January 20, 2025 • 14 mins
Since 1964, the deep submergence vehicle Alvin has played major roles in sea discovery, from lost hydrogen bombs to hydrothermal vents and the first survey of the wreck of the RMS Titanic. Kaitlyn Beardshear, electrical engineer at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and a pilot of Alvin, discuses the submersible's history, sea exploration and discoveries in the ocean's depths.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:03):
This is the Discovery Files podcastfrom the U.S.
National Science Foundation.
Since 1964,
Alvin, a human occupied submersibleand part of the US academic research
fleet, has allowed generations ofscientists to explore the world's oceans.
Operated by the National Deep SubmergenceFacility at Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution, primarily funded by NSF,along with the Office of Naval Research
(00:27):
and the National Oceanicand Atmospheric Administration.
Continual innovation and regular upgradesput Alvin at the forefront
of expeditionary research, allowing accessto 99% of the world's seafloor
depths of approximately four milesand dives up to 12 hours in duration.
Alvin played a rolein recovering a lost hydrogen bomb
in the 60s,discovering hydrothermal vents in the 70s,
(00:48):
exploring the wreck of the RMSTitanic in the 1980s, and understanding
oil spill impacts and previously unknowndeep sea coral reefs in recent years.
We're joined by Kaitlin Beardshear,electrical engineer, Woods
Hole Oceanographic Institutionand one of Alvin's pilots.
Kaitlin,thank you so much for joining me today.
Thanks for having me.
I want to start with your interestin engineering.
(01:08):
Were you always curiousabout how things work?
In a way, I suppose I was.
As a kid, I definitely remembertaking a lot of things apart
because they wanted to seewhat was inside them.
I just always wanted to know, like,what's inside the box?
How did that interest get you intorobotics and ROVs and this kind of work?
It was a slow process.
(01:29):
I knew I wanted to learn how things work,
but I didn't really quite knowwhat specifically held my interest.
So I joined like general engineering,just kind of like, try it out,
see how things go, and from there,I just sort of got tunneled
into learning moreabout the electrical side, learning
more about software circuitryand just electronic CSS in general.
(01:52):
And I really enjoyed doing that.
So going into roboticsreally worked out for me.
Was there a specific partabout the way electronics work?
That kind of stuck with you?
You think of something specific,but it just it was kind of given like a
do you want to do more
mechanically minded thingsand more like electrical software.
(02:13):
And it mechanical was interesting.
Learning how things move is cool,
but I was more interestedin the electrical side of that of like,
how does it move itin terms of control aspects.
I guess my brain was thinking like,did you get into the wiring part of it,
or didyou get into how to make the wiring work?
Like where in that end of the world,I guess is where I was thinking with that.
(02:35):
I guess in into the wiringbecause I was like, okay, you can see it,
and now you're just telling ithow to do it, just like, oh, you got this
little piece that goes over hereand it tells this part to do this.
And I really liked doing that part.
So moving into your current work,what is Alvin.
So Alvin is a deep submergence vehicle.
(02:57):
So it goes down to it's 6500m.
And we do oceanographic research.
And the type we do depends on the sciencegroup that's with us at the time.
We can get multi-disciplinary cruisesor sometimes
when we just hadwas just focused on geology.
They just wanted rock samples.
(03:17):
So we were just doing that.
But we've also been on cruiseswhere there's all sorts of different
scientists, and this one wants rocksand this one wants water,
and this one wants animalsand everybody wants everything.
So every cruise is a little bit differentwith what you're going
for in terms of the science.
How did you get connectedwith the Alvin Group?
What brought you from an interestin electronics
(03:40):
to working with these submarinesand exploring the world?
I sort of fell into it.
I was pursuing RVsand I was applying to so many internships,
I wanted to get out at sea so badly and,the meet program, marine
advanced technology education program,they connected me to the Alvin Group
(04:02):
because that is their philosophyis bringing the technology to people.
So they helped with connecting me tothe Alvin Group and getting me out to sea.
And from there, I just never left.
I stuck with the group the whole time.
Were you always interested in the ocean?
Absolutely.
