The Phoenix Islands Protected Area (PIPA) is the largest and deepest UNESCO World Heritage Site on Earth. Approximately the size of California, PIPA was the first Marine Protected Area (MPA) of its kind. In October, Dr. Erik Cordes (Temple University) and his team will explore never seen before seamounts and atolls within PIPA with R/V Falkor and ROV SuBastian.
In an innovative whole-reef approach, scientists will sail on Falkor this August and September for a 29-day expedition to reconstruct past sea levels in the Pacific. Falkor will sail along the central Hawaiian Islands and Line Islands in a two-part expedition using both an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) and Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) SuBastian.
The very deepest reaches of the sea are one of the planet’s last true frontiers. In November, RV Falkor sailed to the Mariana Trench with a group of biologists and geologists to conduct a new study of one of the deepest places in the world.
In search of an asteroid that ended the Cretaceous Period.
Using a combination of bathymetric mapping and magnetic readings, scientists hope to explain how the world’s largest volcano was built.
The focus was on inspiring student participants to move toward careers in ocean science, and for those already headed that direction, to provide much needed training for future expeditions.
The Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument mapping project will be spread over two legs to identify likely sites of deep-sea coral beds, manganese crust zones, and other key features.
The Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument mapping project will be spread over two legs to identify likely sites of deep-sea coral beds, manganese crust zones, and other key features.
AUV Sentry will be used at Hawaii’s underwater volcano, Loihi Seamount, whose base remains largely unexplored. The team will survey and sample the seamount to better understand the dispersion of hydrothermal fluids from Loihi to the Pacific Ocean.
The Ontong Java Plateau is a massive submerged seafloor platform north of the Solomon Islands. During this expedition researchers produced high-resolution seafloor maps that will provide clues to explain its mysterious formation, as well as improve tsunami predictions for people living on Ontong Java’s atolls.
