Febuary 24th, 2025

Exciting Research Opportunity on the R/V Tom Crean

Over the last few days, I had the opportunity to receive some hands-on training on board the R/V Tom Crean, Ireland's newest research vessel. This was thanks to the UCC’s Applied Marine and Coastal Management program, which takes students on a research cruise every year!

While onboard, we conducted a variety of research on the ocean environment around us. This helped improve my confidence when it comes to field research from at sea. Some of the surveys that we conducted are the same ones that offshore wind developers will use to test a site’s viability!

We performed bathymetric scans of the seabed in the waters around Cork, and I had the privilege of using the ship’s dual frequency multibeam echosounder to create live depth maps of the seafloor. It’s been a while since I collected my own bathymetry data, and I feel that I understand what I am processing much better when I have been a participant in the acquisition phase.

We also got our hands dirty and took some sediment samples from the deck. We were primarily looking at the geologic composition of the sediment and the benthic organisms that lived beneath it. While I’m not a marine biologist, I think all ocean scientists have a special place in their heart for ocean critters, and I enjoyed seeing some species that I’d never even heard of!

We also did an activity that touched on my favorite topic: Offshore wind site selection! Students were divided into two teams, and then we were tasked with selecting the site for a new wind farm and pitching it to some of the program faculty. We had access to limited data, just paper maps of bathymetry, substrate, and magnetometry. We were also limited to a site on the southern coast of Ireland! Our group ended up choosing a very similar location to the Tonn Nua DMAP site, namely due to favorable sediments and proximity to port.

Throughout the experience, I was very impressed by the knowledge of the faculty, the professionalism of the crew, and the high quality of the research boat. While I have been on one extended research cruise in the past onboard the old R/V Marcus G Langseth, the Tom Crean had been launched just four years ago and it definitely showed. The ship possesses cutting edge research technology, as well as improved comforts. I would certainly love to spend more time at sea on the R/V Tom Crean!

Overall, the research cruise on the R/V Tom Crean was an invaluable learning experience that combined practical training with real-world applications in marine science and offshore wind. Getting hands-on with advanced technology, sediment sampling, and site selection exercises gave me a deeper appreciation for the complexity of ocean research and renewable energy planning. I left the vessel with stronger skills, fresh insights, and an even greater excitement to continue exploring opportunities at sea.