Argentina: Historic underwater survey campaign yields results

On August 19, Argentina's National Council for Scientific and Technical Research (CONICET) announced that its scientists had just completed a historic underwater survey campaign, helping to discover about 40 new marine species and attracting millions of online viewers.

According to a VNA reporter in Buenos Aires, the campaign, called "Mar del Plata Canyon Underwater Oasis", was conducted on the research vessel R/V Falkor for 21 days.

This activity recorded nearly 18 million views on social networks, becoming an outstanding science and technology event in Argentina.

According to CONICET, the research team used modern oceanographic equipment to explore the Mar del Plata canyon, more than 400 km south of the capital Buenos Aires, which is more than 3,500 m deep and rich in biodiversity but has been little studied.

Notably, this is the first time in Argentina that the ROV SuBastian has been deployed - a remotely operated vehicle capable of recording ultra-sharp images underwater and taking samples without altering the natural environment.

During the journey, scientists recorded many interesting images such as glowing squid, pink lobsters, starfish. The research team from the Argentine Museum of Natural Sciences Bernardino Rivadavia (MACN) and CONICET collected specimens including sea anemones, sea cucumbers, sea urchins, sea snails, corals and many other animals that have never been described.

Daniel Lauretta, the lead scientist on the expedition, said the quality of the images from the ROV SuBastian helped the team better understand deep-sea biodiversity. He said identifying and classifying new species could take months or even years.

The campaign also resonated and created a strong influence in the community, especially among young people. Thousands of students drew pictures, made videos about the ocean and expressed their desire to become marine biologists.

Mr. Lauretta considers this an important motivation to expand research in the future.

According to CONICET, nearly half of Argentina's territory lies beneath the Atlantic Ocean and contains many undiscovered resources.

Therefore, similar survey activities will play a key role in biodiversity research, contributing to policy planning for sustainable development of the deep sea./.

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/argentina-chien-dich-khao-sat-duoi-bien-co-tinh-lich-su-mang-lai-nhieu-ket-qua-post1056787.vnp