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The Captain's Log |
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April 29 - Whales still singing... We can still hear whales singing in the distance here. We want to thank everyone who made this season possible for our project - those of you who volunteered at events, helped paint and repair the buoy, those of you who donated money. As we wish aloha to the whales on their departure to northern waters, we are already planning for next season. We plan website improvements, more class room interactions, a webcam to view the buoy and whales. We also plan to be in the water earlier next season. It's a lot of work, but it is a labor of love by a group of people who care about the oceans and want to do something to raise awareness about their importance. Thank you for supporting us! April 22, 2008 - Earth Day 2008 If You Want to Do One Thing on Earth Day:
April 18, 2008 - Whale songs are live again - the buoy is working Please enjoy live whale songs from our system. Mahalo to Robert Bonifacio for assisting in the repair mission. We happy to be live again for Earth Day 2008 on April 22nd. Whalesong will be at Baldwin Beach on Maui. Please come see us when you are on the island. Our live whale songs will be part of the Earth Day presentation of the Sirius Institute in Hilo. Learn more about Earth Day April 16, 2008 - International Noise Awareness Day
Noise is becoming more and more a health strain for humans - for the oceans noise is becoming a certain danger. Increasing noise pollution is affecting the navigational abilities of the whales. There are three main sound sources that life in the ocean has to deal with: Boat and shipping traffic: studies of Dr. Marsha Green show that whales behave different at a noise level of about 120 db - lots of small vessels cruising around Maui reach this noise level. Whales react by swimming 2 to 3 times faster than usual to avoid the noise. Supertankers for example can reach up to 190 db (this is 3.200 times louder than 120 db!) and can be heard under water one day before they actually get there. Air guns: used by the industry for oil and gas exploration. In times of dwindling resources the use of these air guns increased dramatically. They detect the sea bottom with the use of 250 db loud sound blasts which are sent down every 5 seconds - for hours! Hydrophones are picking up the echo, providing the industry with the information whether oil or gas would be available under the surface. 250 db (this is 3.2 million times louder than 120 db) marks the loudest noise ever produced by humans apart from dynamite. Sonar: low and mid frequency active sonar systems are able to detect quiet vessels and therefore it produces extremely loud sound waves (up to 235 db). Imagine standing in a distance of about 20 feet from a Saturn V rocket taking off... According to the Navy this noise can be heard in an area of 2,4 million square miles - that means a sonar testing can be heard within the entire North Pacific. The problem is that tests are being held in areas where whales are located. For comparison only: as little as 85 db it is dangerous for the human ear! Contrary to the whales, humans can close their windows or just put on ear plugs to protect themselves against the noise. They are unprotected against underwater noise pollution and the loss of their sense of hearing often means death as they lose the ability to navigate. Therefore it is not astonishing that the significant increase of whale strandings are being linked to sonar tests.
April 7, 2008 - Status report and more on climate change We are still playing recorded whale songs until the hydrophone can be repaired, and we hope that can be soon. CNN/Time is running a story today on the health effects of climate change. The World Health Organization, American Public Health Association, and others are working to create awareness of the public health implications. It's not just rising ocean levels, melting ice caps, warmer temperatures. Read more if you are interested. April 4, 2008 - Hydrophone status - Oceans We had a major power outage with high winds yesterday. A trip to repair the buoy is being delayed until a window emerges for a team and good weather combined to make the trip out there. We hope to have live whale songs playing again soon. Katie Grove-Velasques sent this link to the UN Oceans Atlas project. It has great information on ocean ecology. The organization is elsewhere pointing out the problems of "desertification" of certain parts of the ocean due to acidification from carbon dioxide. March 30, 2008 - More on Navy Sonar An article in today's Navy Times describes the tension between the Navy, the courts and environmental groups arguing for protection of the 26 some species of marine mammals in Hawai'i's waters. Dan reports from Maui: "I can't help thinking there has to be a solution that ensures safety of our fleet and nation, while protecting the ocean environment. Technology, politics, diplomacy, arms control agreements can all play a part. Any bright ideas out there? Please comment. Aloha, Dan" March 30, 2008 - We Can Solve It! Something positive on a Sunday morning...
