Written by Dr. Carsten Lüter, Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin. The deep sea is full of weird looking creatures which through the course of evolution have adapted to the inhospitable conditions of their environment such as eternal darkness, low temperatures, high pressure and the erratic availability of food. We biologists onboard the SONNE are particularly interested […]
What do geoscientists do on a ship and how do they get their precious rocks after all? What is a dredge and how are the rocks processed on board? A short introduction into seafloor sampling.
As part of our cruise MSM126 focus on the “jellyweb”, we are also interested in siphonophores. Even in the vast and mysterious world of marine life teeming with peculiar inhabitants, these distinctive creatures stand out. While they share similarities with jellyfish, particularly in having stinging cells known as cnidocysts, they do not look much like […]
It’s ten o’clock in the evening, the research vessel MARIA S. MERIAN is moored off the coast of Madeira. The bridge gives the announcement: “On station in about ten minutes”. And off we go for another night of yo-yo CTD cruising. As we mentioned in a previous blog post, today we’re diving deep into why […]
Anton and I have just brought CTD cast number 45 to light. While we are once again shaking freshly tapped bottles with great enthusiasm, I think I can make out question marks in Jamileh’s expression as she smiles good morning to us. That’s what everyone here seems to be thinking: 45 CTD casts already? And […]
We explore the entire tree of life on the research vessel MARIA S. MERIAN: animals, algae, bacteria, and viruses. The cruise focuses on the food web and ocean biodiversity. However, some animals, especially hunters such as squid and whales, are too big, fast or camera-shy for our instruments. To detect these top predators, we search […]
Exciting plankton creatures have been making their way into the laboratories on board RV Merian since we left Funchal almost two weeks ago. Several scientists and engineers from German, Portuguese and US institutions set up shop in the chemistry, dry and deck labs on the main deck to prepare for plankton sampling and analysis. Since […]
+++english version below+++ Nachdem das erste 2D-Profil nun abgefahren und die Ozeanbodenseismometer (OBS) und Hydrophone (OBH) wieder an Deck eingeholt waren, fuhren wir in das Gebiet für das zweite Experiment. Bei einem Profil werden Geräte in einer geraden Linie auf dem Meeresboden ausgesetzt. Anschließend wird das Profil mit Luftpulsern einmal abgefahren und die Signale werden […]
+++english version below+++ Der nächste Reiseabschnitt begann mit einem überraschenden Twist – Im Zoll verschollen geglaubte Seismometer, standen nun doch zur Abholung im Hafen von Vancouver bereit – den wir aber bereits verlassen hatten. Es wurde beschlossen, dass wir außerplanmäßig eine zweitägige Detour nach Vancouver antreten würden. Wie ich im bereits gesagt habe – sei […]
Deutsche Fassung siehe unten 1. What steps are you taking to make sure this research doesn’t pose a risk to marine mammals in the area? The project is taking stringent measures to ensure the safety of marine mammals during the operation of our instruments and research activities. Airguns are acoustic devices that emit sound waves […]