RRS Discovery D297
Cruise summary report
| Cruise Info. | |
| Ship name (ship code) | RRS Discovery (74E3) |
| Cruise identifier | D297 |
| Cruise period | 2005-07-27 — 2005-08-16 |
| Status | Completed |
| Port of departure | Lisbon, Portugal |
| Port of return | Porto, Portugal |
| Purpose | Research |
| Objectives | The main objective of this cruise was to complete the geological survey of the Setubal and Nazare canyons including more sidescan sonar survey in the canyon mouths and on the lower continental rise north of the mouth of Setubal mouth. Other major objectives were to carry out sampling of the seabed for meio and macro fauna at 3 depth transects in each canyon; to run a series of SHRIMP video runs in the canyons at different depths to quantify the seabed organisms; to measure the amount and type of particulate matter in the water column, particularly near the seabed at the study sites, and to investigate the benthic ichthyofauna and bioluminescence using bottom landers.
This cruise provided data for the EU FP6 project HERMES (Hotspot Ecosystem Research on the Margins of European Seas), as well completing work for the EU FP5 project EUROSTRATAFORM. |
| Chief scientist | Philip P E Weaver (National Oceanography Centre, Southampton) |
| Project | HERMES/EUROSTRATAFORM |
| Coordinating body | NOC-NERC |
| Cruise report |  (2.84 MB) |
| Ocean/sea areas | |
| General | North West Atlantic Ocean (limit 40W) |
| Specific | Atlantic Ocean - Portuguese Margin; Nazare and Setubal Canyons |
| Track charts | (0.13 MB) (0.13 MB) |
| Measurements | |
| Physical oceanography | |
| CTD stations | Quantity: number of stations = 8 Description: CTD |
| Biology and fisheries | |
| Particulate organic matter (inc POC, PON) | Quantity: number of stations = 6 Description: SAPS (stand-alone pumping systems) |
| Zoobenthos | Quantity: number of stations = 2 Description: Amphipod trap |
| Other biological/fisheries measurement | Quantity: number of stations = 3 Description: DOSOL lander |
| Other biological/fisheries measurement | Quantity: number of stations = 8 Description: ROBIO lander |
| Other biological/fisheries measurement | Quantity: number of hauls = 2 Description: Agassiz trawl |
| Geology and geophysics | |
| Core - soft bottom | Quantity: number of cores = 6 Description: Piston cores |
| Core - soft bottom | Quantity: number of cores = 12 Description: Box cores |
| Core - soft bottom | Quantity: number of cores = 17 Description: Megacores/multicores |
| Bottom photography | Quantity: number of track lines = 1 Description: SHRIMP video footage |
| Long/short range side scan sonar | Quantity: number of track lines = 1 Description: TOBI sidescan sonar survey |
