Niwa releases amazing images from a 6-week scientific voyage to Antarctica nzherald.co.nz - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from nzherald.co.nz Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Despite the rough ride, Tangaroa managed to avoid the forecasted worst swell. The vessel will pass Banks Peninsula at around midnight on Sunday. Calm seas are expected for the last leg of the journey to Wellington, where it is expected to arrive on Monday. Scientists studied everything from phytoplankton – microscopic marine algae – to water chemistry and oceanography, sampling fish, and listening for whales.
NIWA/Supplied
RV Tangaroa is battered by rough seas during the journey home from its Antarctic Voyage. In an update published on the Niwa website, voyage leader and fisheries scientist Dr Richard O’Driscoll said the weather had been “relatively good” with light to moderate winds, meaning the research went ahead uninterrupted.
Kate Green/Stuff
Principal scientists Dr Matt Pinkerton, left, Dr Richard O Driscoll, right, and ice pilot Evan Solly, centre, in front of NIWA flagship Tangaroa ahead of its departure to Antarctica. “This year we are focused on understanding the key processes that drive the environment and oceanography of the region and assessing the potential impacts of climate change.” On board is a team of 40, including 20 science staff, 18 crew, one doctor, and one ice pilot, to return on February 17. The whole crew felt “incredibly lucky”, O’Driscoll said, to be setting off considering Covid-19 was stalling expeditions around the world. All onboard were tested for coronavirus ahead of departure, and an on-board quick testing machine would be used if anyone displayed symptoms.
NIWA's flagship research vessel Tangaroa has departed for a six-week voyage to Antarctica, where scientists will be undertaking one of the few full scientific projects on the continent since the global outbreak of Covid-19.
NIWA scientists are en route to Antarctica where they will undertake one of the few full scientific projects on the continent since the global outbreak of Covid-19.