Maybe you got the same email from Al Gore, but if you didn't he's created an organization called We Can Solve It to address global warming. The effects of global warming on whales and the oceans in general are debatable, but most observers agree it is going to make the world look very different if we don't do something. Doing something seems important anyway because we are eventually going to run out of oil. So we might as well do something now rather than later. Here's a link to Al Gore's website where you can sign a petition and receive more information. The whale are still singing energetically this Maui morning. Occasionally we are losing the feed as we exceed our maximum number of listeners. We are looking into adding streams. Much aloha to everyone out there who is listening and reading this. Take good care. March 25, 2008 - Inspired... and movie 'Message in the Waves' We are inspired by the support and interest shown to our project in these recent weeks. The benefit concert was a success and there have been more donations. Our basic operations cost about $10,000 per year, and we are well on the way to getting there. This year we hope to make us a more effective organization by raising much more so we can do a lot of things we have been dreaming about...video interviews, more documentation of cultural ties to the whales and oceans, curriculum materials etc. We have been invited to participate in the Ritz Carlton Environmental Program, which is now directed by Iokepa Naeole. Iokepa is an inspiring man of the ocean who, among other things, works with children on educational projects related to the oceans and the environment.
See Iokepa on this trailer for the movie Message in the Waves, produced by BBC. We highly recommend this movie. As a result of the movie, many cities in England are banning plastic bags. Plastics are killing a lot of marine life. See the movie, please. It addresses the problems in the oceans, but it is very inspiring at the same time. Beautiful cinematography. March 21, 2008 - The Whalesong Project at 'Celebration of the Arts' Happy Easter to all our friends and listeners! The Whalesong Project team is humbled and honored to be invited - once again - to one of the most prestigious festivals on the Island. 'Ka Mana Leo' which means 'Power of the Voice', is the theme for the 16th annual 'Celebration of the Arts' festival at The Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua this weekend. We will provide the unique opportunity to listen 'live' to our most anticipated return guests, the humpback whales. March 19, 2008 - Whalesong Benefit concert featured in The Honolulu Advertiser
A benefit concert celebrating The Whalesong Project, a Web site where people can listen to whales singing off the Honua'ula Coast of Maui, will be held at Studio Maui at 8 p.m. March 19. Read the full story here.
March 17, 2008 - Humpback calves indeed produce 'vocalizations' Dan Sythe, The Whalesong Project U.S.A. Executive Director reports from Maui: "Whales are mysterious creatures, and I have learned to be humble and cautious when making any statements or speculations about their behaviors. Seven years ago I was strongly criticized by a whale research scientist for stating (to a local newspaper) that some of the sounds we hear on our hydrophone are mother-calf communications. It seemed obvious to me for some reason, and we have also observed these communications while kayaking off the coast here with a hydrophone. Research by the Cetos Research Organization has now "confirmed evidence that humpback whale calves produce sounds." Whew! I appear to have been vindicated. They also confirm there are vocal communications between mothers and calves, and that both male and female calves produce vocalizations. Read more in the Honolulu Advertiser article." March 16, 2008 - System working - New U.N. warning on climate The hydrophone system is working well this Sunday morning on Maui. Reports say that whale numbers are thinning, and we are noticing fewer whales singing. This appears to be normal for this time in the season. A story on the CNN website this morning says the world's glaciers are melting more rapidly than predicted. "There are many canaries emerging in the climate change coal mine, " United Nation's Environment Program executive director, Achim Steiner, is quoted as saying. "The glaciers are perhaps among those making the most noise and it is absolutely essential that everyone sits up and takes notice." Read the full story. March 15, 2008 - Benefit concert for The Whalesong Project - March 19! David Rothenberg, author of Why Birds Sing... also a great musician himself... has just completed another book: The Thousand Mile Song - Whale Music in a Sea of Sound. David will be performing a benefit concert for The Whalesong Project on March 19 at The Studio Maui, 8:00 pm. All proceeds will help us to maintain Hokumoanalani and other vital operations. We are a volunteer organization, pay no rent or salaries, so help is appreciated in keeping this relatively expensive operation alive. Keaolani will open for David with Hawaiian Music and Hula, and the event will end with a "dance jam" to live whale songs accompanied by David and surprise human guest musicians. Please have a look - spread the word - bring as