Based on information supplied by our NCEC colleagues, we set our first sampling area at the site of a nearshore plankton bloom that occurred in the last two days. It happened that the bloom was in a small embayment and directly offshore of the Yanbu Cement Company facility.

Sampling at an offshore station (HAB2) began in the late afternoon. With that first station under our belt, Captain Kanakaris deftly maneuvered the Aegaeo to within a stone’s throw of the facility for collection of nearshore samples (at HAB1).

While it’s possible that we may have missed the conditions that led to the bloom (especially elevated nutrient concentrations), we have acquired the first measurement of environmental properties in an area that may be prone to bloom development. A good start at last.