Deployment: DRFT08RR

Brief cruise plan description:
Three ships were involved in the SOFeX experiment. Each ship operated in the study area at a different time to afford the longest observation time. The designations SOFeX-N and SOFeX-S are sometimes used to distinguish between two iron enriched patches - one in low silicate waters north of the polar front (SOFEX-N), and the other in high silicate waters south of the polar front (SOFEX-S). All three ships, Melville (MV), Revelle (RR) and Polar Star (PS), worked in SOFEX-S, but only the Revelle and Melville worked in the SOFeX N patch and shuttled between the two patches.

The R/V ROGER REVELLE from Scripps Institution of Oceanography sailed first. The REVELLE team added iron to two areas referred to as 'the North and South patches'. After the iron and an inert chemical tracer (SF6) were added, the REVELLE's primary mission was to map the size and characteristics of the South patch using a SeaSOAR fish towed behind the ship that pumped water up to the ship for sampling and analysis. The REVELLE also collected samples for initial biological shipboard mapping of iron concentrations, nutrients, chlorophyll, and photosynthetic efficiency. A cruise logbook includes daily entries filed by the Chief Scientist aboard each vessel.