many friends as you can... and enjoy! March 14, 2008 - Navy Sonar Use - Important Information There will be a public hearing on proposed sonar maneuvers in Hawai'i waters on Maui this Friday, 5-9 pm at Maui Waena Intermediate School. The Hawai'i Ocean Noise Coalition with Dr. Marsha Green will hold a public rally at Queen Ka'ahumanu Center at 3:30 pm on the same day. Written testimony to the Navy can be submitted by email at deis_hrc@govsupport.us. More on the Navy side of the story. March 9, 2008 - The system is working!!! Everything is working well again after a trip to the shore station to deal with a software issue. Thanks to Robert Bonifacio for making the trip with Dan and adding his technical skills to our team. Please enjoy the LIVE whale songs, and remember to check out our Benefit Concert on March 19. The project is run by volunteers who put in their own time and money, but the project is expensive and we have great plans that requires resources. You can support the project by attending and inviting your friends to the Concert. It will be an enriching evening and Dan look forward to meeting more of our listeners there. March 9, 2008 - Listening to Whalesong from cell phones or PDA's If you want to listen to the Whalesongs while on the road - just go to: www.live365.com/mobile March 8, 2008 - Kent and Jewel leaving Maui... At the airport on their way to Ashland Oregon, Kent and Jewel have been a huge part of the Whalesong Project for seven years. They will be sorely missed on Maui, but will continue to be part of the project from their new Oregon base. Mahalo nui for everything! March 7, 2008 -Temporary Technical Problem We have lost the live feed from Honua'ula to our server in California. Hokumoanalani, our buoy off the coast, appears to be working fine. Attempts to fix the problem remotely have not worked. Please enjoy the songs of whales recorded earlier this season while we troubleshoot and repair the problem. March 7, 2008 - Whalesong Project Benefit Blog We have set up a Blog for our much anticipated Whalesong Benefit Concert with David Rothenberg. David will be perfoming a benefit concert for The Whalesong Project on March 19 at The Studio Maui, 8:00 pm. All proceeds will help us to maintain Hokumoanalani and other vital operations. Please have a look - spread the word - bring as many friends as you can... and enjoy! March 5, 2008 - System Upgrade From our technical outpost on the coast of Honuaola: We just installed a better graphics equalizer here at our shoreline base. We hope this will enhance your listening experience by reducing the popping sounds made by shrimp who live near Hokumoanalani. One of our Cultural Advisors and longtime Whalesong Project supporters, Nahi Guzman, has dropped by to check on the project. Mahalo nui, e Nahi, for all of your help and friendship throughout the lifetime of this project.... eight years already March 3, 2008 - The system is working well again A trip to Honuaula has paid off in a successful repair of the hydrophone system. Everything is working well, and the whale songs you are hearing are indeed live. Fascinating songs this Monday afternoon... Dan reports straight from Maui: "On my drive over I listened for the first time to David Rothenberg's CD and was deeply moved by the songs he collected and compiled, and by the delicate weaving of his instruments with the whale songs. Visit his website for the project here. We are looking forward to having David back on Maui very soon, and to the concert/sharing at Studio Maui on March 19. David will also be with Whalesong at the Ritz Carlton Hotel for Celebration of the Arts on Easter Weekend. Please come visit us there as we share whale songs, live and recorded, and talk story with the community." March 2, 2008 - Back to recorded songs during system repair We are sorry to report the system is currently down. Dan will do a site visit tomorrow and hope to have the live whale songs back on the air at that time. We are now playing a recording made off of Lahaina earlier this season by Kent. Regarding the March 19 benefit concert for The Whalesong Project at Studio Maui: we just got confirmation today from Amara Pagano that she will lead a Five Rythms dance session to our live whale songs with David Rothenberg and other "live" human musicians, after David's presentation. Amara is a very popular and beloved Five Rythms dance teacher here on Maui, and in Olympia, Washington. Thank you, Amara!!! This should be an exciting evening! March 1, 2008 - Benefit concert for The Whalesong Project Hokumoanalani, our buoy off the coast of Honuaula, is working well these days. We are now turning our attention to an important event on Maui - for those of you who love the songs of the whales, and seek a deeper understanding of their world. David Rothenberg, author of Why Birds Sing... also a great musician himself... has just completed another book: The Thousand Mile Song - Whale Music in a Sea of Sound. David will be perfoming a benefit concert for The Whalesong Project on March 19 at The Studio Maui, 8:00 pm. All proceeds will help us to maintain Hokumoanalani and other vital operations. We are a volunteer organization, pay no rent or salaries, so help is appreciated in keeping this relatively expensive operation alive. Thank