A few SMSG & SAERI members are getting ready to fly out to Ascension to participate in a dive survey aiming to fill in the remaining knowledge gaps, building capacity and facilities at Ascension Island, and to enable the sustainable management of marine resources beyond the lifespan of the project.
The two SMSG/SAERI surveys planned for the AIMS (Ascension Island Marine Survey) programme are to augment the work conducted by the AIMS team, on the island, by filling in gaps in sampling, particularly in environments and habitats not yet sampled or under sampled.
A team of 15 divers has been put together, and responsibilities will be split between us to ensure we can get the maximum data out of the survey.
- Dr Paul Brickle – Principle Scientist
- Andrew Richardson – Principle Scientist
- Dr Paul Brewin – Principle Scientist
- Kate Downs
- Emma Nolan
- Dr Judith Brown
- Steve Brown
- Dr Rob Mrowicki
- Dr Simon Morley
- Dr Vladimir Laptikhovsky
- Peter Wirtz
- Steve Cartwright
- Jerry Pearce
- Dion Poncet
- Juliette Hennequin
The survey will be conducted over a period of just under 2 weeks, starting July 11th 2016.
A first team will leave the Falklands this coming Friday and join the members of the AIMS project already on Ascension. Diving should start immediately after a brief equipment check.
The past few days and the ones to come have been spent dealing with logistics for the trip, spreading the load we have to carry between us, and making sure nothing is left behind. It seems like we won’t be travelling light, as the survey requires us to carry some rather heavy pieces of equipment…but I won’t tell you more right now, you’ll have to wait till my next post to find out what exactly we are up to!
I will get back with fresh (or should I say warm?) news from Ascension next week!
Juliette Hennequin