After years of planning, and two months near the Shackleton Ice Shelf, the Denman Marine Voyage has returned to Hobart with enough data and samples on board to keep scientists busy for years to come.
The DMV was RSV Nuyina's first dedicated marine science voyage. It was also the first opportunity scientists working with the Australian Antarctic Program have had to study the waters around the Denman Glacier tongue.
The Denman Glacier is one of the largest but least-studied glaciers in East Antarctica and it is melting at a rapid rate. It holds enough ice to increase global sea levels by 1.5 metres if it melts completely.
"The Denman Marine Voyage seeks to fill a big hole in our understanding by collecting, for the first time, observations from the ocean next to one of the fastest retreating glaciers in East Antarctica," Dr Laura Herraiz Borreguero, from CSIRO and the Australian Antarctic Program Partnership, said.
"We want to find out how vulnerable the Denman is to the warming ocean and the likelihood of it making a larger and faster contribution to sea level rise in the next few decades."
The voyage was a collaborative effort involving 60 scientists from the Australian Centre for Excellence in Antarctic Science (ACEAS), the Australian Antarctic Program Partnership (AAPP), Securing Antarctica's Environmental Future (SAEF) and the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD).
Science teams used many of RSV Nuyina's 150 marine science systems to investigate the physical and chemical oceanography of the region, its biodiversity, geology and cloud forming processes.
Professor Jan Strugnell's SAEF team used the ship's beam trawl to investigate marine biodiversity around the Shackleton Ice Shelf.
"We're interested in understanding the connectivity and diversity of marine life, particularly the marine life that lives on the seafloor around Antarctica," Professor Strugnell said.
"We're interested in understanding how different regions are connected, about source and sink populations, and the evolution of animals in this region. This information can be used to inform marine protected areas and conservation concerns."
A more detailed look at SAEF's project work on the DMV can be found here.