you, David! Keaolani will open for David with Hawaiian Music and Hula, and the event will end with a "dance jam" to live whale songs accompanied by David and surprise human guest musicians. I hope to see many of you there! Thanks for listening! February 25, 2008 - NEW: The Captain's Log! We are happy to announce 'The Captain's Log' - a blog run by our Founder and Executive Director Dan Sythe! Please enjoy the updates straight from 'paradise'... February 24, 2008 - The sounds of whales and rain... We installed a reconditioned receiver at the dish antenna in Kihei yesterday. Performance has been better than ever these past 30 hours or so. The songs last night were described by listener Kate Holt in California as 'a beautifully woven tapestry of sound'. Tonight the sound of a fairly heavy rainfall on the ocean can be heard along with the whale vocalizations. February 23, 2008 - We are LIVE again!!! The system is running again. Dan will go back to Kihei tomorrow to do some fine tuning. Ocean conditions were good for a successful repair mission just in time to listen to this season's whale songs on the beach at sunset. A lot of children noticed what we were doing and a large crowd gathered to listen in. We had a gathering there for Kent and Jewel. They will be deeply missed here, but they plan to continue being part of the project from Oregon. Their friendship and participation in The Whalesong Project was key to much of our success in keeping the system working for the past seven years... and they have brought tremendous love and joy and great energy to the project. Words can't express our gratitude. Thank you, Kent and Jewel. February 22, 2008 - New photos - Whale Day - Hokumoanalani Whalesong participated in the Eco Alley section of the annual Whale Day Festivities in Kihei last Saturday. Many children visited our presentation and were fascinated by this year's enchanting whale songs. See photos of the event here. Whalesong's Secretary/Treasurer - Gail Nickerson - flew in from California to participate in our Whale Day activities. Thanks to Gail, Whalesong meets all of the IRS 501 C3 nonprofit organization requirements, and our minutes and budget are always up to date. Many thanks to you, Gail. Dan reports from Maui: "I apologize for not sending an update sooner. February 15, 2008 - We are LIVE!!! The system is up and running - we are broadcasting the sounds of the Hawai'ian humpback whales LIVE right now! So everything you hear is in real time. Dan Sythe, The Whalesong Project U.S.A. Executive Director reports - tired but happy... "Aloha, I am very tired....but the system is working. We are using a macbook for the server, which we expect to be more stable. Gail and her husband Richard helped me get the computer going this afternoon. Richard is proficient in webcasting software. Rich Shipley helped me set up some new webcasting software by phone from California. We need to thank them all. I think it is sounding good, and the whales are sure singing tonight. Thanks to everyone for the patience. Kent took four trips to the ocean working under challenging conditions with me to get the electronics working. Mahalo Kent. Your presence will endure here in the care you have put into Hokumoanalani's electronic processing network.....and hardware design. Thanks Ed for your analysis which I hope to get time to process with you soon. Thanks to all for board participation." George Kahumoku jr., board member of The Whalesong Project, won a Grammy Award for the third straight year! We are all amazed and congratulate George for his fantastic success!
Recording artists:
February 13, 2008 - Update on Hokumoanalani & Whale Day After much work, replacing almost the entire system, the hydrophone buoy is now operational again. Sorry for the delay. We had some very confusing equipment failures where things worked great in a test then malfunctioned at sea. Of course the waves were big and the wind came up, making further testing nearly impossible. So after taking part of it back to the workshop and testing again, making some new cables, wiring a spare transmitter etc., we went out this morning. Still more trouble, but calm water allowed us to finish it. It sounds good, and just in time for the Whale Day celebration on the 16th. We’ll have a booth there at Kalama Park in Kihei, Maui. See you there! February 6, 2008 - Whalesong mugs
We are very happy to announce the collaboration with Mark Fischer of AguaSonic. Wonderful mugs are the outcome of the genuine AGUASONIC® designs using patterns made from the songs of a Hawaiian humpback whale. Kent Noonan, sound engineer of The Whalesong Project, made the recordings in his kayak off of Maui. All proceeds of Mark Fischer's work on our songs go directly to The Whalesong Project. Please have a look here for all the different designs: February 4, 2008 - Launch of our buoy Hokumoanalani We had a break in the weather, got a truck and crew and got the buoy back in position with restored mooring.
Shelly, Terry, Sampong, Kate She's looking good out there and we have a good radio link, but unfortunately there seems to be a problem in the audio/hydrophone section. We can talk to her but we can't hear the whales yet. We need to go back out there soon and ask you for some more patience... It's worth waiting for!
