CIM researchers obtain previously unknown data about the North Atlantic ocean floor 

Phase 2 of the BOCATS2 project – Biennial Observation of Carbon Acidification, Transport and Sedimentation in the North Atlantic – which includes the participation of researchers from the University of Vigo’s Centre for Marine Research (CIM), a member of the CIGUS Network, an initiative launched by the regional government (Xunta de Galicia) that groups  together centres of proven scientific excellence within the Galician university system, has revealed  unprecedented data about the North Atlantic ocean floor, following a 15-day expedition on board the vessel Sarmiento de Gamboa.  

“We are extremely satisfied to have obtained a bathymetry with an unprecedented resolution, in particular in the western sector of the Charlie-Gibbs Fracture zones, where previous mapping lacked the necessary detail and differed considerably from the information we now have”, explained  Guillermo Francés, a Cim researcher and the campaign coordinator. He went on to add that during the expedition, “we were able to recover a seismic profile and sediment cores which we are confident will yield new scientific data, providing the CIM with a further insight into  bottom water masses, their dynamics when crossing deep oceanic passages, evolution over the last tens of thousands of years and their response to the global climate changes that occurred during that period”.

The principal objective of the CIM’s Geological Biogeochemical Oceanography Group, which worked with specialists from the Barcelona Institute of Marine Science (ICM-CSIC), Vigo’s Institute of Marine Research (IIM-CSIC) and Royal Holloway University of London, was to analyse sediment in the Charlie-Gibbs Fracture zone, a topic of major relevance.

 “The past and present monitoring of ocean circulation and acidification of in the North Atlantic is essential to advance in the precise detection of the anthropogenic impact and improve the climate models that form the bases of the IPCC reports (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) for the European region”, Guillermo Francés explained.