Fraser, D.

Scientists chase, study deep coral

2014

Cape Cod Times Online

"Martha Nizinski from the National Marine Fisheries Service Science Center in Woods Hole and Anna Metaxas, a professor of oceanography at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia, organized a two-week joint expedition to the eastern edge of Georges Bank and the Gulf of Maine to study the habitat and biology of these deep-sea communities. It is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's first Northeast deep-sea coral cruise of the year. Like the deep ocean habitat in which they live, little is known about the biology, reproduction, or feeding process of these corals. This expedition is focused on the steep-sided walls of ocean canyons where swift currents sweep marine snow - decayed organic matter, the final bits of dead animals and plant material that can take weeks to reach the bottom - onto the corals' extended tentacles. At the heart of the mission is a large Canadian-built remotely operated underwater vehicle known as ROPOS - Remote Operated Platform for Ocean Science. The NOAA research vessel Henry B. Bigelow will serve as the mother ship for the ROPOS and the team of scientists. Tethered to the ship by 18,000 feet of thick steel cable and a winch that can lift 14 tons, the 5 1/2 ton ROV will skim at 2 mph along a preprogrammed route, about 3 feet off the ocean floor. The cable transmits 3,000 volts of electrical power and is stuffed with fiber-optic cables feeding information to its sensors and relaying commands from its pilots and navigators. Sonar cuts through the inky black, seeking out obstacles in its path. ROPOS first conducts a relatively quick survey along a programmed path, as a scientist, three pilots and a navigator monitor its progress on two long walls of flat-screen monitors. It then retraces the track, stopping to collect samples as directed by scientists. That process will be repeated as the vehicle works its way, row by preprogrammed row, across the ocean floor. The scientists hope to sample four sites, travelling 600 miles from Woods Hole to Georges Bank, up to Maine and then back to the Bigelow's home base in Newport, Rhode Island. Although Nizinski and Metaxas have been on many such trips to study these coral, there is always something new, a new species to discover, or an unusual sight."

NMFS

Deep-Coral