It was nearly four years ago, when Mark, Dan and Denny first began thinking about an expedition to study the submarine volcanic slopes of the western Galápagos. Now, with a fantastic data set in their hands they look forward to their shore-based studies over the next few years, and testing their hypotheses about how these volcanoes evolved.

After 33 days of working together we have become a tight knit group, and used to our daily routines on the ship. We will miss the excitement of our daily discoveries and seeing the majestic profiles of Galápagos volcanoes greet us each morning. There are also those of us who have won the favor of King Neptune and become trusty Shellbacks - an experience we’ll never forget!

In the coming months, RV Revelle will transport other groups of scientists on cruises to far-flung field areas in the Pacific including: Easter Island, the South Pacific, and New Zealand. Each day, around the world, oceanographers are working throughout the world’s ocean to discover its many secrets and to gain a better understanding of our planet.

We want to thank the many people back on shore at Woods Hole Oceanographic who have helped us create and deliver Dive and Discover to you this past month. Katherine Joyce has been the person primarily responsible for taking our daily postings and turning them into the wonderful web site you see each day. Supporting her are Danielle Fino and Susan Humphris, two of Dive and Discover’s creators, and Lori Dolby.

Paul Oberlander, Lonny Lippsett, Andy Maffei, Steve Lerner, and Scotty McCue at Woods Hole, Dale Chayes at Lamont-Doherty, Woody Sutherland at Scripps, and the Scripps’s Marine Facilities office under Capt. Tom Althouse have helped with various aspects of Dive and Discover’s technical and other requirements. Dan Jacobson, here on Revelle has been wonderful about sending the data through the SeaNet system at all hours of the day and night. This effort takes many people and we thank all of you sincerely. Last, but not least, we thank the officers and crew of Revelle and our science ship-mates for their collaboration and help in making this a successful web experience.

Finally, we thank you for Diving and Discovering with us in the Galápagos this past month, and encourage you to look for more Dive and Discover expeditions next year.

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