This 2008 expedition will begin in the Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles arguably the most pristine coral reef environment in the Caribbean. The goal of the Bonaire expedition is to survey this unique environment over a greater depth range than can be reached with compressed air SCUBA, using 3 Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs), technical diving, and in a future year, a manned submersible.
Coral reefs are often thought of as 'ecological oxymorons'. They harbor some of the greatest biodiversity on Earth, yet they develop in extremely nutrient-poor tropical waters. Reef-building corals represent ancient lineages that have evolved slowly over tens to hundreds of millions of years, yet the massive living reef structures we observe right now are geologically young features, often only a few thousand years old. And, the massive, robust calcified corals that build the reef framework are themselves quite fragile and sensitive to a host of natural and manmade disturbances and degradation.
As a Marine Protected Area (MPA) Bonaire sets an important precedent regarding marine protection policy. Coral reefs offer a critical habitat in the marine environment, rivaled in biodiversity only by terrestrial rainforests. According to the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis at the University of California at Santa Barbara, coral reefs make up about 1% of the world's oceans, but they house nearly 25% of life in the ocean.
An Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV), is a true robot able to move on its own without a pilot or tether to either ship or submersible. Designed to perform a predetermined set of maneuvers, take photographs, map, and collect data and samples. Discover why this technology is essential to scientist.
Chief Scientist Mark Patterson provides a mission summary, highlighting why they decided to come to Bonaire's pristine environment for scientific research and why they are seeing some troubling factors regarding the health of the coral reefs.
The mission receives invaluable help from Ramón de Leon and Frank van Slobbe, from the government of Bonaire.
The science team prepares to scout out the island and the reefs of Bonaire and learn why they always have to be ready to improvise and adapt.
The team overcame the challenge of mapping underwater 'microbialites' - calcium carbonate mounds that result from the presence of a microbial community.
How is this Bonaire 2008 Exploration different from many of Ocean Explorer's other expeditions you may ask?
Acropora palmate (Elkhorn coral), once prevalent around the island’s leeward coast, can only be found in a few areas and then in only small patches.
Sixteen students, mostly upperclassmen pursuing degrees in biology, geology and environmental sciences, have come to Bonaire through the University of Delaware’s Caribbean Study Abroad Program.
Learn why the scientific dive team is navigating by GPS along a predetermined heading conducting video transects of coral cover.
The survey data collected by the GeoSwath sonar on the Gavia AUV provides a high-resolution side-scan sonar mosaic.
The bathymetric sonar onboard the Gavia AUV provides an incredibly dense map of the reef structure including the overhanging coral on the crest of the reef. Includes Video
Deploying the 165-foot-long BOA temperature array of sensors with data loggers and heavy concrete anchors was quite a project.
A recent inductee in the Explorers Club of New York is carrying a flag that has been on expeditions since 1934.
Students from the University of Delaware got their feet wet as they helped launch the Gavia AUVs.
Ocean Explorer Expedition Education Modules (EEM) are designed to reach out in new ways to teachers, students, and the general public, and share the excitement of daily at-sea discoveries and the science behind NOAA’s major ocean exploration initiatives with the people around the world.
Hey guys, (Aimee here) this is puppy number two. This is our little man and he is as cute and as gentle as they get!! When we first started feeding the puppies, the two others (females) would come running as fast as they could, tails wagging and jumping up to greet me. This little man [...]
Find the lowest price for : Comparison Shopping Reviews Community Blog Reef Clubs Forums Wiki Gallery Home Blog Categories Ocean Acidification Marine Science Marine Life Marine Conservation Climate Change Marine Geology Coral Reefs Evolution Marine Energy Water Conservation Aquascaping Plant Tanks Aquarist Advice Aquarium Maintenance Discusion Topics General Reef Discussion Reefing Topics Debates Emergencies , MSDS Clams Discussions LPS Corals SPS Corals Soft corals Reef Fish Non Coral Systems Seahorses Pipefish Breeding and raising Mantis Shrimp TRT Picks Recommended Reading Apr 29 2010 Thriving Ocean Conservation Written by Ava Why so involved in wildlife and ocean conservation I asked Scott Artis , conservationist extraordinaire , with 8 years in the Biotech realm and a degree in
Good evening all, finally here’s a picture of one of the three puppies. This is a little female and she is so loving and friendly and for now I am calling her “Brownie”. Today the puppies got their first shots so they made it thru the first week safe and sound!! We will not be [...]
Hey gang, how is everything in your neck of the woods?? I had my normal day off marathon and am very relived to be sitting here for once doing nothing!! I met a friend at Saint Joris this morning at 7:30 and he helped me with my new trail for two hours and we had to [...]
WiserEarth Blog Connecting You to Communities of Action Home Topics Purpose Lifestream Contributors RSS Feed Published by Bowo on 27 Apr 2010 at 08:00 am WiserEarth volunteers for Earth Day in Indonesia Last week on Earth Day , Indonesia celebrated Coral Day which is a day of awareness for coral reef protection . Off the coast of Indonesia , Borneo and the Philippines is the precious and threatened Coral Triangle which contains three-quarters of known coral species on earth . In solidarity , I went to volunteer off the coast of Jakarta where I work remotely for WiserEarth Volunteering on Pramuka Island We went to an island called Pramuka Island in the thousand islands” like the salad dressing which is a group of 100+ small islands about 30 miles off the coast of Jakarta . I did a beach
Good evening, the puppies are wearing us out!! Wow talk about a lot of work!!! Our days now have to start at 5:30am with waking them up and quickly taking them out to pee. We then carry them upstairs and feed them and let them swim in their water bowl, then seconds later we have [...]
