Research Vessel Vantuna - Research Cruise Plans and Chartering

Educational Cruises

Our goal is to meet the needs of the chartering group. In the past 30 years of operating as an educational resource, we have developed cruise plans that provide an efficient introduction to a variety of marine habitats. We offer the chartering group the option of either a half-day (3 or 4 hr.) or full-day (8 hr.) excursion, with the full-day cruise offering optimum ship time and opportunities to investigate the marine environment. Our half-day plan is utilized by many of our user institutions and offers plenty of variety and hands-on interaction in an educational setting. A brief description of the cruises follows:

Half-Day cruises consist of visiting several "stations" and includes a comparison of a shallow (inside L.A. Harbor, 5-10 fathoms) and deeper water (up to 50 fathoms) habitat. The lectures are likely conducted by either the onboard biologist or lead Occidental student instructor, and the animals are sorted, identified, and discussed.

Full-Day cruises consist of everything on a typical half-day cruise as well as the addition of a horizontal plankton tow and an Isaacs-Kidd midwater trawl.

As a floating field station, the R/V Vantuna is used extensively as a unique teaching resource in Southern California. Schools ranging from elementary through colleges and universities charter half- or full-day cruises nearly 150 days each year. On each of these cruises, students get a hands-on introduction to physical and biological parameters of various ocean habitats. During your day at sea you will work as an oceanographer and marine biologist, sampling the different marine environments and learning about the many fascinating organisms found in the ocean. All of the work will be done using professional equipment, with the help of an experienced crew and onboard teachers.

Cruise Plans: Our goal is to meet the needs of the chartering group. In the past 30 years of operating as an educational resource, we have developed cruise plans that provide an efficient introduction to a variety of marine habitats. We offer the chartering group the option of either a half-day (3 or 4 hr.) or full-day (8 hr.) excursion, with the full-day cruise offering optimum ship time and opportunities to investigate the marine environment. Our half-day plan is utilized by many of our user institutions and offers plenty of variety and hands-on interaction in an educational setting. A brief description of the cruises follows:

To preview a typical cruise click

VIRTUAL CRUISE ABOARD R/V VANTUNA

Half-Day

Typical stations (subject to change by advance request)

1. Water station

Forel
Secchi Disk
Vertical Plankton

2. Sediment Sample

3. Shallow Otter Trawl

4. Biological Dredge

5. Deep Water Station

Forel
Secchi Disk
Sea-Bird

6. Deep Otter Trawl

Full-Day