Most people don’t want to come face-to-face with a great white. But scientists on Ocearch research expeditions are thrilled to spend 15 minutes with the behemoths every time they catch one, enough for up to 12 different tests. “We don’t have time to do two projects and then come back, when we could do all 12 at once,” says Ocearch founder Chris Fischer. The tests cover a wide swath of research, from parasite analysis to swimming behavior—the more information researchers collect, the better they can protect shark populations (almost all of the results are open source) and improve public safety. Once the animal is on the deck, scientists cover its eyes and run water into its mouth to calm it down. Then the countdown begins. So why 15 minutes? It’s long enough to do the work but get the shark back into the ocean, stat.