The primary function of OCN 443 is to provide guidance for the formulation of your research proposals and for timely cruise planning of the OCN 444 field work that will take place in late March. The multi-faceted goals of OCN 443 are to familiarize you with strategies and methods in field oceanography emphasizing collaborative and interdisciplinary approaches, to encourage critical interpretation and presentation of arguments and data, and to learn about Puget Sound and the oceanographic processes associated with this basin. You will have principal responsibility for selecting a research topic and then planning, executing, and reporting on your work. Also, you may have the opportunity to assist an outside agency (e.g. King County Dept. of Natural Resources, Washington State Dept. of Ecology, U.S. Geological Survey, etc.) with their environmental and scientific concerns in Puget Sound. Experience tells us that you will enjoy this unique opportunity to develop your scientific skills in a real world framework.

The key to success in OCN 444 is solid preparation in OCN 443. Your individual responsibilities for winter quarter are 3 parts:

(1) Produce a detailed research proposal to test an hypothesis using the best possible experimental/observational strategy, given the limitations in time and available equipment.

(2) Post your final proposal on your personal web site.

(3) Assist in the cruise planning (schedule, logistics, etc.) for the platform(s) that will be used.

The combination of background research, proposal writing, cruise planning (OCN 443), the research cruise itself, paper writing and the class symposium (OCN 444) is what makes this capstone course sequence such a unique, rewarding, and educational experience. Additionally, the focus on the Puget Sound provides an important common thread that links all the student projects together and results in heightened interest and involvement on the part of outside agencies and individuals.

OCEAN 443 will meet twice a week in 205 OTB: from 1:30 to 2:50 on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Fieldwork is tentatively scheduled aboard the R/V Thomas G. Thompson 19-23 (spring break). Careful cruise planning will be necassary in order to provide adequate research opportunities to all of the class members. Smaller platforms, such as our outboard-powered vessel Wee Lander, may alsobe used if required. The Thompson is permanently equipped with an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP, 75kHz), a dual-frequency (12 and 3.5 KHz) echo sounder/subbottom profiler, a Simrad EM300 (30kHz) swath mapping system, a CTD system, and Global Positioning System (GPS). The CTD system includes a trasmissometer, fluorometer, Oxygen sensor, PAR sensor, altimeter, and up to twenty-four 10 L Niskin bottles. Other sampling equipment must be requested and rented from Pooled Equipment (PE link). Additional laboratory equipment (bench-top fluorometer, filter rack and pump, microscopes, glassware, etc.) is available through Classroom Services (Kathy Newell, 543-6119, 21 OTB). Our Marine Chemistry Lab can provide a wide range of analytical services (MCL link).

Possible OCN 443/444 study sites for 2007 include all of Puget Sound, the eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca, and the San Juan archipelago (see map right). Any work around San Juan Islands should take into account the confined waters. These areas present a wide array of challenging oceanographic conditions and phenomena that can form the basis of very interesting research projects (Puget Sound map with area names).

In choosing you research project, we encourage you to think in terms of a team approach that crosses option boundaries. More useful insight can usually be gained if a problem is viewed and understood from multiple perspectives. This approach may also provide valuable experience as you enter the job market or graduate school.

In OCN 443, each of you will be responsible for a written research proposal that lays out a scientific background and rationale, a cruise/analytical work plan, and a budget. Copies of some proposals from previous years are on reserve in the Fish-Ocean library. Your advisers may have additional copies for short-term loan. To assist you in keeping on pace, additional assignments (Topic Summary, Proposal Outline) are designed to help you develop your library, organizational and writting skills. Instructions for these assignments can be found under "Course Lectures and Documents" and in the handout pack provided to you in class at the beginning of the quarter. During winter quarter, you are expected to invest significant time reading relevant literature and your proposal should reflect this with a discussion of published work related to your study (including appropriate citations). All of you will assist, during formal class exercises, in formulating a detailed cruise plan for the ships and vessels that will be used and for ensuring that research vessel time is apportioned adequately and fairly. Prior to any cruise work, you will also be responsible for ordering necessary supplies and expendables, seeking out the equipment you need, and mastering necessary shipboard measurement techniques.

On the dates shown above you will also be required to post the Topic Summary, Outline, and Final Proposal on your web site, which in turn will be linked to this web site (Students). Deductions of 2 points per day will be made for late submissions. A passing grade in OCN 443 and admission to OCN 444 are contingent upon submission of an acceptable proposal demonstrating that you are thoroughly prepared for the research cruise(s).