BUSCADOR RECOLECTA

MALASPINA_LEG1 Cruise (29HE20101215) carried out on the Research Vessel Hespérides in 2010, A circumnavigation oceanographic expedition to generate a high resolution inventory of global change impact on the ecosystem of the ocean, researching its biodiversity in the deep. 1) PHYSICAL OCEANOGRAPHY: The main objective of the Physical Oceanography block is to contribute to understanding the oceanic variability by determining the trends of the different properties of the main bodies of water in the oceans, such as temperature, salinity and oxygen concentration, thus will allow us to determine the variation of atmospheric conditions. 2) BIOCHEMISTRY: The MALASPINA 2010 expedition will study on an unprecedented scale the biogeochemical processes in the ocean on a global scale. It will be investigated where the elements that contribute to life near the surface come from, and what is the fate of the organic matter generated by photosynthesis . The breath of the sea will be measured: the exhalation of gases that conditions our atmosphere and climate. 3) ATMOSPHERIC DEPOSITION: The objectives of block : "organic pollutants and atmospheric deposition" focus on the measurements of the levels of several families of organic pollutants in the global ocean and atmosphere and the quantification of air-ocean flows and their impact on food chains planktonics (phytoplankton and zooplankton). In addition, a characterization and quantification of the flows of organic carbon, aerosols, nutrients and organic biogenic compounds, and the role they play in the ocean biogeochemical cycles will also be carried out. 4) OCEAN OPTICS: In the Malaspina expedition we are going to study the optics of the ocean that involves measuring mainly the color of water and its transparency to solar radiation. 5) BIODIVERSITY AND MICROBIAL PROCESSES: Our main objective is to investigate, to know, what microorganisms are found and how they are acting in the different oceans of the planet, placing special emphasis on the vast and practically unknown deep ocean. 6) ZOOPLANKTON: The objective of this thematic block is to assess the diversity and efficiency of the energy transfer of the ocean zooplankton community on a global scale. 7) PHYTOPLANKTON AND BIOLOGICAL PRODUCTION: Quantify how solar radiation is transmitted through the water column. The behavior of the photosynthetically active light band, which includes visible light of wavelengths between 400 and 700, and of bands of light in the ultraviolet zone will be studied separately. Quantify the magnitude of the organic matter (in particulate and dissolved form) synthesized by the photosynthetic phytoplankton (the so-called primary production or PP), Quantify the carbon consumed by the respiration of the pelagic community, from the surface to the deepest levels of the water column) and compare it with the PP of the different areas visited, - Study the structure of sizes and the distribution by groups of the phytoplankton communities, Evaluate how phytoplankton growth rates vary in response to changes in PAR intensity, ultraviolet radiation and temperature, Estimate the losses due to cell death 8) POPULAR SCIENCE: The Malaspina project has among its objectives to inform society about the impact of global change on the ocean and new opportunities to explore marine biodiversity, increase social awareness of the original Malaspina expedition and encourage scientific vocations among young people 9) STUDENT TRAINING: The Malaspina 2010 project aims to promote scientific vocations among our young people by providing a highly visible activity that will combine aspects of frontier research with an adventure component and attractive teamwork as a training framework. Six universities (U. de Barcelona, U. de Granada, U. de Oviedo, U. de Cádiz, U. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and U. Internacional Menéndez Pelayo and the CSIC) have come together to offer a common module in their postgraduate programs that will offer students the opportunity to participate in the Malaspina Expedition to develop their postgraduate project

MEDOC Cruise (29SG20100407) carried out on the Research Vessel Sarmiento de Gamboa in 2010, The Western Mediterranean basin: a natural laboratory of the processes of formation of continental margins extension. During the cruise collected 16 Multichannel Seismic Reflection (MCS) profiles using a 3.75 km-long streamer and a 3000 c.i. G-II gun array. Each transect provides the tectonic structure, the geometry of sedimentary deposits, and P-wave seismic velocity distribution. This information allows to interpret the mechanisms of deformation, infer the importance and potential role of magmatism in the rifting process, and estimate the region of mantle exhumation, currently inferred from one drill site. The analysis of the data provides insight in the process of formation of asymmetry structure conjugated margins

