The success or failure of science at sea depends on many factors, including the suitability of the vessel as a research platform and the support of the scientist's shipmates. This paper touches on a few of the classic examples of unsuitable ships provided for scientists and explorers, such as Wyville Thomson and Carpenter in the Lightning in 1868 and the relatively minor shortcomings of Scott's Discovery. But it concentrates on some of the personality clashes on research or exploration voyages ranging from Edmund Halley's experience of an insubordinate mate in the Paramore in 1698, to Nicolas Baudin's appalling relations with almost all of his companions in the Géographe and Naturaliste in 1800–1803. Since human nature does not change it is suggested that seagoing scientists should pay at least as much attention to the personalities of their prospective shipmates as to the characteristics of the ships in which they expect to sail.
Design of a low cost underwater robotic research platform
