Sediment Corers
Sediment cores are used to sample the organisms that live on or just below the surface of the ocean floor (the benthos), while also displaying the structure of the sediment by boring a large tube into the benthos and then raising the column. Sediments can retain their stratigraphy incorporating a range of environmental proxies that provide long-term records of environmental change.
Sediment corers allow scientists to retrieve information from sites where sediments cannot be clearly resolved from seismic data, and this provides records of boundary conditions on ice sheet flow, ice sheet history and the presence of life in subglacial environments. On the expedition the team will be using a 6m single barrier corer, one multi-corer and one box corer provided by the Netherland Institute of Ocean Research (NIOZ). They will be used for collecting sediment cores for geological research and for biological sampling of seafloor fauna and flora.
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AUV
View MoreThe expedition will use Hugin 6000 Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs), which operate at speeds of up to six knots and in water depths of up to 6,000 metres.
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ROV
View MoreThe deployment of a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) by the expedition enables researchers to collect samples of flora and fauna from the seabed for further study in the laboratory.
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Aerial Drones
View MoreThe expedition will also use unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), commonly known as aerial drones. UAVs are manufactured to provide an eye in the sky without a human pilot onboard.
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Sediment Corers
View MoreSediment cores are used to sample the organisms that live on or just below the surface of the ocean floor (the benthos), while also displaying the structure of the sediment by boring a large tube into the benthos and then raising the column.
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Oceanography (CTD)
View MoreA CTD (also known as Sonde) is a multi-parameter water monitoring system that is designed to simultaneously measure a range of biological and physical properties in both salt and fresh water.