Voyage Number
IN2015_V02
Voyage Dates
Voyage Location
Chief Scientist
Dr Bernadette Sloyan
Institution
CSIRO
Voyage summary
Research voyage from the continental slope to the abyssal waters off Brisbane with main objective to deploy an array of six moorings.
The East Australian Current (EAC), a southward flow off eastern Australia, is one of the major global western boundary currents. The EAC is the dominant mechanism for the redistribution of heat and freshwater between the ocean and atmosphere in the Australian region; it is a vital component of the eastern Australian coastal ecosystem.
The mooring array being deployed will monitor the mass, heat and freshwater transported by the EAC, which is central to our understanding of how climate signals are communicated through the ocean.
Voyage impact
The moorings array was successfully deployed, enabling researchers to gather data to map the variability of the EAC ocean properties and its current strength. The deployed array will help researchers better understand the variability of the EAC at decadal and longer term time scales.
As a result of this voyage, researchers found that the EAC is highly variable and requires long-term constant monitoring.
Researchers also commenced a program of monitoring of the EAC that is a driver of climate variability over Australia and the larger region.
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