I grew up next to the ocean,and for me, it's
(04:24):
hard to imaginebeing further away from it.
Sometimes you just look around and golike, where's where's the water?
Is necessary water in you?
I don't know how people grow upinland, away from the ocean, right.
The relationship withit becomes very different
when you're in more of a beach community,for sure.
Yeah.
I think your first rolethere was as a swimmer.
(04:44):
Can you talk a little bit
about what it meansto be a swimmer on the Alpha team?
Yeah.
So the swimmer is one of the first rolesyou get trained in
for the launch and recovery process,and it's a really important part.
The swimmers actually go with the suband they are putting lines on
or taking them off,depending on if it's a launch recovery.
And so their job is the likethe last safety checks
(05:07):
before the sub can dive into the oneschecking in with the pilot
and making sure it's completelyfree of the ship and ready to go.
And and then on recovery,they're making sure that everything
is safe and secureso we can get this up back on it.
So it's a really important part.
And you get trained on it early on.
They can be funbecause you are in the water
(05:29):
and you get to go in the waterwith the sub,
which is it's a different experienceto see that thing in the water,
even as a swimmer, is it,you see it on land
and you're just like thisbig bulky hunk of machinery.
But then once it's in the waterand it's moving around,
it's it's a different experienceto see it.
And you're just like, youtake a moment to be like, this is so cool.
(05:52):
And then you get back into your joband you're like,
okay, I got to pay attentionbecause you're in the water.
There's also the hazards ofbeing in the water with there's weather,
there's waves, there's sharks,
and every other thingthat comes along with being in the water.
So what's the path from
working as a swimmer to becoming a pilot?
(06:12):
So you go from swimmer,the next step up is the A-frame operator.
So that's the personwho's actually operating the giant A-frame
that lifts the subin and out of the water.
From there,you go to the launch coordinator.
That's the person who's single pointcontrol for each launch in recovery.
They're the one calling the shots.
(06:34):
And then the last step before the pilotprogram is service controller.
So that's the person who maintainsthe communications with the sub,
does all the tracking and navigation andcompletes all the records for each dive.
So you go up through each level learning
a different positionin part of the sequence.
(06:56):
And then once you get up to the servicecontroller,
then you're accepted into the pilottraining program.
And then you start going in the Southand practicing diving.
How many pilots are there.
Over the course of time? I'm the 46 pilot.
That's awesome.
How does it feelto be in that line of pilots there?
There's been a lot of really cooldiscoveries over the years.
(07:18):
There is a sense of legacy to it.
How do you describe it?
There's like a historythat I feel honored to be a part of,
and also just hopefulbecause I want to continue
to uphold this legacyand do great things for the program.
And so there's a little bit of like,oh, I hope I don't mess up, but.
(07:40):
So thinking about that history,can we talk a little bit about how many
parts are original for a submarinethat's been around since the 1960s?
So at this pointthe only original part is the name.
The sub goes through overhaulevery five years,
and some of thoseare also upgrade overhauls.
So we take the sub completely apart.
(08:00):
Some things stay
the same, some things get upgradedand all gets put completely back together.
And just through the years it's gonethrough design iterations and changes.
So at this pointnothing's original from the 60s.
What's the oldest piecethat's still on there?
I believe there's a piece of the frame
that maybe dates back to the 80s.
(08:22):
But for the most part it's been prettywell upgraded.
What's the most interesting divingexperience you've had so far as a pilot?
Going to see hydrothermal vents has to be
some of the coolest stuff I've ever seen,
because so much of the oceanis almost desolate.
There's not a lot down there.
(08:43):
But then you go to hydrothermal vents,which are these surviving communities
that were not expected to be down there,and it's
kind of wild just driving aroundand there's just rock.
It's emptiness.
And all suddenyou come across this and and here is all
this lifejust centered around this one point.
And it's extremely hot water.
(09:04):
You're just looking at these thingsthat should not be alive.
And yet they're there.
And they're just doing their own thing.
And it's so cool to see that.
So what do we knowabout hydrothermal vents?
What are they doing down there.
So we know they're part of seafloorspreading centers.