I have a 55 gallon tank which will eventually also have mushrooms, soft coral and some lps. I currently have 2 percula clowns, 1 purple firefish, 1...Well my fellow RB'ers I have caught the bug again, this time I went smaller rather than the usual upsizing. Having saw an amazing deal on Craigslist...
Good evening all, here’s a photo that pretty much speaks for itself and should make you feel grateful for what you have. The homeless problem in Curacao is no different than it is in the United States or anywhere else for that matter. Quite often Aimee and I run into homeless people while out and about and [...]i had to spend several weeks in bed recuperating from surgery.
today i was able to do some work on my tank and noticed my lovely misbar maroon had...
Find the lowest price for : Comparison Shopping Reviews Community Blog Reef Clubs Forums Wiki Gallery Home Blog Categories Ocean Acidification Marine Science Marine Life Marine Conservation Climate Change Marine Geology Coral Reefs Evolution Marine Energy Water Conservation Aquascaping Plant Tanks Aquarist Advice Aquarium Maintenance Discusion Topics General Reef Discussion Reefing Topics Debates Emergencies , MSDS Clams Discussions LPS Corals SPS Corals Soft corals Reef Fish Non Coral Systems Seahorses Pipefish Breeding and raising Mantis Shrimp TRT Picks Recommended Reading Apr 25 2010 The Arctic Scientist Written by Ava Bodil Bluhm a Research Associate Professor in Biological Oceanography , Marine Biology , and Marine Invertebrates at the University of Alaska Fairbanks calls the school
Good evening readers, this is going to be fast because Aimee and I are going over to a friends house in just a few minutes.
This turned out to be one of the coolest sponges I found or should I say Sal found in Bonaire. When I got home I looked and looked for this [...]Hi this is my new proyect,,,,,This tank is and oldSchool proyect,Compact lighting coralife,6700-10,000k,Atinic,whit a Emperor 400gph filter....This...
Good evening all, someone asked me today if we ever see trash on the reefs here?? The answer to that is yes!! The worst place we have seen is under and around the piers, those areas are as trashed as it gets! Almost everywhere has tires and we call those “Tire Coral” and as you [...]I'm new to the hobby and am setting up a 90G DT with a 55G sump in the basement below. The DT was "Reef Ready" for two bulkheads in the bottom of the...
Hi again one and all! Today was a great day, I finally got to see and photograph a black Frogfish!! For those of you lucky ones out there who have been on the list from the start you have seen all the other colors I have found in the past! Some of the frogfish colors we [...]
Good evening readers, we are officially the owners of three new cute puppies!! Aimee went this morning and easily found and picked up two of them and at the time could not find the third. She immediately brought them home and gave them around five baths each removing ticks and fleas and cleaning a few [...]
Good morning all, I came home last night from a bike ride with a pounding headache and went to bed early! My days off seem to be turning into a contest of just how much can a human do in one day! Yesterday I first went to my annual doctors appointment then at 9:00 took the dogs [...]
I'm looking for a used (in great condition) 48" Constellation fixture, if you have a good one for sale please let me know via this thread or PM me.
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Find the lowest price for : Comparison Shopping Reviews Community Blog Reef Clubs Forums Wiki Gallery Home Blog Categories Ocean Acidification Marine Science Marine Life Marine Conservation Climate Change Marine Geology Coral Reefs Evolution Marine Energy Water Conservation Aquascaping Plant Tanks Aquarist Advice Aquarium Maintenance Discusion Topics General Reef Discussion Reefing Topics Debates Emergencies , MSDS Clams Discussions LPS Corals SPS Corals Soft corals Reef Fish Non Coral Systems Seahorses Pipefish Breeding and raising Mantis Shrimp TRT Picks Recommended Reading Apr 19 2010 Top 5 Earth Day Actions For Our Marine World Written by Ava Can you believe this April 22 is the 40th anniversary of Earth Day I couldn't believe it either What can I believe The Nature Conservancy s
, Find the lowest price for : Comparison Shopping Reviews Community Blog Reef Clubs Forums Wiki Gallery Home Blog Categories Ocean Acidification Marine Science Marine Life Marine Conservation Climate Change Marine Geology Coral Reefs Evolution Marine Energy Water Conservation Aquascaping Plant Tanks Aquarist Advice Aquarium Maintenance Discusion Topics General Reef Discussion Reefing Topics Debates Emergencies , MSDS Clams Discussions LPS Corals SPS Corals Soft corals Reef Fish Non Coral Systems Seahorses Pipefish Breeding and raising Mantis Shrimp TRT Picks Recommended Reading Apr 18 2010 Arctic Seabed Methane Stores Destabilizing , Venting Written by Coby The following was written in the beginning of March by climate change blogger Coby Beck . I felt it would appeal to TRT readers andCan someone identify whether this is an ICK desease or not?
Image: http://i968.photobucket.com/albums/ae168/kingamir2010/17042010416.jpg ...We all like seeing tank pics, some of the best pics show up in the Tank of the month threads, yeah I know I should have posted my tank to support...
Find the lowest price for : Comparison Shopping Reviews Community Blog Reef Clubs Forums Wiki Gallery Home Blog Categories Ocean Acidification Marine Science Marine Life Marine Conservation Climate Change Marine Geology Coral Reefs Evolution Marine Energy Water Conservation Aquascaping Plant Tanks Aquarist Advice Aquarium Maintenance Discusion Topics General Reef Discussion Reefing Topics Debates Emergencies , MSDS Clams Discussions LPS Corals SPS Corals Soft corals Reef Fish Non Coral Systems Seahorses Pipefish Breeding and raising Mantis Shrimp TRT Picks Recommended Reading Apr 14 2010 The Abundant And Diverse Viruses of The Sea Written by Vincent What is the most abundant biological entity in the oceans Viruses , of course The quantity and diversity of viruses in the seas are staggering