NORTH ATLANTIC

6:00 a.m. — I awaken to a beautiful sunrise and calm seas. The weather forecast is good for the extended future — great news because there are critical dive days ahead.

The plan is to do a full-out rehearsal on the first dive. This will involve deploying the fiber-optic tether from the surface to the bottom and ensuring that the mini robotic subs are operational. Ideally, we will be able to record this rehearsal, which can be sent stateside via the satellite and serve as a back-up to the show on July 24 in case of bad weather or technical problems.

7:00 a.m. — The crew gathers for our first breakfast back on the Keldysh. It feels a bit like déjà vu — as though we were here yesterday, or perhaps a lifetime ago. The satellite dish is not functional because the direction we must sail to the site puts the dish directly behind the one remaining "bad zone" still blocked by the radar tower. It is decided to steer the ship in a zig-zag course all the way to the Titanic site so that we can keep the communications hot. This plan works well and the satellite appears to be holding the signal very well. This is a big relief after the problems encountered on the first leg.

8:00 a.m. — The dive crew gathers for a meeting in the MIR lab. The plan is laid out that we will arrive on-site at 8 a.m. tomorrow, lay transponders and prepare the MIRs, and dive first thing the following morning.

10:00 a.m. — Jim Cameron gathers the TV crew to the studio to start real planning for the show. This includes both main and back-up plans as well as detailed planning for what the show will actually look like. They spend the entire day looking at tape and deciding what edits still need to be made to get the material ready for our show. Seeing these tape packages makes the last year of work on this project start to take form and seem real. It is very exciting and I think that this show will be incredible.

7:00 p.m. — With only brief breaks for lunch, a mandatory evacuation (muster) drill and dinner, the work on the tapes and the formation of our show continues. Some of the crew has been sitting in the same chairs nearly the entire day, afraid to be out of position when their name is called. There is no telling how long it will go tonight, but it does not really matter. When you are on an expedition like this, it is better to be busy than idle, and working 18-plus-hour days does not seem to bother anyone.

Bob Sitrick is vice president of live production for Discovery.

More Leg 2 Expedition Logs: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 | Day 7 | Day 8 |

Also read the entries from Leg 1 of the expedition. |