MNF Subscriber eNewsletter | Nov 2024

Director's message

Welcome to the latest edition of the Marine National Facility (MNF) Newsletter.

It’s been an incredibly busy time on and off the water in the past few months and I’m pleased to provide an update on several significant milestones that we’ve achieved for the MNF, and particularly for research vessel (RV) Investigator.

Most importantly, we have now completed the vessel’s scheduled dry docking and maintenance program in Singapore and resumed our research schedule, with a 31-day research voyage underway at the time of writing. Dry docking allows important maintenance to be undertaken and for inspections to be conducted to receive required vessel certifications. This dry docking also saw the commencement of works for the vessel middle of life refit (Mid-Life Refit) project, which added additional complexity to planning and logistics. I would like to thank all who contributed to the successful delivery of this activity.

The Mid-Life Refit project is an important milestone in the vessel’s lifecycle. Several upgrades to scientific systems were completed during dry docking – notably to the vessel’s suite of acoustic systems – and this program of upgrades will now continue in the upcoming long maintenance period in port from December to February. At the same time, the newly formed MNF Technology and Innovation Advisory Group (TIAG) will provide expertise and advice to inform further scientific upgrades over the coming years. These will ensure the vessel continues to meet the needs of our research community and provides the nation with a world-leading capability for marine science.

This newsletter also includes several updates related to the recent meeting of the MNF Steering Committee, which met in November. Importantly, for your calendars, I have included at the bottom of this message the key dates for the upcoming Primary and Supplementary Applications calls for sea time on RV Investigator. Similarly, we are pleased to now provide the confirmed voyage schedule for 2025-26, which includes an incredibly important and exciting range of research.

At the recent meeting, the MNF Steering Committee also noted the relaunch of the CAPSTAN sea training program for university students and trainers. This program provides unparalleled training opportunities for the Australian marine research community and is being delivered via a collaboration between CSIRO, the University of Tasmania’s Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS) and the Australian and New Zealand International Scientific Drilling Consortium (ANZIC). The next voyage in this program will depart in March 2025 and an update is included below.

It is also my pleasure to share with you our MNF Year in Review for 2023-24. This highlights the impressive range of achievements across research, education and training that have been delivered through the state-of-the-art research infrastructure we operate on behalf of the nation. Central to these achievements is the collaboration, passion and expertise of all those who work and live together aboard RV Investigator, from our teams, our partners and our wider community. We celebrate these achievements in the Year in Review and hope you enjoy reading about the incredible science and impact we have worked together to deliver.

With that, thank you to all our collaborators, partners and participants for your support in 2024. I wish all those at or heading to sea successful voyages and wish everyone a safe and happy festive season.

Toni Moate
MNF Director

About CAPSTAN [2mins19sec]

[Music plays as image appears panning over the Investigator ship, and text appears: CAPSTAN, Collaborative Australian Postgraduate Sea Training Alliance Network]

[Image changes to show a medium view of Ben Arthur talking to the camera, and text appears: Dr Ben Arthur, Engagement Programs Coordinator CSIRO]

Ben Arthur: CAPSTAN is a sea training program for postgraduate students from universities around Australia. So it's all about hands on training in marine sciences at sea.

Images move through to show the RV Investigator sailing across the screen from left to right, a view of the bridge from the deck, and the working platform deck]

RV investigator’s a great vessel to work on board. It's a very stable platform.

[Images move through to show workmen, a multi corer being pulled up, a shark biting a baited net, and then colleagues sitting and talking together]

It has quite wide ranging capabilities, which means when we take students on board, we can teach them everything from marine geoscience through to oceanography through to marine biology, even atmospheric science.

[Image changes to show someone talking, and then the image changes to show Ben talking to the camera]

So the vessel really enables us to deliver a whole suite of training. I have been lucky enough to, I think just done my 12th voyage onboard Investigator and they are all wonderful.

[Images move through to show the Investigator sailing, a deep towed camera entering the sea, and then a male watching a bank of computer screens]

They are all unique. They are all different because we are going to different parts of Australia's amazing marine estate, and we are tackling really important and interesting questions too.

[Images move through to show various views of a screen for Deep Toad Camera details, students taking notes, students cleaning items and then Ben talking to the camera]

I think the CAPSTAN program will give students a lot of benefits from being on board the vessel, familiarity with how marine science and operations are done at sea, planning for sometimes quite complex operations, being at sea for the first time for a lot of these students is also something that is going to be quite unique for them as well. So really just getting a handle on working in a dynamic environment and often across different disciplines and tackling different questions.

[Image changes to show Pier van der Merwe talking to the camera, and text appears: Dr Pier van der Merwe, Senior Lecturer in Oceanography IMAS CAPSTAN Director]

Pier van der Merwe: Every CAPSTAN voyage is going to be bespoke. We are going to have different chief scientists and trainers on board, so it's going to be bespoke for the specific skill sets and expertise that those chief scientists have.

[Images move through to show the Investigator sailing, a female researcher with a male in the foreground looking at nudibranchs, and then tweezers picking up a nudibranch]

Early career researchers and mid-career researchers can get involved with CAPSTAN by applying to be a trainer or a Chief Scientist on board.

[Images move through to show colleagues talking over a microscope and computers, hands moving a slide under the microscope to see it on a phone, and then a group of students]

So CAPSTAN is really great in that it's offering opportunities not just for students but also for other researchers that might like to get some experience either with teaching or with leading a large voyage on Australia's premier blue-water research vessel.

[Image changes to show Pier talking to the camera]

So if universities are not already subscribed to the CAPSTAN program or are involved through having being a member of ANZIC, Australia and New Zealand IODP Consortium, they should get in contact with me.

[Image changes to show an aerial view of the Investigator sailing and the camera pans out, and text appears: Video by CSIRO, University of Tasmania, Olly Dove, Music by Cody Kurtz Martin]

My details are on the CSIRO website on the CAPSTAN page, and I will provide them with all of the information that they need to get involved.

[Music plays and image changes to show the CSIRO, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies and the ANZIC logos, and text appears: csiro.au/capstan]

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Seas the opportunity with CAPSTAN

CAPSTAN is a unique training initiative that offers Australian university students and trainers at-sea experience onboard CSIRO research vessel (RV) Investigator. The program is transforming how marine science education is delivered.