NEPTUNE Canada

Workshop Stimulates Discussion

Apr 16, 2010

Presenters at the April 2010 NC workshop (Click to enlarge.)

Scientists, students, technicians, computer programmers and one journalist converged on Victoria this week to present early findings, check out new software tools, update experiment plans and explore exciting new future ventures. This year’s NEPTUNE Canada workshop, held at Victoria’s Harbour Towers conference centre, was attended by visitors from as far away as Maryland, Spain, France, Germany and Argentina, with 13 universities, 1 NGO, 3 ocean technology firms and 9 government departments, agencies and research divisions represented.

Day 1

The first day included presentations from many of the science experiments already underway (we’ll be posting the video recordings from these on our website):

• seismology
• tsunami tracking
• borehole measurements
• Wally and the Barkley Canyon hydrates
• seabed processes
• benthic ecology
• marine mammal detection
• marine acoustics
• Folger Passage circulation and productivity

Breakout group discussions (click to enlarge).

Following these presentations, attending scientists had a chance to kick the tires on some of our latest software tools:

• SeaCam: Our Camera Control Interface
• SeaTube: Our tool for viewing underwater video
• Plotting Utility: Tool for viewing scalar data
• Data Explorer: How to search for and acces data
• Project Space: Wiki, Jira and other tools for collaboration

Endeavour planning discussions (click to enlarge).

Day 2

The second day was largely devoted to discussion of our current and upcoming experiments, clarifying configuration problems, data needs, reconfigurations and possible new instruments to enhance the existing set. Summaries of these discussions are posted on the workshop wiki via the following links:

• bottom pressure recorders and boreholes
• benthic & water column studies
• Endeavour
• Folger Passage
• Barkley hydrates

In the afternoon, we also heard presentations on future expansion of existing experiments:

• Bullseye Vent at ODP889 (George Spence)
• animal-sediment interactions (Nils Volkenborn)
• oceanographic influences on krill productivity (Ron Tanasichuk)
• seismic studies at Endeavour Ridge (Andrew Calvert)

Water column and benthic ecology planning (click to enlarge).

Day 3

On the final day, we took some time to think big. Spurred by the question “What major new science initiatives should be planned?”, scientists discussed the implications and feasibility of future experiments to study:

• CO2 and ocean acidification
• 3D coastal-shelf-slope oceanography
• geophysical processes at Endeavour Ridge
• marine mammal tracking via hydrophone arrays
• deep-water ecology and circulation
• seismology and plate tectonics

Numerous exciting possibilities emerged from these discussions, and scientists were charged to further these ideas, seek funding opportunities and work toward transforming these dreams into a future reality for our shared seafloor observatory.

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