EVENT-DEEP Cruise (29SG20100513) carried out on the Research Vessel Sarmiento de Gamboa in 2010, During the EVENT-DEEP survey (May 10th-June 7th 2010, research vessel B/O Sarmiento de Gamboa) the Yussuf Fault, located on the bisector of the Alboran Sea, and the Al-Hoceima Fault, located in the territorial waters of Morocco, have been investigated. Multibeam echosounder, high-resolution and high-penetration multichannel seismics, sub-bottom seismic profiling and gravity data have been acquired during the cruise. This new dataset will allow us to characterize the geometry of the faults and obtain earthquake recurrence intervals. In addition, images and samples of deep corals in the Bank of Chella and Alborán Ridge have also been acquired

SAGAS-BIS Cruise (29SG20100609) carried out on the Research Vessel Sarmiento de Gamboa in 2010, The Gibraltar Arc System: Geodynamic Processes in the South Margin. The SAGASbis project intends to study, through a multidisciplinary geological and geophysical approach, the recent evolution of the Spanish margin and the Alborán Sea basins, with the aim of 1) better understanding the dynamics of the external processes responsible for morphology and sedimentation in the South-Iberian continental margins 2) analyze the interrelation between deep and superficial processes 3) determine the stratigraphic architecture in adjacent margin and basin segments and 4) characterize submarine and paleoseismic morphologies, paying special attention to turbiditic and instability systems Plio-Quaternary sedimentary. The area under study is located in a region where there are considerable earthquakes and underwater landslides, which is why this project is of great interest in order to design preventive actions and contingency plans for geological and environmental risks. At the same time, the exploration of this area will serve to detect the presence of hydrocarbons. This project has carried out a geological campaign aimed at the acquisition of acoustic and seismic data from the seabed and the collection of sediment cores

SERCEL-2 Cruise (29SG20100625) carried out on the Research Vessel Sarmiento de Gamboa in 2010, Seismic instrumentation test cruise

IDEADOS-10 Cruise (29SG20100712) carried out on the Research Vessel Sarmiento de Gamboa in 2010, Benthopelagic ecosystem structure in the western Mediterranean: a multidisciplinary approach and different time scales in the Balearic Islands.The overall objective is to determine relationships between environmental conditions and nekto-benthic slope communities in two areas of the western Mediterranean, with distinct geomorphologic and hydrodynamic characteristics. Sub- Objectives 1.To determine the effect that seasonal variability of the hydrodynamics has on the species and communities of the slope and on their trophic resources along the water column, by means of the study of the various compartments of the zooplankton (micro-, meso- and macro-zooplankton) and nekton (micro- and macro-nekton). 2. To determine the viability of applying acoustic methods for the characterization of the communities in the Deep Scattering Layers (DSL) of the meso-pelagic domain.3. To determine the influence of the high frequency variability (daily, fortnightly and/or monthly) of the oceanographic conditions on the biology and dynamics of the red shrimp. 4. To contextualize the oligotrophic ecosystems of the Balearic Islands from a global perspective, including adjacent areas of western Mediterranean, from: (i) the estimation of the degree of connectivity between populations of the continental margin of the north-western Mediterranean and the Balearic Islands, using geochemical markers in hake otoliths; and, (ii) the analysis of information from fishing exploitation on the peninsular coast and the archipelago

