laurea’’ at the University of Pisa in Italy. Jean-Louis was tall and strongly built
and he always wore a friendly smile. He was eager to be involved in new
adventures and projects, and he had a great deal of experience in the field of
volcanology since he was familiar with most of the World’s active, subaerial
volcanoes.
Jim Heirtzler, a geophysicist from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute in
Massachusetts, headed the U.S. scientific team. The American team included Jim
Moore, a volcanologist from the US Geological Survey (USGS) at Menlo Park,
California, plus Bill Bryan, a petrologist from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI), Bob Ballard, a structural geologist, also from WHOI, George Keller,
a sedimentologist from Oregon State University, and Jerry van Andel, who was
head of the Oceanography Department at Oregon State University.
At the time, the choice of the French team members did not have the unanimous
approval of all the influential professors, also called ‘‘les pontes’’ (big shots), from
the French University system and the Centre National de Recherche Scientifique
(CNRS). A particular reluctance for the choice of the FAMOUS team came from
H. Tazieff who clearly expressed his reserve about the people who had been
chosen by Xavier Le Pichon. However, the head of CNEXO, Yves La Prairie, was
confident in Le Pichon and his decisions. La Prairie gave his full support and
quickly dismissed the critical attitudes of other people in the French scientific
community.
Prior to conducting the diving expedition on the MAR, it was going to be
necessary to test some new equipment for the submersibles, and it was also
decided to provide some first-hand training for the participants in the project.
FAMOUS was a ‘‘major first’’ in the academic world since it would be the first
time that a coordinated scientific operation was organized involving international
institutions with their ships, diving submersibles and their technical and scientific
personnel.
Prior training for sea-going expeditions is no longer necessary, however, for the
FAMOUS project, training was worthwhile, because it helped us to get better
acquainted with our scientific colleagues and with the accompanying the technical
teams. It was also very helpful to be able to take part in geological field trips on
subaerial volcanoes in order to observe recently formed volcanic landmasses,
which could have some similarities to what we might encounter on the seafloor.
Later on, during the dives, we noticed that this approach helped both the pilots and
the scientists to express their points of view and enabled better communication.
The months of training helped familiarize the diving teams with the volcanic
environment, even if the environment at more than 2000 m depth is not the same
as what is encountered on subaerial regions. The other phase of the training
program was to have first-hand experience in diving and become familiar with the
habitat of a diving sphere and its instrumentation. Several dives were to take place
close to seaports for logistical purposes. Thus, two cruises were planned in the
abyssal hill region off Madeira Island and close to Corsica in the Mediterranean.
At the time, in 1972, the Archimède was ready to handle personnel training and
equipment testing. It was also important for members of the FAMOUS project to
The FAMOUS project: The Mid-Atlantic Ridge near 37°N
173
and he always wore a friendly smile. He was eager to be involved in new
adventures and projects, and he had a great deal of experience in the field of
volcanology since he was familiar with most of the World’s active, subaerial
volcanoes.
Jim Heirtzler, a geophysicist from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute in
Massachusetts, headed the U.S. scientific team. The American team included Jim
Moore, a volcanologist from the US Geological Survey (USGS) at Menlo Park,
California, plus Bill Bryan, a petrologist from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI), Bob Ballard, a structural geologist, also from WHOI, George Keller,
a sedimentologist from Oregon State University, and Jerry van Andel, who was
head of the Oceanography Department at Oregon State University.
At the time, the choice of the French team members did not have the unanimous
approval of all the influential professors, also called ‘‘les pontes’’ (big shots), from
the French University system and the Centre National de Recherche Scientifique
(CNRS). A particular reluctance for the choice of the FAMOUS team came from
H. Tazieff who clearly expressed his reserve about the people who had been
chosen by Xavier Le Pichon. However, the head of CNEXO, Yves La Prairie, was
confident in Le Pichon and his decisions. La Prairie gave his full support and
quickly dismissed the critical attitudes of other people in the French scientific
community.
Prior to conducting the diving expedition on the MAR, it was going to be
necessary to test some new equipment for the submersibles, and it was also
decided to provide some first-hand training for the participants in the project.
FAMOUS was a ‘‘major first’’ in the academic world since it would be the first
time that a coordinated scientific operation was organized involving international
institutions with their ships, diving submersibles and their technical and scientific
personnel.
Prior training for sea-going expeditions is no longer necessary, however, for the
FAMOUS project, training was worthwhile, because it helped us to get better
acquainted with our scientific colleagues and with the accompanying the technical
teams. It was also very helpful to be able to take part in geological field trips on
subaerial volcanoes in order to observe recently formed volcanic landmasses,
which could have some similarities to what we might encounter on the seafloor.
Later on, during the dives, we noticed that this approach helped both the pilots and
the scientists to express their points of view and enabled better communication.
The months of training helped familiarize the diving teams with the volcanic
environment, even if the environment at more than 2000 m depth is not the same
as what is encountered on subaerial regions. The other phase of the training
program was to have first-hand experience in diving and become familiar with the
habitat of a diving sphere and its instrumentation. Several dives were to take place
close to seaports for logistical purposes. Thus, two cruises were planned in the
abyssal hill region off Madeira Island and close to Corsica in the Mediterranean.
At the time, in 1972, the Archimède was ready to handle personnel training and
equipment testing. It was also important for members of the FAMOUS project to
The FAMOUS project: The Mid-Atlantic Ridge near 37°N
173