So they are part of the new rockthat comes up
(09:25):
and helps to create the crust.
So the lava flows that come outare creating new rock.
And this is a it'sa crack where water can get into it
and it gets heated and it picks upminerals while it's down there.
And then the hot water is ejected out
(09:45):
into the rest of the water,and it quickly cools down.
And all those mineralsbecome solid once again.
And it builds up the vent.
That has got a lot of sulfur in it.
And I believethere's like heavy metals in it as well.
So these animals that livethere need the hot water.
They need the heat,but they also use the sulfur
(10:06):
as part of their chemosynthesis processto get sugars.
It's interestingbecause it's like these things
aren't supposed to happenin this environment, right?
Yeah.
So they wait, findingthe hydrothermal vents
is how the process of chemosynthesiswas like, discovered.
And learning that
you don'thave to have like a photosynthetic,
(10:28):
primary producer to start your chain.
How long does it taketo get to the bottom of the ocean?
It depends on how deep you're going.
I would say what we usually descend
at is a little under 40m a minute.
So if we're going down recentlyby going down to 20 700m,
there is about our hourand a half to descend.
(10:52):
So you'reyou're just sitting in there for a bit.
What's that experience like for you.
As a pilot?
It's like waiting, but with a checklist.
Every 500m, you're you're checkingsomething, you're doing something.
So you're sitting there waiting
but also staring at your depth clockas it takes down.
Okay. Now I've got to do this.
(11:13):
Now I've got to do this.
And also having some conversationwith the scientists, just kind of
prep work, getting ready for the dive.
Given time.
What was itlike the first time you went down there?
First time I was so excited
because it had been so long.
I had seen the sub go into the watera bunch of times, and it was just like,
(11:37):
I'm ready to get in there.
I want to be in the sub on a dive so bad.
I want to do this so bad.
And finally the day came just like
I'm it was so excited and I had to, like,
contain myself because it was still likean engineering dive.
I still had to go in there and do
work, and I had to keep reminding myselfto pay attention to what I'm doing is.
(12:00):
Like,wait a minute, I'm supposed to do this?
Yeah.
Like, oh, now I see why the scientistsjust always have their,
like,faces pressed up against the windows.
Because it's just so coolto look out and see everything.
When you're at the bottom,let's say at using the example
of your most recent dive,how far can you see out the portholes?
You're going to dependon light visibility, but you can get,
(12:21):
I want to say 2030 on a good day.
What's the most exciting thingthat you've seen so far?
I mean,I go back to the age of thermal vents
because they're always the coolest.
But I do remember on my first divewe were in the vicinity of the vents,
but driving away from them,and we just came across an enormous enemy.
(12:44):
It had to be at least six feetacross. Wow.
Huge giant thing just came across.
It wasn't expecting it to be there, wasn'texpecting it to be as big as it was.
And it's just this beautiful thing,just like lightly billowing in the water.
Remember the scientist I was with looks out the windows?
(13:05):
Yeah,that's the biggest one I've ever seen.
But we're not here for bio,so let's move on.
Right? Like,I've never heard of one being that big.
Like, I grew up near the coast,and usually they're just little ones
in a tide pool that you might messwith. Yeah, like.
No, it's crazy huge.
And they just didn't care.
It's just like, we're here for rocks.
Keep driving.
It's like,I guess we saw something interesting.
(13:26):
Yeah, but that's not the mission here.
That's not the mission.
That's not what you're there for.
And thinking about the future.
Is there anything in particularthat you're most excited to see yourself?
Just keep going.
To just keep going and keep doing it.
Every place you dive in is going to be
a little bit different,and each time is going to be different.
(13:46):
So it's always just like,what are you going to see this time?
What's going to happennow? You never know.
There's anticipation in that.
Just you could find something brand new,incredible, newly discovered on any dive.
Special thanks to Kaitlin Beardshear.
For The Discovery Files, I'm Nate Pottker.
You can watch video versions
of these conversations on our YouTubechannel by searching @NSFscience.
(14:10):
Please subscribe wherever you get podcastsand if you like our program, share
with a friendand consider leaving a review.
Discover how the U.S.