CONTOURIBER-1 Cruise (29SG20100917) carried out on the Research Vessel Sarmiento de Gamboa in 2010, Depositional outline systems generated by Mediterranean water around the Iberian Peninsula: trends and enviaronmental implications.Objectives, 1. Characterize geological structures of the continental margin and how influence (and have influenced the past) in the circulation of water bodies. 2. Map, some for the first time, and determine how the contornitic deposits generated by the influence of Mediterranean water bodies are built 3. Determine its evolution in each one of the zones to reconstruct the climatic variations and sea level and how they influence marine circulation , past and present. 4. Know the implications of the water masses on the seabed, both in the presence of mineral resources, as on the development of specific geohabitats

OAMMS-3 Cruise (29GD20100301) carried out on the Research Vessel García del Cid in 2010, Observation, Analysis and Modelling of the Mediterranean Sea(OMMS).The main objective is to consolidate a system of observation of the Mediterranean Sea through the real-time measurement of a number of meteorological and oceanographic magnitudes with a moored buoy, complemented by periodic visits with a research vessel to the mooring site and assimilation of the observations obtained in order to carry out the systematic forecasting of sea conditions in the NW Mediterranean Sea.Six-monthly visits from the R/V Garcia del Cid will be performed at the mooring site and at a grid covering parts of the Catalan Sea. On-deck inspection and maintenance of the instrumentation on the buoy will be carried out. The system was equipped with: a. Positional (GPS, ARGOS transmitter) and meteorological sensors (radiation, wind direction and speed -2 units-, air temperature -2 units-, relative humidity and air pressure). b. Sea surface sensor (temperature, salinity) and ADCP downward looking current meter. c. Underwater sensors -2 units- (depth, temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, fluorescence, turbidity, photosynthetic active radiation –PAR-). d. Data logging (Campbell Scientific) and system control. e. transmitting (two-way GSM modem connection) to the shore The proposed research project also aims at consolidating an observational system based on the CEAB multiparametric buoy, equipped with meteorological and oceanographic sensors for real time measurement and transmission to shore of the atmospheric and marine conditions. The buoy will be moored from the B/O García del Cid at a fixed point in the catalan coast, at the head of the Blanes canyon. Automatic observations will be complemented by a series of visits with the CEAB boat to the station where the buoy is moored in order to gather water and plankton samples. At the same time, the present procedure will be improved for the acquisition of water color data (chlorophyll, yellow substance, suspended particles) obtained by the MERIS sensor on board ESA’s ENVISAT satellite. These data offer two levels: 1) real time high spacial resolution files for the western Mediterranean Sea (Levels 1 and 2); and 2) global low to medium spacial resolution (Level 3). The data, together with other historical data also available, will constitute the project database with public access installed in the CEAB server. Limited access will be granted to users in general and, under request, to those with justified scientific or educational interests. A protocol for quality control of the data will be established and followed by statistical analysis in order to provide the models with a sound observational base for their calibration and validation

DESMMON-2 Cruise (29GD20100409) carried out on the Research Vessel García del Cid in 2010, The project aims to make a macro-scale description, from the Sea of ​​Alborán to the Catalan Sea, including the Balearic canals, of the main physical, chemical and biological properties throughout a complete seasonal cycle. It includes the distribution of physical properties and identification of different water bodies, as well as inorganic nutrients, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll, and abundance and taxonomic composition of phytoplankton and zooplankton communities. Particularly innovative within the continental shelf and platform of the Spanish Mediterranean will address the distribution of total inorganic carbon, dissolved organic carbon and particulate matter, methane and nitrous oxide as well as the exchange of greenhouse gases through the ocean- atmosphere and deposition of volatile organic carbon

COSTEM-1 Cruise (29GD20100520) carried out on the Research Vessel García del Cid in 2010, The COSTEM project studies the current processes that control the sedimentary dynamics on the external platform, the headwaters of submarine canyons and the upper slope of the continental margin of the Ebro and the Gulf of Valencia. The main objective of the study is to expand the knowledge of the current mechanisms of sediment transport from the platform to the slope, and determine the role played by this system in energy episodes such as heavy storms or the presence of internal waves