Rob’s Blog
Recent ocean mapping events within Australia’s marine region.
Ocean floor to be mapped by 2030
The first Forum for Future of the Ocean Floor Mapping was held in Monaco from 15 to 17 June 2016. Some 200 delegates gathered, under the flag of General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans (GEBCO), to discuss the future of the mapping of the ocean floor, aiming to come up...
How deep are the oceans?
In the beginning, systematic mapping of ocean depth was conducted mainly for the safety of shipping routes and remained very limited in its scope. Now, however, better maps of the ocean floor are needed for a wide variety of applications, including coastal protection,...
Tides Workshop at Bureau of Meteorology Adelaide
The Tidal Unit, Bureau of Meteorology conducted their Tides Workshop in Adelaide from 16 to 18 May 2016. The Permanent Committee for Tides and Mean Sea Level (PCTMSL) and BOM sponsored the tides workshop, aiming to raise the level of tidal knowledge of those people...
Cairns hotel beer garden to toast Reef premiere
The long-awaited premiere of Sir David Attenborough’s landmark documentary about the Great Barrier Reef will take place in true Far North Queensland style in the beer garden of a Cairns pub. The Courthouse Hotel will host a special screening of the documentary on its...
Queensland Coastline Capture project images
Aerial images were captured during the Queensland Coastline Capture project in 2013/2014 within the Torres Strait and northern Great Barrier Reef, using a Vexcel UltraCamX large format digital aerial camera. Imagery were captured at ~3800 m for ground sample distances...
Drones helping save world’s biggest green sea turtle nesting site at Raine Island
In a Queensland first, drones are being used to help save the world's biggest nesting site for green sea turtles. Read the full story "Drones helping save world's biggest green sea turtle nesting site at Raine Island", published by the ABC on 26 February 2016. 3D view...
The Last Sea Treasure
The Australian Marine Conversation Society has commissioned a beautiful movie called 'The Last Sea Treasure' – a short documentary by Bluebottle Films about the extraordinary Coral Sea, and the social and economic value it brings to tourism and the coastal communities...
Living fossils and rare corals revealed in the deep Coral Sea
An investigation of previously unexplored depths of Australia’s Coral Sea has revealed living fossils, rare corals and sponges, and ecosystems that have remained largely unchanged for millions of years. A team of Australian and German researchers has published their...
Major IMAS Investigator voyage to study impact of submarine volcanoes on ocean ecosystems
CSIRO’s Marine National Facility research vessel Investigator will depart Fremantle tomorrow (Friday 8 January) on its longest voyage to date to research the link between active volcanoes on the seafloor and the mobilisation of iron which enriches and supports life in...