Tara Oceans ()

23/11/2009

© Rémi Hamoir

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log book - This week: Dubrovnik–Athens

This week: Dubrovnik–Athens

Scientific interest:

“This week we have 2 limitations”, explains Fabrice Not, our new chief scientist. “The Adriatic Sea is divided into the territorial waters of Italy, Croatia, Montenegro, Albania and Greece.We have the right to do samplings only in Croatian & Greek waters.” The second limitation is that we have to pass through the Corinth Canal at a precise time, reserved in advance Wednesday morning.

A first station was done yesterday in the company of three Croatian marine biologists. We went to an area 12 nautical miles north of Dubrovnik, with depths of 300 metres. It’s a spot where Croatian teams take samples every year. The data we collect can therefore be compared to information gathered in preceding years. This station especially interests Tara because it’s located in the middle of the current moving up from the Mediterranean towards the Adriatic, along the Croatian coast.

The scientific team would also like to try sampling plankton in the current descending the Italian coastline. It’s a difficult operation to find the exact area, just a few kilometers long, located in between different territorial waters. We’ll be using onboard captors which systematically measure water temperature and salinity beneath Tara’s hull. We have to find a zone that’s suddenly colder and less salty than the surrounding waters. 

The third station, Tuesday, will be less tricky. We’ll approach Greece to take samples above a depth of 2000 metres. “This point is located in the heart of a typical water mass extending between the Adriatic and the coast of Libya. We’re at the border between the west basin of the Mediterranean (cold, less salty, mixed by currents) and the east basin (warm, salty, and poor in nutrients).”
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      
Finally we’ll have the opportunity to cross the vertiginous Corinth Canal carved into the cliffs between the Peloponnese and continental Greece. We’re looking forward to a week full emotion! 

15 people on board

SCIENTISTS :
-Fabrice Not. Chief scientist. Sampling of carbonates, pigments, oxygen...
-Sara Searson (New Zealand). Functioning of the CTD
-Chris Bowler (Great Britian). Protist filtration
-Christian Rouvière. Zooplankton & imagery
-Christophe Boutte. Virus & bacteria filtration

SAILORS :
-Hervé Bourmaud. Captain
-Olivier Marien. Second captain
-Julien Daniel. Chief mechanic
-Fabrizio Limena (Brazil). Deck officer
-Denys Simon. General officer
-Shirley Falcone (Antigua). Kitchen

MEDIA :
-François de Riberolles. Cameraman
-Jérôme Bodenes. Editor
-Sacha Bollet. Logbook

ARTIST :
-Remi Hamoir. Painter


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Newsworthy

05/09/2010

Second year

05/09/2010

South Africa, Cape Town, 05/09
UK , Ascencion, 03/10
Brasil, Rio de Janeiro, 22/10
Argentina, Buenos Aires, 15/11
Argentina, Ushuaia, 17/12
Antarctica, King George Island            04/01
Argentina, Ushuaia, 29/01
Chile, Puerto Montt,17/02
Chile, Valparaiso, 27/02
Chile, Easter Island, 27/03
Equateur, Guayaquil, 23/04
Galapagos, San Cristobal, 04/05
France, Clipperton, 04/06
Marquesas, Ua Pou, 01/07
France,  Papeete, 02/08 to 10/08
New Zealand, Auckland, 03/09

30/08/2010

Une borne interactive Tara à la Cité de la Voile à Lorient

30/08/2010

Tara, parti du ponton d'honneur de la Cité de la Voile Eric Tabarly, en septembre 2009, la Cité a souhaité s'associer à l'expédition en vous invitant à la suivre en direct.
Au moyen d'une borne interactive située dans le hall de la Cité de la Voile Éric Tabarly jusqu'à la fin de l'expédition.

01/07/2010

Tara Oceans exhibition inside the city of Lorient

01/07/2010

From July 1st until December 2010. Two big issues are especially exhibited: the vessel Tara and the science on board.
Also, the boat La Thalassa suggests you a visit on the boat or on the dockside. The topics presented are the life on board, fishing and oceanography!

10/05/2010

Tara is member of the « Explorers Think Thank » as part of the French Environmental reform

10/05/2010

Jean Louis Borloo, the minister of the Ecology, announced on Monday the creation of the « Explorers Think Thank », as part of the French Environmental reform “Grenelle de la mer”.

Members of this society get sponsorships agreement with the Ministry with two objectives: scientific and educational.

“ We have exceptional sailors, incredible explorers (…). We create an explorer Think Thank to give them a public helping hand”, declared Mr. Borloo while lauching this initiative.
The oceanographic vessel Tara is part of the four first projects approved in the program.

Source AFP
Copyright : G. CROSSAY/MEEDDAT

23/03/2010

Come to see the expedtion live at the Cité des Sciences

23/03/2010

Come follow the Tara Oceans expedition in real time at the Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie in Paris

The Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie is proud to host an educational
exhibit presented by Tara Expeditions. The exhibit, opening  on March 23rd
2010 and on display for a few months, will introduce the Tara Oceans
expedition and its goal, which is none other than improving scientific
knowledge about the micro-organisms populating the oceans of the globe - a
 marine life responsible for half of our planet's oxygen production.

The 120m2 display of the exhibition is divided into three parts, access to
which is free of charge:
- Tara, a research vessel
- The expedition, the journey, Tara in real-time
- Science on board

Practical informations :
Free of charge
Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie
30, avenue Corentin-Cariou - 75019 Paris
Metro Stop : Porte de la Villette - Cité des sciences
Open tuesday to saturday,
from 10am to 6pm, sundays from 10am to 7pm,
closed on mondays.

24/02/2010

Release of the last Tara Newspaper !

24/02/2010

The last Tara newspaper is here! : Click here to download Le Journal Tara n°6

09/02/2010

Tara junior website is online! www.tarajunior.org

09/02/2010


Learn while following the pace of the expedition

www.tarajunior.org is addressed to teachers offering various pedagogical tools (such as pedagogical memorandums, photos, videos, links …) and suggesting the creation of animation for their classes.


The “Club Tara Junior” for budding explorers

The website is also addressed directly to children through the Club Tara Junior proposing to them various educational and informational supports, such as newsletters, experiments, interviews, games and interactive competitions.

www.tarajunior.org

01/02/2010

Tara Oceans, project of the International Year of Biodiversity

01/02/2010

The United Nations proclaimed 2010 to be the International Year of Biodiversity, and people all over the world are working to safeguard this irreplaceable natural wealth and reduce biodiversity loss.

Tara Oceans is a project of the International Year of Biodiversity

01/09/2009

AFP, partner of Tara Oceans

01/09/2009

Agence France-Presse has decided to provide its support to the Tara-Oceans international scientific expedition.
"The issue here is universal and the adventure singular," states Pierre Louette, CEO of the agency in a press release. "It involves informing as many as possible of the general public increaingly more of what our oceans are suffering, and yet what makes them still so rich, and spread a message of environmental awareness," adds Mr. Louette.
"By contributing through its information distributed to the entire world in science and awareness, the Agency is faithful to its missions," he concludes.