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Voyage Number

IN2024_V01

Voyage Dates

05 Jan, 2024 to 05 Mar, 2024

Voyage Location

Hobart to Fremantle

Chief Scientist

Dr Steve Rintoul (shore) / Dr Annie Foppert (sailing)

Institution

CSIRO

Voyage summary

Research voyage from Hobart to Antarctic waters (returning to Fremantle) to investigate how interactions between the atmosphere, ocean and biosphere control processes as diverse as cloud formation, iron supply to marine life, ocean carbon uptake, and the drivers of rapid change in the deep ocean. This knowledge will be used to improve modelling and our understanding of how the Southern Ocean region influences the Earth system.

The Southern Ocean and overlying atmosphere have a profound influence on regional and global climate, sea level, biogeochemical cycles, and marine productivity.  However, present-day models used for climate projections have large and persistent biases in the region. 

Researchers will undertake an intensive program of repeat observations to characterise the properties of aerosols, clouds, radiation, and precipitation over the Southern Ocean south of Australia and investigate how they are shaped by interactions between the ocean, atmosphere, and biosphere. This knowledge will be used to discover how and why the region is changing and the consequences of Southern Ocean change for climate, biogeochemical cycles, biological productivity, and the future of the Antarctic ice sheet. The observations and insights gained from the voyage will be used to develop, test, and implement new parameterisations for models used for weather forecasts and climate projections.

There are no other projects on this voyage.

MISO website

The MISO voyage is a key research activity of the Australian Antarctic Program Partnership (AAPP). Further information and voyage blogs are available from the MISO website

The voyage has 39 science participants from 8 institutions including the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) and University of Tasmania (UTas), and international participants from University of Utah (USA), University of Southampton (UK) and University of British Columbia (Canada), and 20 ship crew from MMA Offshore Limited.

This project is being led by Dr Steve Rintoul, CSIRO, who will be on shore for the voyage. The sailing Chief Scientist will be Dr Annie Foppert, UTas.

This will be RV Investigator's longest voyage (duration) and the vessel is scheduled to be at sea for 60 days.

Voyage track (map)

The MISO voyage will leave Hobart and sail south to the edge of the Antarctic ice, travelling 9260 kilometres, before returning to Fremantle in early March.

COVID Protocols

To safeguard the health and well-being of participants, strict COVID protocols apply to all activities on this voyage. This includes PCR testing of all participants for COVID prior to boarding the vessel.

Voyage outcomes

A summary of voyage outcomes will be published approximately 3-6 months after the completion of the voyage.

Voyage media

News

4 March 2024

From carbon to clouds: Ocean detectives return with climate clues

RV Investigator's epic voyage has come to an end, with one of the most comprehensive datasets ever collected in the Southern Ocean

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