Abundant Life Found on Seamounts Off Chile’s Coast
An international group of scientists, led by Dr. Javier Sellanes of the Universidad Católica del Norte, may have discovered more than 100 new species living on seamounts off the coast of Chile. The recent Schmidt Ocean Institute expedition resulted in finding deep-sea corals, glass sponges, sea urchins, amphipods, squat lobsters, and other species likely new to science.The team explored seamounts along the Nazca and Salas y Gómez Ridge, both inside and outside Chile’s jurisdiction, to collect data that could support the designation of an international high-seas marine protected area.
RRS Sir David Attenborough Begins Research Mission in the Southern Ocean
Scientists aboard Britain's high-tech polar research vessel RRS Sir David Attenborough are headed to the Weddell Sea to investigate how carbon dioxide moves and transforms in the Southern Ocean.The ship departed Tuesday from Punta Arenas, Chile for the 30-day scientific expedition.As the carbon in the seawater rises to the surface near Antarctica, it interacts with the atmosphere, ice, and microscopic plants and animals, called phytoplankton and zooplankton, near the ocean surface, before descending to the ocean depths. By understanding more about this process, the researchers hope to improve
UN to Start Taking Deep-sea Mining Applications This July
has a deal to supply metals to Glencore Plc, is one of the most prominent voices advocating for the practice. Its executives have repeatedly said they believe deep-sea mining would have less impact than traditional mining for battery metals on land.China is a leader in deep-sea mining exploration, but Chile, France, Palau and Fiji, among other nations, have called for a global moratorium on the practice, citing environmental concerns and a lack of sufficient scientific data.(Reuters - Reporting by Clara Denina and Ernest Scheyder; Editing by Sandra Maler
CSIRO Aims to Create a 'Weather Service' for Water Quality
of Environment and Society; Curtin University; La Trobe University (Cisco-LTU Centre for AI and Internet of Things); University of Queensland (Reef Catchments Science Partnership, Joint Remote Sensing Research Program and Remote Sensing Research Centre); and international collaborators including CSIRO Chile; Hanoi University of Mining and Geology; Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus; University of California, Davis; University of California, Merced; Vietnam’s National Center for Water Resources and Investigation
West Africa’s Oceans at Risk Because of a Lack of Monitoring
the changes, variations and interactions of the ocean in the region. They must also be supported by regional data.Without this information, results of tests are incomplete at best and misleading at worst. They are thus unsuitable for guiding management, policy, or donor decisions.SolutionsScientists from Chile have shown how the rigorous monitoring of climate change, and assessing its impacts on local shellfish species, can inform adaptation efforts. Chile borders the Humboldt Current System, an Eastern boundary upwelling ecosystem that extends along the west coast of South America. They have discovered
Lander Lab #4: Underwater Releases
clever magnetic release uses two disks with embedded sets of neodymium magnets, arranged N-S-N-S. The concentric plates attract in one position, then one rotates 90° to repel the other. The design was successfully implemented by Victor Villagrán, University of Concepción, Chile.Recall the Trieste used iron shot and an electromagnet for a release. That design takes continuous power, but perhaps the iron core of the electromagnet will attract a neodymium magnet until the moment it is energized. Be fun to try.An electromechanical solenoid is a form of magnetic
Chile Uses High-tech Buoys to Protect Migrating Whales
A smart buoy that can "hear" the ocean and monitor climate change is part of a new effort to help endangered whales avoid ship collisions on their journey from Antarctica to the equator.The buoy was installed in the Gulf of Corcovado, some 1,100 kilometers (684 miles) south of Chile's capital, in early October and is the first of many planned by the Blue Boat Initiative, a project designed to protect whales and monitor marine ecosystems.The area is teeming with marine life and has a large number of blue whales as well as Sei and Southern right whales during the summer season in the
As Nations Pledge to Create Ocean Preserves, How Do Those Promises Add Up?
by the U.S. State Department. (More recent meetings were canceled during the COVID-19 pandemic.)A number of countries have made ambitious commitments. At the Our Ocean Conferences from 2014 through 2019, 62 countries pledged to protect areas of their ocean. Fourteen nations, including the Seychelles and Chile, committed to protect more than 38,000 square miles (100,000 square kilometers) within their waters.Unfortunately, even if all of these commitments are fully implemented, they will protect only 4% of the world’s ocean. Adding in all other protected areas and outstanding commitments made in
FerryBox Helps Track Climate Change Effects
Austral University of Chile team deploys -4H-JENA engineering’s multi-sensor water sampling and analysis solution for long-term continuous monitoring aboard the Yaghan ferrySea water sensor and measuring system manufacturer -4H-JENA engineering has just completed the installation of a sophisticated sea water monitoring system aboard the Yaghan ferry, which operates on a 587 km route between Puerto Williams and Punta Arenas in the south of Chile.A first of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, the installed ‘FerryBox’ has been configured to measure diverse parameters that will enable a