Luther professor returns from his third deep-sea excursion

(File photo)

Luther College's new classics professor, Dan Davis, doesn't do your typically type of research.  His archaeological research has been done in deep water in the Mediterranean regions, particularly the Black Sea. 

Now Davis has returned from his third deep-sea excursion in as many years.

After sailing with National Geographic for two months during the summer of 2012, Davis set out to demonstrate artifacts can be collected for a fraction of that cost of the National Geographic excursion.

Davis and 2013 Luther graduate Daniel Faas traveled to the South Aegean Sea in August aboard the sail-training ship "Bodrum," a modest 120-foot, two-masted sailing/school ship. Using an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle, they surveyed the seabed of the southeast Aegean Sea near Bodrum, Turkey, for both historic shipwrecks and interesting geological features.

The survey was conducted for about 15 to 20 percent of the cost of a large vessel excursion and gathered much of the same type of information.
The team also found success in locating two new ancient shipwrecks in addition to the 26 that had been found in previous sessions in the same area.

"The biggest differences were in the pace of the data processing and the amount of down time for the team." said Davis   "For this low-budget survey, we could launch the AUV first thing in the morning, move near shore, anchor, and process data from the previous evening, then go for a swim and relax in the cool, crystal blue waters of the Aegean Sea."

For his two-week trip in August, Davis served as chief archaeologist, responsible for identifying shipwrecks, researching their origin, date and cargo based on archaeological evidence.