Kent, Kate, Dan communicating with Hokumoanalani from shore January 29, 2008 - Visit our new archive! Please have a look at our new archive which we totally reworked - you will find our recordings of previous seasons as well as humpback's feeding sounds off of Alaska! We also added a music archive, including our Grammy Award Winner George Kahumoku jr. and others. There is even more - please find out yourself here! January 25, 2008 - Progress on our buoy Hokumoanalani The good news is that Hokumoanalani is all back together again and the batteries are charging in the sunlight in Dan's backyard. You can see Kent putting the final touches on her electronics panel When the batteries are fully charged, probably by tomorrow, we need to do a final noise test to make sure the charge controller switching power supply doesn't cause any problems to the audio quality. Dan will be testing the new base computer (an Apple laptop) and receiver this weekend.
Kent and Dan both have very full workloads right now, but we expect to get her in within the next two weeks. Please be patient with us... January 4, 2008 - Message from Dan Sythe, Chief Executive of Whalesong Aloha and greetings from Maui! We Whalesong People are once again doing the various jobs that need to happen before we can bring you this year's live whale songs from Hawai'i. We appreciate your patience. The whales have arrived, and the songs that are streaming from our site were recorded just a few days ago by our Sound Engineer Kent Noonan.
January 3, 2008 - New humpback song playing Kent, our Sound Engineer was at Olowalu at the end of December and went out with a kayak trying to get a great stereo recording of the new humpback whale song. He was successful and we are now playing this song! Read what Kent reports: 'There is a time when a baby whale is breaching over and over, then mother goes all the way out of the water. About 1 km away. The whale breach can be heard in this recording at 6:22. I used a program to remove clicks from shrimp, at least reduce them, and boost the sound levels.' Please enjoy until we are broadcasting live. December 25, 2007 - Happy Holiday Season! We wish you a MERRY CHRISTMAS and a HAPPY NEW YEAR! December 22, 2007 - Japan agreed not to kill humpback whales! The international pressure was obviously too high - in a surprising twist Japan announced to resign from the plan to hunt 50 humpback whales in Antartica this winter. It would have been the first time in 44 years that the endangered humpback whale would have been killed for so called 'scientific reasons'. Japan's hunger for whales is still high though - 935 minke whales and up to 50 finback whales are still on the quota. Japan is taking use of a loophole, declaring their whaling as 'research'. It's a senseless hunt! It is much more important to learn about their social behaviour as well as their migration routes which could only be learned at living whales... December 17, 2007 - Rainbow Whale Project 2007! You are invited to join us for a day in the sun at Charlie Young / Kamaole I beach park in Kihei next Sunday, December 23rd. This is the fourth annual Rainbow Whale project and once again young and old will share stories, make a life size whale sand sculpture, have lunch, and this year a special treat: Kamisibai (Paper-Theater, or God Play). Bring your sun screen, water, and lunch (or get some across the street) and join us! Shovels, buckets and sand sculpting tools will be helpful. The recent storm has moved a lot of sand, so we will meet where the sand is. At the Charlie Young Beach entrance (one block north from Kamaole I), take the walkway to the left past the shower. This leads to a stairway at a wide spot on the beach. Most of the beach is now gone except here. There will not be as much shade as we want, so an umbrella would be a good idea. Sponsors Where - When -What You can't make it but want to help making this possible? No problem - please use the paypal button for your donation. November 19, 2007 - Japan whaling fleet left port yesterday
Japan's whaling fleet left port for the South Pacific with orders to kill up to 1000 whales. For the first time in 44 years they will also hunt 50 humpbacks — though the whales are under international protection since a 1963 moratorium of the International Whaling Commission. Japan is taking use of a loophole, declaring their whaling as 'research'. It's a senseless hunt! It is much more important to learn about their social behaviour as well as their migration routes which could only be learned at living whales... October 10, 2007 - The whales are back! First sighting off Lanai The first humpback whale of the season was spotted off Shipwreck beach of Lanai yesterday! So they are one day earlier than last season when the first whale was seen off the coast of Maui. Dan, founder of 'The Whalesong Project' reports from Maui: 'Wow! They are back. The buoy is at the Whalesong office now and needs cleaning and painting. She's basically in pretty good shape. We are working hard to get her back in the water. The electronics don't look too bad despite damage to the housing last season.' We are all very excited to see the whale season shaping up and hope to be live on air when the singing begins in December.... |
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