Another Angel for St. Joe's

Angel Ice Cream Float—St. Joseph’s Academy in St. Louis, MO

Location: 160° 59.3179’ E; 62° 0.0215’ S

Time: Sat 14 JAN 2023. 12:30 UTC

Float Number: 20109

Float Type: Apex

Float Program: GO-BGC

This float was adopted by St. Joseph’s Academy in St. Louis, MO. They have already adopted two floats, named Sea Angel and Angel Shark after their school mascot, the Angels. When science teacher Katie Lodes was talking about using data from these floats at the freshmen orientation, one of them asked if the float was like an ice cream float and the name stuck. Not scientific, but legitimate! 

Although classes at the high school level are separated by subject, they are trying to encourage a more cross-curricular approach and have more subject areas involved with the floats this year. There is a bulletin board on the wall in the science hallway with maps and info on our floats, where everyone can follow along. Bringing art into science is one way to bridge the gap between subjects, and Mrs. Lodes took that opportunity to encourage her students to submit their own artwork for the float design. The chosen image was sent to me, and I tried to recreate it as accurately as possible. While drawing on a round surface. Onboard a ship. In 3-4m seas. I’d say it’s a pretty good likeness, wouldn’t you?

The crew has also enjoyed seeing the drawings on the floats, and one crew member came up to me after the last deployment (HK Leo) with a small sticker depicting the IBRV Araon. Unfortunately, stickers can’t be placed on the floats because they impact weight and friction, and the floats are finely balanced and calibrated so they can complete their vertical profile efficiently. Instead, I told him that I’d be happy to draw the image onto the float to represent the Araon.