Collecting sediment cores from the seafloor

Core collection with the Mini Multicorer (Mini Muc) viewed from a wide-angle camera attached to the system’s frame. The weight of the Mini-Muc drives four core barrels (only three are visible) into the sediment. After pausing several seconds to ensure that the core barrels have settled completely into the seabed, the winch operator begins pulling up the unit. The upward pull triggers caps to snap closed on the tops of the core tubes and mechanical arms to swing down and cap off the bottoms. Live video feed is vital to choosing sediment sites suitable for coring and ensuring that the Mini Muc functions properly.