Marc Willis
Marine Technician Superintendent, OSU-COAS
Technical team leader for the SeaSoar operation, and also responsible for deployment, recovery and towing of the HTI bioacoustics sonar.

Q:  How often do you go on cruises and for how long?

A:  My "normal" job is manager of the Marine Technician Group on R/V WECOMA, operated by OSU. In the course of my job, I usually go to sea on 6-8 cruises per year. Cruises on WECOMA generally are from 1 week to 1 month in duration. Our group also provides technical support for SeaSoar on other ships, like we are doing for GLOBEC this summer. That can add one or two cruises per year to our schedule. In a typical year, I spend between 90 and 120 days at sea. My longest cruise was a 7-week cruise from San Diego to the central Pacific and back. Following this GLOBEC cruise, I will be heading to Honolulu to meet WECOMA for a 1-month cruise in the Hawaiian Islands.