RV Polarstern Starts Arctic Season
Scientists from the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) are setting out with the research vessel Polarstern towards Spitsbergen, to use newly developed equipment in the Arctic Ocean. Autonomous instruments on the seabed, in the water column and in the air will complement the long-term measurements of the deep-sea research group. In this way researchers can analyse the climatic changes in the Arctic and their impact on the fauna in the future with higher temporal and spatial resolution. For the first time the Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) "Tramper" will be set on its own for a year on the Arctic seabed. "The newly developed device is to measure oxygen along the depth gradients on a weekly basis.
Indonesia, Norway to Cooperate on Deep Sea Technology
Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Prime Minister of Norway Erna Solberg agreed to cooperate on deep sea technology for oil and gas exploration and maritime sector. Norway has been advanced on deep sea technology and Indonesia thinks it is beneficial to have cooperation in this sector because many of its oil reserve are located in deep sea," Indonesian Energy and Mines Minister Sudirman Said said. Most of Indonesia's oil and gas reserves are located in deep sea in the eastern part of the country. The minister said that Indonesia's state oil and gas firm PT Pertamina and Norway's state company State Oil would cooperate in implementing the plan.
Successful New Design ROV Testing in Atlantic Ocean
The first pressure-tolerant ROV successfully tested in the deep Atlantic. In early May 2012, a new pressure-tolerant ROV named Erno2, designed by Enitech GmbH (Rostock, Germany), was successfully tested within the framework of the “Pressure-tolerant deep-sea systems” project of Germany’s Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi). Driven by electric thrusters, the light vehicle easily manoeuvred above the seabed, streaming live video from over 4000 m deep with its 3 video cameras and LED lights. The actual robot was attached to its tether management system (TMS) during the two-hour descent into the deep. It left the TMS 20 m above the seafloor and continued its journey being remotely controlled.
