RV Tangaroa undertook a 45-day voyage to the Southern Ocean and Ross Sea (10 January - 16 February, 2021)
Scientists carried out nine separate objectives to better understand the processes governing this region and the role of the Marine Protected Area (established in December 2017) in protecting this environment. These included surveys of fish species and seabed habitats, ecosystem studies of plankton, oceanographic and atmospheric measurements to improve understanding of climate-related processes, and making observations of whales.
Map of the course of RV Tangaroa taken during the TAN2101 voyage early Jan - 17 Feb 2021
Select anywhere on the red track to see position details and time as well as other vessel information. N.B. Dates and times are in UTC. New Zealand Standard Time (NZST) is 12 hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). Click on the ship icons for points of interest during the voyage.
2021 - Antarctic voyage blog and background information
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Plankton in the Ross Sea
Follow a group of NIWA scientists investigating various aspects of plankton which are the base of the Antarctic oceans food web. -
Life under the Ross Sea ice
NIWA researchers are using remote underwater cameras to uncover the rich diversity of life under the Ross Sea and they are amazed at what they are finding in these chilly Antarctic waters. -
Examining biodiversity and ocean dynamics in the world’s largest marine protected area
Researchers are working their way through a wealth of new Antarctic marine data after RV Tangaroa successfully completed its five week scientific voyage to the Ross Sea. -
Science update 5 from Richard O’Driscoll
Day 34 of the Ross Sea Life in a Changing Climate (ReLiCC) 2021 voyage on RV Tangaroa. We are back in New Zealand waters and due to arrive in Wellington on the morning of Monday 15 Feb. -
Powering diversity in the Ross Sea
Studying the mesopelagic in the Ross sea -
Science update 4 from Richard O’Driscoll
We are now four weeks into the Ross Sea Life in a Changing Climate (ReLiCC) 2021 voyage on RV Tangaroa and our time in the Ross Sea is rapidly coming to an end. -
Voyage update 5 from Evan Solly, Ice Pilot
Departed all the wonderful coastal scenery and moved east out into the Ross sea polynya -
Eavesdropping on sperm whales in Antarctica
The moorings team is bringing back precious data from long-term underwater listening devices which the researchers are using to search for signs that sperm whales are finally returning in numbers to the Ross Sea. -
Message in a bottle: Glen Walker, bosun
Glen Walker is the bosun aboard NIWA’s research vessel Tangaroa currently exploring the waters around Antarctica. His reading list is exclusively sea disaster stories. -
Voyage update 4 from Evan Solly, Ice Pilot
The clear sky and exceptional visibility made our approach to Woods Bay very memorable with Mount Melbourne dead ahead and Mount Murchison on our starboard beam. -
Message in a bottle: Sarah Seabrook
It is interesting to watch all of the pieces of our science story come together with each day’s water sampling and our long term experiments. -
Message in a bottle: Stuart Mackay, Digital Producer
Antarctica is an incredibly pristine place; we are here to do good science and leave no trace. So, you can imagine my horror as I watched my camera start to float away from the boat.