream, etc.) in January, and we hope that we will have enough food aboard to last until we get back to the United States in January 1996. At each foreign port, we are trying to buy enough fresh fruits and vegetables to last for the 30 days between ports. Usually we can't keep food fresh longer than that, because it spoils quickly, even when the food is kept at very cold temperatures.
Because we are out at sea most of the time, we have some limitations: 1) No fresh milk, 2) Salads are hard to make after you have been out three weeks (lettuce and other vegetables spoil fast) and, 3) No MacDonald's, Pizza Hut, or Taco Bell. The last one really limits you. If you do not like what the cooks are serving, you have two choices, eat snacks from the vending machine or starve. But we do have "Dairy Queen." We have our very own soft freeze ice cream machine, so we can have ice cream cones and sundaes almost anytime we want to. It's very popular among the crew and scientists. The lack of fresh milk is not that bad, because we freeze a lot of milk before we leave port and thaw what we need along the way. Our Stewards Department (the people who cook the food) makes great meals. Food items like like turkey, steak, shrimp, fish, ham, roast, barbeque, pasta, pizza, salads, and a variety of desserts are always on the menu. -- From Ensign Wetzler
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45) Jaina Caissie asks, "What can you bring with you on the ship?"
Almost anything that you can fit into your room, like CD players, TV's, VCR's, tape cassette players, etc. Also we have storage areas for dive equipment and sports gear. One of the crew members has a sea kayak stored on the fantail. --From David Owen, Seaman Surveyor
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