In June 2011, I went on the Research Vessel Sarmiento de Gamboa, in Spain, to document Geostar Recovery, an oceanographic cruise. On assignment for the INGV (the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology) I was the expedition’s photographer and video operator. The Sarmiento set out from Vigo and headed south, to the Gulf of Cadiz, where a ROV was sent 3,226 mt. under sea level to recover a sysmic station, Geostar. Then, we sailed east to Gibraltar and, final destination, Barcellona.
These pictures show the recovery operation. Ten days of sailing in atlantic and mediterranean are something magic, for a guy like me who grew up with sea stories and novels, and it was an experience that I’ll remember for my whole life. Passing near Cabo de San Vincente, Cape Trafalgar, the Strait of Gibraltar, and to shoot videos of dolphins playing with the ship bow, are the images that I’ll always take with me.
The videos of the cruise can be found in my vimeo page. I’ve written something about it in my blog.