National Science Foundationis advancing research at nsf.gov.
This is the Discovery Files podcastfrom the U.S.
National Science Foundation.
Since 1964,
Alvin, a human occupied submersibleand part of the US academic research
fleet, has allowed generations ofscientists to explore the world's oceans.
Operated by the National Deep SubmergenceFacility at Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution, primarily funded by NSF,along with the Office of Naval Research
(00:27):
and the National Oceanicand Atmospheric Administration.
Continual innovation and regular upgradesput Alvin at the forefront
of expeditionary research, allowing accessto 99% of the world's seafloor
depths of approximately four milesand dives up to 12 hours in duration.
Alvin played a rolein recovering a lost hydrogen bomb
in the 60s,discovering hydrothermal vents in the 70s,
(00:48):
exploring the wreck of the RMSTitanic in the 1980s, and understanding
oil spill impacts and previously unknowndeep sea coral reefs in recent years.
We're joined by Kaitlin Beardshear,electrical engineer, Woods
Hole Oceanographic Institutionand one of Alvin's pilots.
Kaitlin,thank you so much for joining me today.
Thanks for having me.
I want to start with your interestin engineering.
(01:08):
Were you always curiousabout how things work?
In a way, I suppose I was.
As a kid, I definitely remembertaking a lot of things apart
because they wanted to seewhat was inside them.
I just always wanted to know, like,what's inside the box?
How did that interest get you intorobotics and ROVs and this kind of work?
It was a slow process.
(01:29):
I knew I wanted to learn how things work,
but I didn't really quite knowwhat specifically held my interest.
So I joined like general engineering,just kind of like, try it out,
see how things go, and from there,I just sort of got tunneled
into learning moreabout the electrical side, learning
more about software circuitryand just electronic CSS in general.
(01:52):
And I really enjoyed doing that.
So going into roboticsreally worked out for me.
Was there a specific partabout the way electronics work?
That kind of stuck with you?
You think of something specific,but it just it was kind of given like a
do you want to do more
mechanically minded thingsand more like electrical software.
(02:13):
And it mechanical was interesting.
Learning how things move is cool,
but I was more interestedin the electrical side of that of like,
how does it move itin terms of control aspects.
I guess my brain was thinking like,did you get into the wiring part of it,
or didyou get into how to make the wiring work?
Like where in that end of the world,I guess is where I was thinking with that.
(02:35):
I guess in into the wiringbecause I was like, okay, you can see it,
and now you're just telling ithow to do it, just like, oh, you got this
little piece that goes over hereand it tells this part to do this.
And I really liked doing that part.
So moving into your current work,what is Alvin.
So Alvin is a deep submergence vehicle.
(02:57):
So it goes down to it's 6500m.
And we do oceanographic research.
And the type we do depends on the sciencegroup that's with us at the time.
We can get multi-disciplinary cruisesor sometimes
when we just hadwas just focused on geology.
They just wanted rock samples.
(03:17):
So we were just doing that.
But we've also been on cruiseswhere there's all sorts of different
scientists, and this one wants rocksand this one wants water,
and this one wants animalsand everybody wants everything.
So every cruise is a little bit differentwith what you're going
for in terms of the science.
How did you get connectedwith the Alvin Group?
What brought you from an interestin electronics
(03:40):
to working with these submarinesand exploring the world?
I sort of fell into it.
I was pursuing RVsand I was applying to so many internships,
I wanted to get out at sea so badly and,the meet program, marine
advanced technology education program,they connected me to the Alvin Group
(04:02):
because that is their philosophyis bringing the technology to people.
So they helped with connecting me tothe Alvin Group and getting me out to sea.
And from there, I just never left.
I stuck with the group the whole time.
Were you always interested in the ocean?
Absolutely.
I grew up next to the ocean,and for me, it's
(04:24):
hard to imaginebeing further away from it.
Sometimes you just look around and golike, where's where's the water?
Is necessary water in you?
I don't know how people grow upinland, away from the ocean, right.
The relationship withit becomes very different
when you're in more of a beach community,for sure.
Yeah.
I think your first rolethere was as a swimmer.
