ROV ROPOS Deployment

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by Julie Ann Koehlinger

ROPOS Control Room

ROPOS Control Room on R/V Thompson, VISIONS '13

Photo by Fredrik Ryden

ROPOS Observed by an Albatross

ROPOS begins its descent into the deep, observed by a local albatross at Axial Seamount.

Photo credit: Mitchell Elend

The Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) ROPOS is the primary and critical workhorse of the RSN VISIONS cruises.  Owned and operated by the Canadian Scientific Submersible Facility in Victoria, BC, this 7500 lbs robot is capable of many detailed operations on the seafloor.  ROPOS pilots navigate the vehicle and control its manipulator arms from aboard the R/V Thompson, enabling the ROV to conduct a broad range of operations, including laying fiber-optic cable, deploying and recovering instruments, collecting scientific samples, and filming in HD the intricacies of the deep sea-scape.  Julie Ann created a video documenting a ROPOS launch during Leg 2 of the VISIONS '13 Expedition.