After I sailed on JOIDES Resolution for IODP Expedition 390 (South Atlantic Transect I, April-June 2022), I created a quilt collection to share the stories of living and working at sea. You can view the 19 quilts by clicking on the tag 390 quilt. This quilt also refers to the same ship, generated by scientists from the same expedition at a meeting described in this blog post, but has a very different story.

This quilt is titled Takk, JOIDES Resolution. “Takk” means “thank you” in Icelandic.

In August 2024, the International Ocean Discovery Program was scheduled to end. At that time, the scientific drilling vessel JOIDES Resolution concluded its participation across three international marine research collaborations – Ocean Drilling Program (ODP, 1983-2003), Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP, 2003-2013), and the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP, 2013-2024). 

In addition to the 194 expeditions and the >360,000 meters of core recovered during JR’s time at sea, numerous significant scientific discoveries have been made and will continue to be made from archived core material that advance our knowledge of Earth’s history, processes, and structure. These discoveries and more would not be possible without the dedication and tireless efforts of the technicians and crew that have worked aboard JOIDES Resolution. Without their time and expertise, these scientific advancements would remain mysteries in the deep sea. 

At the end of May 2024, a meeting of the IODP Expedition 390 & 393 onboard and onshore scientists, as well as students and mentors that are continuing investigations on recovered material, was held in Reykjavík, Iceland. Reflecting upon that moment in time, when JOIDES Resolution was about to set off on its final IODP expedition from Amsterdam, those gathered for the Post-Expedition 390/393 meeting took a moment to express appreciation to the ship and those that have worked to provide the material and measurements.

This quilt captures those thoughts in the form of thank-you notes, appearing as if they are on the inside of an envelope.

Below are the individual quilt squares generated during the South Atlantic Transect 2nd Post-Expedition Meeting in Iceland. The squares are presented in this slideshow in the order they appear on the quilt, starting with the upper-left envelope and moving across the top row, then down on the left and across, through to the last row on the quilt.

The blank white squares actually travelled with me on the South Atlantic Transect (EXP 390) and were extras from the squares written on to make the Team Effort quilt.

The envelope fabric is a Da Gama Textile called Three Cats Shweshwe, manufactured in South Africa. Both Expeditions 390 and 393 departed from and returned to Cape Town, South Africa.  The use of this fabric was intentional as a connection back to where JR was in port before, after, and in-between these expeditions.

The yarn stitched between the fabrics is Lopi Léttlopi, an Icelandic wool yarn. The post-expedition meeting for 390 and 393 was held in Reykjavík, Iceland, so this yarn is a nod to where the scientists came together to share their current scientific results. The colors of the yarn represent the ocean (blue), sediment layer (yellow), and basaltic crust (dark gray) – all areas through which JR extends its drilling operations.

Contributors to the quilt include Masataka Aizawa, Chiara Borrelli, Roz Coggon, Laura Guertin, Michelle Harris, Lydia Hayes-Guastella, Gilbert Hong, Michael Kaplan, Marcin Latas, Yuki Morono, Julia Reece, Brandi Kiel Reese, Claire Routledge, Jeffrey Ryan, Patty Standring, Mako Takada, Mary Thompson, Yi Wang, Trevor Williams, Kiho Yang. The quilt square authors are from Germany, Japan, Republic of Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States. This group of students, mentors, and scientists represents a subset of the onboard and onshore researchers that are contributing to our body of knowledge along the South Atlantic Transect.

The title of the quilt is a nod to the location of the Post-Expedition Meeting for the 390/393 scientists. “Takk” is the Icelandic word for thank you.