(04:44):
Can you talk a little bit
about what it meansto be a swimmer on the Alpha team?
Yeah.
So the swimmer is one of the first rolesyou get trained in
for the launch and recovery process,and it's a really important part.
The swimmers actually go with the suband they are putting lines on
or taking them off,depending on if it's a launch recovery.
And so their job is the likethe last safety checks
(05:07):
before the sub can dive into the oneschecking in with the pilot
and making sure it's completelyfree of the ship and ready to go.
And and then on recovery,they're making sure that everything
is safe and secureso we can get this up back on it.
So it's a really important part.
And you get trained on it early on.
They can be funbecause you are in the water
(05:29):
and you get to go in the waterwith the sub,
which is it's a different experienceto see that thing in the water,
even as a swimmer, is it,you see it on land
and you're just like thisbig bulky hunk of machinery.
But then once it's in the waterand it's moving around,
it's it's a different experienceto see it.
And you're just like, youtake a moment to be like, this is so cool.
(05:52):
And then you get back into your joband you're like,
okay, I got to pay attentionbecause you're in the water.
There's also the hazards ofbeing in the water with there's weather,
there's waves, there's sharks,
and every other thingthat comes along with being in the water.
So what's the path from
working as a swimmer to becoming a pilot?
(06:12):
So you go from swimmer,the next step up is the A-frame operator.
So that's the personwho's actually operating the giant A-frame
that lifts the subin and out of the water.
From there,you go to the launch coordinator.
That's the person who's single pointcontrol for each launch in recovery.
They're the one calling the shots.
(06:34):
And then the last step before the pilotprogram is service controller.
So that's the person who maintainsthe communications with the sub,
does all the tracking and navigation andcompletes all the records for each dive.
So you go up through each level learning
a different positionin part of the sequence.
(06:56):
And then once you get up to the servicecontroller,
then you're accepted into the pilottraining program.
And then you start going in the Southand practicing diving.
How many pilots are there.
Over the course of time? I'm the 46 pilot.
That's awesome.
How does it feelto be in that line of pilots there?
There's been a lot of really cooldiscoveries over the years.
(07:18):
There is a sense of legacy to it.
How do you describe it?
There's like a historythat I feel honored to be a part of,
and also just hopefulbecause I want to continue
to uphold this legacyand do great things for the program.
And so there's a little bit of like,oh, I hope I don't mess up, but.
(07:40):
So thinking about that history,can we talk a little bit about how many
parts are original for a submarinethat's been around since the 1960s?
So at this pointthe only original part is the name.
The sub goes through overhaulevery five years,
and some of thoseare also upgrade overhauls.
So we take the sub completely apart.
(08:00):
Some things stay
the same, some things get upgradedand all gets put completely back together.
And just through the years it's gonethrough design iterations and changes.
So at this pointnothing's original from the 60s.
What's the oldest piecethat's still on there?
I believe there's a piece of the frame
that maybe dates back to the 80s.
(08:22):
But for the most part it's been prettywell upgraded.
What's the most interesting divingexperience you've had so far as a pilot?
Going to see hydrothermal vents has to be
some of the coolest stuff I've ever seen,
because so much of the oceanis almost desolate.
There's not a lot down there.
(08:43):
But then you go to hydrothermal vents,which are these surviving communities
that were not expected to be down there,and it's
kind of wild just driving aroundand there's just rock.
It's emptiness.
And all suddenyou come across this and and here is all
this lifejust centered around this one point.
And it's extremely hot water.
(09:04):
You're just looking at these thingsthat should not be alive.
And yet they're there.
And they're just doing their own thing.
And it's so cool to see that.
So what do we knowabout hydrothermal vents?
What are they doing down there.
So we know they're part of seafloorspreading centers.
So they are part of the new rockthat comes up
(09:25):
and helps to create the crust.
So the lava flows that come outare creating new rock.
And this is a it'sa crack where water can get into it
and it gets heated and it picks upminerals while it's down there.
And then the hot water is ejected out
(09:45):
into the rest of the water,and it quickly cools down.
And all those mineralsbecome solid once again.
And it builds up the vent.
