Key points
- The Hydrobox is the world’s first portable hydrochemistry laboratory, creating new opportunities for essential oceanographic research.
- It can be deployed on ships and shore to accurately measure key ocean variables, such as dissolved oxygen and nutrients, helping us monitor ocean health and detect climate change impacts.
- Supported by two CSIRO hydrochemists, the Hydrobox is being deployed on the Australian icebreaker RSV Nuyina to deliver highly accurate ocean analysis data during the vessel's 60-day voyage to Antarctica.
Imagine a world where every ship could become a science ship to help monitor and care for the ocean.
Hydrobox has entered the chat.
A science lab in a box
The Hydrobox is a portable, containerised hydrochemistry laboratory that supports ship- and shore-based ocean research. This unique, custom-built facility delivers accurate analysis of ocean salinity, dissolved oxygen and dissolved nutrients – collectively known as Essential Ocean Variables (EOVs) – to high analytical standards.
These parameters are of fundamental importance to chemical, physical and biological oceanographic research. Measurement of EOVs enables us to deliver better ocean forecasts and early warnings, climate modelling and a holistic assessment of ocean health.
Importantly, the portable Hydrobox significantly increases our capacity to accurately measure these EOVs in the waters around Australia, Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. Its ability to be deployed on ships of opportunity – volunteer commercial and research vessels – makes this possible.
The Hydrobox also opens new opportunities for international collaboration and improved training of Australian students in sea-going oceanography.
Sailing into the future of ocean research
Maddy Lahm was involved in the build and development of Hydrobox and said it was an amazing project to work on.
“The Hydrobox is a miniature reproduction of our hydrochemistry labs onboard RV Investigator and in our shore labs in Hobart and Perth,” Maddy said.
“It can be mobilised on different ships and all instruments are contained in the ‘box’ so it’s easier than moving instruments separately and setting them up in new labs.”
The Hydrobox was created through our partnership with the University of Tasmania and took approximately a year to build. It was commissioned in early 2023 and will shortly take its first trip to Antarctica.
The facility delivers accurate and precise EOV measurements in marine, coastal and estuarine waters, following world-best practices and using state-of-the-art instrumentation. In summary, it provides an invaluable tool for helping monitor ocean changes and health.
Ultimately, Maddy said the Hydrobox will enhance our ability to detect the impacts of climate change on physical, chemical and biological ocean processes.
“The development of technology like this, and our expertise in developing and deploying it, really solidifies Australia's world-leading status in hydrochemistry,” Maddy said.
The Hydrobox was first put through its paces during commissioning on the International Nutrient Intercomparison Voyage (INIV) on our research vessel (RV) Investigator in June 2023 and again on another of our research voyages in 2024.
Its maiden voyage at full capacity will take place on the Australian Antarctic Division research and supply vessel (RSV) Nuyina during the Denman Marine Voyage. This voyage departs from Tasmania this week and is RSV Nuyina’s first dedicated marine science voyage, putting many of the ship’s science systems to the test for the first time, including the Hydrobox.
Maddy said two CSIRO experts have joined the voyage to provide specialist hydrochemistry support onboard RSV Nuyina.
“The voyage is also being used as an opportunity to train our next generation of marine scientists. Our hydrochemists will be joined by two students from Australian universities, who will receive unique at-sea training,” Maddy said.
Team members will work 12-hour shifts while at sea to deliver around-the-clock, high-accuracy ocean analysis for the team onboard.
Building the box: a collaborative effort
The Hydrobox project has been a truly collaborative undertaking. It was made possible through a grant obtained by the University of Tasmania from the Australian Research Council, and involved the support and collaboration of CSIRO, the University of Tasmania’s Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies and Library and Cultural Collections, Vibrance Projects, Australian Antarctic Division, Australian National University, and the National Indigenous Australians Agency Indigenous Student Success Program.
An additional aspect of the project has been engagement with the public through artwork commissioned for the container’s exterior. Tasmanian Aboriginal artist and Truwulway woman Bianca Templar, with support from Bec Adamczewski from Nipaluna/Hobart, painted the Hydrobox with a unique design.
Bianca used motifs central to her culture, including a bark canoe, kelp forests and the mutton bird (yula), to highlight Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander seafaring and connection to Sea Country in Lutruwita/Tasmania. The artwork will illustrate this connection as the Hydrobox travels the high seas and waterways around Australia.
Maddy said the team hopes this won’t be a one-off build.
“We’d love to see a fleet of Hydroboxes deployed across the globe on ships and shore, helping us collect data about our oceans so we can better understand how they’re changing and what we need to do to protect them,” she said.
“We’re ready to fire up the production line for Hydrobox 2.0!”