Sonne SO289 (GP21)
Cruise summary report
| Cruise Info. | |
| Ship name (ship code) | Sonne (06SN) |
| Cruise identifier | SO289 (GP21) |
| Cruise period | 2022-02-18 — 2022-04-08 |
| Status | Completed |
| Port of departure | Valparaiso, Chile |
| Port of return | Noumea, New Caledonia |
| Purpose | Research |
| Objectives | Research cruise SO289 with FS Sonne sailed in austral autumn of 2022 in the South Pacific Ocean (SPO) from Valparaiso (Chile) to Noumea (New Caledonia), with a focus on trace element biogeochemistry and chemical oceanography but also including physical and biological oceanographic components. The aim of the cruise was to determine in detail the distributions, sources and sinks of trace elements and their isotopes (TEIs) in the water column along a zonal section in one of the least-studied ocean regions on Earth. Our aim was to investigate the biogeochemical cycling of TEIs and their interactions with surface ocean productivity and the carbon and nitrogen cycles (incl. N2 fixation) given that some TEIs act as micronutrients. The findings will have global significance for understanding the chemical environment in which ecosystems operate. The supply pathways of TEIs to the SPO from ocean boundaries including the atmosphere (Australian dust), continents (mainly Maipo River), sediments (on continental shelves/slopes), and ocean crust (hydrothermalism) were investigated. The TEI transport within water masses was determined with a focus on the southward flow of hydrothermally derived TEIs towards the Southern Ocean but also the deep inflow of Southern Ocean waters in the western SPO. The cruise will officially be part of the international GEOTRACES program. |
| Chief scientist | Eric Pieter Achterberg (GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research, Kiel (East Shore Campus)) |
| Project | GEOTRACES -Trace elements and their isotopes in the water column |
| Cruise report |  (10.96 MB) |
| Ocean/sea areas | |
| General | South Pacific Ocean |
| Specific | Section along South Pacific at 32.5°S |