That has got a lot of sulfur in it.
And I believethere's like heavy metals in it as well.
So these animals that livethere need the hot water.
They need the heat,but they also use the sulfur
(10:06):
as part of their chemosynthesis processto get sugars.
It's interestingbecause it's like these things
aren't supposed to happenin this environment, right?
Yeah.
So they wait, findingthe hydrothermal vents
is how the process of chemosynthesiswas like, discovered.
And learning that
you don'thave to have like a photosynthetic,
(10:28):
primary producer to start your chain.
How long does it taketo get to the bottom of the ocean?
It depends on how deep you're going.
I would say what we usually descend
at is a little under 40m a minute.
So if we're going down recentlyby going down to 20 700m,
there is about our hourand a half to descend.
(10:52):
So you'reyou're just sitting in there for a bit.
What's that experience like for you.
As a pilot?
It's like waiting, but with a checklist.
Every 500m, you're you're checkingsomething, you're doing something.
So you're sitting there waiting
but also staring at your depth clockas it takes down.
Okay. Now I've got to do this.
(11:13):
Now I've got to do this.
And also having some conversationwith the scientists, just kind of
prep work, getting ready for the dive.
Given time.
What was itlike the first time you went down there?
First time I was so excited
because it had been so long.
I had seen the sub go into the watera bunch of times, and it was just like,
(11:37):
I'm ready to get in there.
I want to be in the sub on a dive so bad.
I want to do this so bad.
And finally the day came just like
I'm it was so excited and I had to, like,
contain myself because it was still likean engineering dive.
I still had to go in there and do
work, and I had to keep reminding myselfto pay attention to what I'm doing is.
(12:00):
Like,wait a minute, I'm supposed to do this?
Yeah.
Like, oh, now I see why the scientistsjust always have their,
like,faces pressed up against the windows.
Because it's just so coolto look out and see everything.
When you're at the bottom,let's say at using the example
of your most recent dive,how far can you see out the portholes?
You're going to dependon light visibility, but you can get,
(12:21):
I want to say 2030 on a good day.
What's the most exciting thingthat you've seen so far?
I mean,I go back to the age of thermal vents
because they're always the coolest.
But I do remember on my first divewe were in the vicinity of the vents,
but driving away from them,and we just came across an enormous enemy.
(12:44):
It had to be at least six feetacross. Wow.
Huge giant thing just came across.
It wasn't expecting it to be there, wasn'texpecting it to be as big as it was.
And it's just this beautiful thing,just like lightly billowing in the water.
Remember the scientist I was with looks out the windows?
(13:05):
Yeah,that's the biggest one I've ever seen.
But we're not here for bio,so let's move on.
Right? Like,I've never heard of one being that big.
Like, I grew up near the coast,and usually they're just little ones
in a tide pool that you might messwith. Yeah, like.
No, it's crazy huge.
And they just didn't care.
It's just like, we're here for rocks.
Keep driving.
It's like,I guess we saw something interesting.
(13:26):
Yeah, but that's not the mission here.
That's not the mission.
That's not what you're there for.
And thinking about the future.
Is there anything in particularthat you're most excited to see yourself?
Just keep going.
To just keep going and keep doing it.
Every place you dive in is going to be
a little bit different,and each time is going to be different.
(13:46):
So it's always just like,what are you going to see this time?
What's going to happennow? You never know.
There's anticipation in that.
Just you could find something brand new,incredible, newly discovered on any dive.
Special thanks to Kaitlin Beardshear.
For The Discovery Files, I'm Nate Pottker.
You can watch video versions
of these conversations on our YouTubechannel by searching @NSFscience.
(14:10):
Please subscribe wherever you get podcastsand if you like our program, share
with a friendand consider leaving a review.
Discover how the U.S.
National Science Foundationis advancing research at nsf.gov.
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Therapy Gecko
An unlicensed lizard psychologist travels the universe talking to strangers about absolutely nothing. TO CALL THE GECKO: follow me on https://www.twitch.tv/lyleforever to get a notification for when I am taking calls. I am usually live Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays but lately a lot of other times too. I am a gecko.