Partnership for Observation of the Global Ocean (POGO) Fellow Aditi Sharma has returned from a 17-day expedition aboard the R/V Sikuliaq to recover and deploy OOI’s Global Station Papa in the Gulf of Alaska. A PhD candidate at the National Institute of Oceanography India, Aditi was chosen from over 80 applicants for a shipboard training fellowship sponsored by POGO, WHOI, OOI, and the Nippon Foundation.

Back on land, Aditi is reflecting on her time at sea and her goals for the future.

How did you benefit from the training?

The training has been immensely beneficial as it provided me with a chance to engage in work and learn from the experts in the field. The hands-on operations of winch, deployment procedures, data downloading, and calibration techniques have given me confidence in practical skills essential for the fieldwork. These experiences are particularly relevant as I now intend to apply them to my current project at my parent institute, which involves monitoring diverse environmental variables in the coastal Bay of Bengal using advanced meteorological sensors on a fixed mooring buoy. This training has helped in enhancing my capability to contribute meaningful insights to the project. In addition to the scientific aspects, the training has provided me with an understanding of the operational challenges during expeditions. It has highlighted the need for improvisation in adverse weather conditions and emphasized collaborative work approaches. Additionally, it has instilled in me a strong sense of time management that I aim to apply both in my career and in my personal life.

What are your future aspirations?

I am currently working towards my PhD at the National Institute of Oceanography. Upon completing my PhD, I aim to pursue postdoctoral studies and collaborate with fellow scientists in my specialized field. This journey represents a vast ocean of knowledge that I am eager to explore, with a strong desire to effectively share and discuss my insights with peers.