RV Pelagia PE372
Cruise summary report
| Cruise Info. | |
| Ship name (ship code) | RV Pelagia (64PE) |
| Cruise identifier | PE372 |
| Cruise period | 2013-06-27 — 2013-07-11 |
| Status | Completed |
| Port of departure | Istanbul, Turkey |
| Port of return | Istanbul, Turkey |
| Purpose | Research |
| Objectives | Around 6,000 years ago, sea level approached its present level, and dense salty fluid (10-15 m thick) from the Mediterranean started flowing through the Bosphorus Strait (past Istanbul) into the Black Sea, forming an almost constantly active seafloor channel network. The first spectacular images of this system and its sedimentary deposits were only obtained in 2005. This system provides a unique opportunity to study both flows and deposits in an active seafloor channel for the very first time and to use this knowledge to formulate and test predictive models. We have assembled a world-leading group of UK and international scientists to tackle this challenge. We will use Autosub3, NERC's new state-of-the-art autonomous submarine to 'fly' our measurement equipment just above the bottom, allowing us to map channel morphology and the three dimensional (3D) flows in unprecedented detail compared to what is possible from traditional ship-based methods. The flow data will be linked to measurements of seabed properties, smaller morphological features such as bedforms, and seismic data that images through sediment to reveal the internal structure of the deposits. These data will be used as input conditions for an innovative computer simulation model of flow and deposition in submarine channels. |
| Chief scientist | Russell B Wynn (National Oceanography Centre, Southampton) |
| Cruise report |  (1.15 MB) |
| Ocean/sea areas | |
| General | Black Sea |
| Specific | Bosphorus Strait/southwest Black Sea. |
| Track charts | (0.12 MB) |
