RRS James Clark Ross JR20060226 (JR144, JR145, JR146, JR147, JR149)
Cruise summary report
| Cruise Info. | |
| Ship name (ship code) | RRS James Clark Ross (74JC) |
| Cruise identifier | JR20060226 (JR144, JR145, JR146, JR147, JR149) |
| Cruise period | 2006-02-26 — 2006-04-17 |
| Status | Completed |
| Port of departure | Stanley, Falkland Islands (Malvinas) |
| Port of return | Montevideo, Uruguay |
| Purpose | Research |
| Objectives | Special relationships exist between the waters around the southern part of South America, the Magellan Province, and the waters around the Subantarctic islands and the Antarctic continent. They have their origin in the common past of these regions as part of the Gondwana continent and in their close vicinity up to the present day as compared to the distances between Antarctica and the other surrounding continents. Both factors, as well as the actual isolation of Antarctica by deep water and the current system, and periods of interchange, radiation and extinction in the past, are reflected in the present-day marine biota on either side of the Drake Passage. This context represents a singular case of ecosystem change and evolution on our planet, and a great challenge to research.
Biological work was to concentrate on seven areas along the Scotia Arc where a whole range of trawling equipment (AGT, EBS, RBOT) was to be employed, supported by CTDs. At a number of additional stations, only CTDs were to be taken to provide more material for answering bacterial and microbial biodiversity issues. Hydrosweep was to be used to better recognize small-scale topographic patterns at the seafloor and avoid losses of gear. At four areas diving took place to collect selected target species for studies on heat introduces changes in gene expression. In the Western Core Box, part of the BAS LTMS program, the abundance of zooplankton in the water column was measures by acoustic means on six of eight planned transects and two moorings for year-round zooplankton measurements were recovered and redeployed. Geological work concentrated on piston coring at two selected deep-sea sites (NW of South Orkney Islands, NE of South Georgia), under-way water sampling to assess the recent diatom communities for comparison with past ones form the piston cores and under-way swath bathymetry. |
| Chief scientist | Katrin Linse (British Antarctic Survey) |
| Coordinating body | BAS |
| Cruise report |  (3.28 MB) |
| Ocean/sea areas | |
| General | South West Atlantic Ocean (limit 20W) |
| Specific | Falkland Trough, South Shetland Islands (Livingston and Elephant islands), South Orkney Islands (Powell Basin), South Sandwich Islands (Southern Thule), South Georgia and Shag Rocks |
| Track charts | (0.17 MB) |
| Measurements | |
| Biology and fisheries | |
| Phytoplankton | Quantity: number of samples = 172 Description: Ship water supply and CTD water filtered for diatom assemblage |
| Zoobenthos | Quantity: number of deployments = 11 Description: rough bottom otter trawl to collect pycnogonids and echinoderms |
| Zoobenthos | Quantity: number of samples = 34 Description: Agassiz trawls at 4 depths, benthic mega and macrofauna |
| Zoobenthos | Quantity: number of dives = 20 Description: diving programme: 18 specimens of 5 species (Nacella, Harpagifer, Odontaster, Ophionotus and Paraceradocus) |
| Zoobenthos | Quantity: number of deployments = 29 Description: epibenthic sledge to sample meio-and macrobenthic fauna |
| Pelagic fish | Quantity: number of deployments = 12 Description: collect C. gunnari by trawls and N. rossii by trammel nets |
| Molluscs | Quantity: number of deployments = 23 Description: trawl, cephalopods |
| Molluscs | Quantity: number of deployments = 11 Description: rough bottom otter trawl |
| Crustaceans | Quantity: number of deployments = 11 Description: rough bottom otter trawl |
| Exploratory fishing | Quantity: number of deployments = 8 Description: rectangular midwater trawl |
| Geology and geophysics | |
| Core - soft bottom | Quantity: number of stations = 6 Description: Core locations |
| Single-beam echosounding | Quantity: number of surveys = 1 Description: TOPAS single beam sub-bottom profiler, select potential core sites |
| Multi-beam echosounding | Quantity: number of surveys = 1 Description: Western Core Box acoustic survey using EK60 and XBTs |
| Multi-beam echosounding | Quantity: number of surveys = 1 Description: EM120 multi-beam swath bathymetry system, select potential core sites |
| Multi-beam echosounding | Quantity: number of deployments = 34 Description: multibeam (SWATH) sonar prior to Agassiz deployments |
| Data held at BODC | |
| Discrete samples | |
| 2 Instrument mooring |
