Mr. W. J. Stanley -3- - December 12, 1979 3) Ships' personnel having the ability to fix accurately positions at locations sampled in the lagoon. 4) Adequate equipment to lower and retrieve a bottom sediment collecting device and a qualified operator to handle the equipment. 5) A vessel to move personnel and considerable gear between islands at the atolls, to land this gear and people safely on shore, and to recover and relocate the same. 6) Ships' personnel that are responsive to the program's requirements. 7) Freezer facilities to store, for periods of time, perishable samples of sediment and biota. 8) A mobile laboratory in the field used to process specific samples. 9) Storage facilities for the various types of oceanographic equipment used on phases of this program. In addition, a vessel has been required for use at the atolls which can quickly adjust or modify its facilities to accomodate the requirements of several programs. This is a unique capability not often found on an oceanographic ship. The Liktanur has fulfilled all our program requirements and, in fact, is far superior for our purposes than the LCU used in years prior to 1978. I cannot provide words adaquate to praise all members of the crew coliectively and each individually. They have, as a group, been exceptionally helpful and cooperative during our operations; provided us assistance whenever possible and have always conducted themselves as truly professional seamen. In addition to operating the ship in a professional manner and insuring we were at designated stations, they went out of their way to do things for us which I considered to be tasks beyond their normal duties. For example, they assisted with much of the on board sampling; photographed underwater operations; operated the winch during the entire sediment coljection program; photographed the sediment samples; assisted with sampling on island; repaired gear and helped to repair gear when they could; assisted in planning for the day's or week's operation to minimize transit time between stations; helped collect underwater cable at Enewetak; secured all of our gear during long transits; helped to pack, unpack, and store gear on board; shipped samples back to us from Kwajalein; and performed a number of other tasks which made our operations on board much easier than anticipated. Food on board has been more than adequate and plentiful. Larry has performed miracles in the confines of the small kitchen and it was often necessary to prepare meals while the ship was underway in rough water between stations at the atolls. It is difficult enough to prepare 3 meals a day for 10-15 people and when the motion of the ship is included, the task is compounded.