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DeepGreen Metals, a developer of the world’s largest estimated source of battery metals for electric vehicles (EVs), today announced that Environmental Expedition 5B, which focuses on characterizing the pelagic or open sea component of the marine environment in its NORI-D contract area, is conducting research on site in the Clarion Clipperton Zone (CCZ) of the Pacific Ocean. The research campaign is the first of five science expeditions planned for this year as part of an ongoing, multi-year seafloor-to-surface research program — the most rigorous and integrated deep-sea study to date.
(Photo: Business Wire)
The current expedition on the Maersk Launcher, with a crew of 57 people, includes a team of 37 marine researchers from independent institutions including the University of Hawaii, Texas A&M University and the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC). The team is currently conducting an extensive examination of the CCZ’s pelagic biology from the macro to the microbial level to understand the impacts of sediment plumes on deep-ocean fauna and the mid-water column, among other work streams. The data collected will also inform how DeepGreen plans to collect polymetallic nodules with minimal ecological disruption prior to testing its prototype nodule harvester vehicle – currently being built by its partner Allseas – in the CCZ early next year.