Marine snow is a catchall phrase that describes organic particles formed from clusters of phytoplankton, mucous, dead or discarded parts of zooplankton and other things. On the video screen it looks a snowstorm. We put on a CD for some music. Meanwhile, the rest of us work on our computers, analyze data and write reports. The ROV surfaces and the recovery group moves to the fantail to retrieve it.
Recovery is usually a bit more stressful than deployment.
The vehicle and the ship are both moving and the people on the stern must attach lines to a moving target. It's critical that the ROV remains away from the ship to avoid a collision and everyone is a bit more tense. At night it's even a bit trickier. Nick oversees the recovery and his confident commands help everyone to relax as the ROV is secured and lifted on to the deck. After each dive, we take a plankton net tow.