The West Coast, between Coos Bay, OR and Eureka, CA is a busy place! There are currently two NOAA Fisheries Survey Vessels (Reuben Lasker and Bell M. Shimada) and seven Saildrones (Saildrone, Inc.) all here collecting data. Four of the Saildrones are focused on the Northwest Fisheries Science Center's survey design, and three on the Southwest Fisheries Science Center's design. With the poor weather conditions in this area, the Shimada has postponed operations until winds die down. In order to maintain the ideal +/- 3-5 days of offset from the Shimada, the Saildrones may need to slow their progress until we're back underway. With luck, Shimada will soon be on transect and our northward progress (one FSV + 4 Saildrones) can continue.
A screen capture from the mission portal (Saildrone, Inc.) showing the location of two blue FSVs (with Laskerheading west and Shimada anchored near Crescent City) and seven Saildrones. The blue lines represent FSV (Lasker and Shimada) tracklines. The seven Saildrones are designed "SD-####. Photo: Saildrone, Inc."
