All Smiles for our Second Float

Our second float, Project Smiley, has been deployed.

 

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Project Smiley—BioTECH at Richmond Heights in Miami, FL

Location: 160° 58.55.94’E; 58° 19.6401’ S

Time: Fri 13 JAN 2023. 20:49 UTC

Float Number: 1119

Float Type: Navis

Float Program: SOCCOM

This float was adopted by the Zoology 9 class at BioTECH at Richmond Heights in Miami, FL. Their custodian’s name is Mr. Smiley and all the students really love him. They knew they’d be following along with the float for the next few years, so they chose to follow along with Project Smiley. 

map showing the location of the Project Smiley float deployment north of Antarctica and south of New Zealand.

This map shows the location of the float deployment, approximately 1980 km south of Hobart, Tasmania.

Launch technique

Now that the crew of the IBRV Araon had completed a successful deployment, they were able to hone their technique to deploy quickly and successfully. Floats are deployed by threading a small line through the deployment ring and lowering it carefully down the side of the ship. Once the float is in the water, the free end of the line is pulled back through the deployment ring and the float is free to begin its 5- to 7-year journey through the ocean. We waved goodbye to Project Smiley and hope that his namesake and the students at BioTECH at Richmond Heights enjoy following along! Our internet is getting a little spotty, so the next few blogs may be a bit delayed. 

The crew of the IBRV Araon prepares to deploy Project Smiley float

The crew of the IBRV Araon prepares to deploy Project Smiley. Photo by Jenn Magnusson.

a photo of two crew holding the float Project Smiley in between them.

Project Smiley is ready to deploy. Photo by Jenn Magnusson.

Lowering Project Smiley down over the rail of the ship

Lowering Project Smiley down over the rail of the ship. Photo by Jenn Magnusson.