Geological Observatory, called ‘‘Lamont’’. In 1963, I signed a contract involving a
6 month-long cruise on a sea-going expedition. However before going to sea I first
had to spend some time in the core-laboratory where sediment samples were being
described and stored. This part of the job was right up my alley and I was comfortable with the work, which consisted in determining some physical parameters
for the samples, such as their porosity, density, color and type of sediment.
In the summer of 1964, I took a flight from New York to Alaska, to one of the
most distant U.S. islands called Adak, located in the Aleutian arc, where I was to
join the research vessel (R.V.) Robert D. Conrad. Two days later, we left the
island on a grey misty morning, first heading northward to the Bearing Sea. About
2 weeks later we turned south then south-southeast towards western Canada in the
northern Pacific Ocean where we sailed along the coast of Vancouver and then
Oregon.
I started to be seasick and uncomfortable as soon as we left Adak’s dock. The
chief scientist (Joe Worzel) kept rushing into my cabin to ask me to go out on deck
and keep on working because, according to him, that was the only way to feel
better. He was right and he surely met well, but at the time I did not want to see
him nor did I wish to leave my bunk to go outside on deck. I only felt good if I
were lying in a horizontal position without moving. But at the same time I felt
guilty, and I knew I that had to get up because there was a job that had to be done.
In fact, I was very much aware that even if I felt like I was dying from seasickness,
I had to take my watch and replace my colleagues on deck.
Our job consisted in creating sound waves in the water column by throwing
lighted explosives overboard. This was acoustic measuring at its most primitive. A
half-pound TNT stick was held by one hand against our stomachs while the fuse
was inserted into the other end of the dynamite stick with our other hand, and then
we were supposed to light the wick. Immediately, the TNT stick with its lighted
fuse had to be thrown overboard without delay, or we could lose a hand or worse.
This action of dropping lighted sticks of TNT overboard had to be repeated every
30 s, so that as the ship advanced, the explosions could be heard at its stern. The
acrid, chemical smell of a lighted fuse was definitely extremely unpleasant for
some one suffering from seasickness the way I was.
Chronic Seasickness
The most difficult time for anyone at sea is when he or she suffers from being
seasick. Your body is in a state of total exhaustion and extreme fatigue due to
constant vomiting. You would like to die but it’s impossible. You have no will
power to go to work, no appetite, and the idea of eating or drinking anything, even
a glass of water or a saltine cracker, is beyond imagination. You feel terrible since
you can’t control your own weakness and you are in an intense state of suffering.
This is called ‘‘Chronic Seasickness’’ and this is how I felt. It was humiliating and
it was awful. After about one full month at sea with this constant feeling of
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO)
9
6 month-long cruise on a sea-going expedition. However before going to sea I first
had to spend some time in the core-laboratory where sediment samples were being
described and stored. This part of the job was right up my alley and I was comfortable with the work, which consisted in determining some physical parameters
for the samples, such as their porosity, density, color and type of sediment.
In the summer of 1964, I took a flight from New York to Alaska, to one of the
most distant U.S. islands called Adak, located in the Aleutian arc, where I was to
join the research vessel (R.V.) Robert D. Conrad. Two days later, we left the
island on a grey misty morning, first heading northward to the Bearing Sea. About
2 weeks later we turned south then south-southeast towards western Canada in the
northern Pacific Ocean where we sailed along the coast of Vancouver and then
Oregon.
I started to be seasick and uncomfortable as soon as we left Adak’s dock. The
chief scientist (Joe Worzel) kept rushing into my cabin to ask me to go out on deck
and keep on working because, according to him, that was the only way to feel
better. He was right and he surely met well, but at the time I did not want to see
him nor did I wish to leave my bunk to go outside on deck. I only felt good if I
were lying in a horizontal position without moving. But at the same time I felt
guilty, and I knew I that had to get up because there was a job that had to be done.
In fact, I was very much aware that even if I felt like I was dying from seasickness,
I had to take my watch and replace my colleagues on deck.
Our job consisted in creating sound waves in the water column by throwing
lighted explosives overboard. This was acoustic measuring at its most primitive. A
half-pound TNT stick was held by one hand against our stomachs while the fuse
was inserted into the other end of the dynamite stick with our other hand, and then
we were supposed to light the wick. Immediately, the TNT stick with its lighted
fuse had to be thrown overboard without delay, or we could lose a hand or worse.
This action of dropping lighted sticks of TNT overboard had to be repeated every
30 s, so that as the ship advanced, the explosions could be heard at its stern. The
acrid, chemical smell of a lighted fuse was definitely extremely unpleasant for
some one suffering from seasickness the way I was.
Chronic Seasickness
The most difficult time for anyone at sea is when he or she suffers from being
seasick. Your body is in a state of total exhaustion and extreme fatigue due to
constant vomiting. You would like to die but it’s impossible. You have no will
power to go to work, no appetite, and the idea of eating or drinking anything, even
a glass of water or a saltine cracker, is beyond imagination. You feel terrible since
you can’t control your own weakness and you are in an intense state of suffering.
This is called ‘‘Chronic Seasickness’’ and this is how I felt. It was humiliating and
it was awful. After about one full month at sea with this constant feeling of
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO)
9