Voyage Number
IN2024_V04
Voyage Dates
Voyage Location
Chief Scientist
Dr Bernadette Sloyan
Institution
CSIRO
Voyage livestream
Watch our livestream from RV Investigator's 27-day research voyage to study seafloor canyons in the EAC.
Voyage summary
Research voyage from Sydney to Brisbane to undertake an oceanographic, geophysical, and biological survey of seafloor canyons along the continental shelf off NSW.
On narrow continental shelves adjacent to intense boundary currents, such as the East Australian Current (EAC) along Australia’s east coast, the impact of open-ocean circulation on the shelf system is immediate. It drives significant movements of water, nutrients, heat and marine life at various scales. If we are to understand, better predict, mitigate, and successfully adapt to the changing oceans that surround Australia, we must better understand changes to the boundary current systems and their broader impacts on the physical, chemical, and biological environments, as well as infrastructure, along the Australian seaboard.
This research seeks to better understand the coastal-ocean exchange processes that are key controllers of coastal ocean water properties and are important to marine ecosystem functioning. Researchers will examine if cross-shelf flow is enhanced by seafloor canyons when compared with surrounding, non-canyon regions, as a result of the canyons providing a pathway to deliver cool, nutrient rich off-shore water onto the continental shelf. Globally, quantitative estimates of such processes are rare.
There is one other project on this voyage:
- Investigation of an unidentified shipwreck (Dr Brad Duncan, Heritage NSW): An investigation of an unidentified shipwreck off the NSW coast.
The voyage has 31 science participants from 11 institutions, including CSIRO, Parks Australia, University of NSW, University of Tasmania, University of Wollongong and Minderoo Foundation, as well as 20 ship crew from MMA Offshore.
The science party also includes two Indigenous Sea Country Rangers who represent part of the sea country of the study area: Gumbaynggirr and Yeagl Country.
COVID Protocols
To safeguard the health and well-being of participants, strict COVID protocols apply to all activities on this voyage. This includes PCR testing of all participants for COVID prior to boarding the vessel.
Voyage outcomes
Voyage outcomes will be published approximately 3-6 months after the completion of the voyage.