AIR Pilot in Azores Towards a DOOS pilot study site in the Atlantic Carreiro-Silva M , Colaço A, Morato T et al DOOS Steering Comittee Meeting – Washington DC, 25-26 September 2017 Credits: Ricardo Medeiros, DOP Existing EEZ 1,000,000 km2 Claimed Extended platform 2,150,000 Km2 Average depth of the Azores is . Credits: Telmo Morato, IMAR Azores - Oceanography Currents system in the North Atlantic C. Gronelândia Vórtice Subpolar C. Labrador (Ciclónico) C. Atlântico Norte AZORES C. Golfo C. Florida C. Açores C. “Loop” Vórtice Subtropical C. Canárias (Anticiclónico) C. Caraíbas C. Equatorial Norte Credits: Manuela Juliano, UAzores Migratory route for fish, cetaceans and seabirds Deep-Sea Environments Island slopes Mid-depth seamount summits Deep-sea hydro- Seamount slopes Deep seamount summits thermal vents Abyssal plains Credits: Fernando Tempera Biodiversity hotspots – Cold-water corals as prominent habitats Island shelves & Island slopes Seamount summits & Seamount slopes (deep and shallow) Abyssal Plain Hydrothermal vents Credits: Fernando Tempera, DOP Hydrothermal vents 32 sp. IFREMER Rainbow 2300 m 183km 70 sp. IFREMER EEZ Lucky Strike 1700 m 89km 37 sp. Menez Gwen IFREMER Menez Gwen 840 m Deep-sea ecosystems goods and services Adapted from Thurber et al, 2014 The dimension of our ignorance Paterson et al, 2014 Human activities – Fishing Bottom Longline Fishing Credits: Telmo Morato Human activities - Blue Growth opportunities - Mining Credits: Telmo Morato, IMAR Massive sufide deposits, manganese nodules, Mn Cobalt crusts Existing Infrastructures EMSO: European component of a global observatory networK General Scientific Goals: - Plate tectonics - Ocean circulation and climate change - Marine ecosystem dynamics and ocean produtivity - Geo hazards - Non-renewable marine resources Ensure real-time long term continuous observations Foster technology development and innovation Fixed point, deep sea multidisciplinary observatories EMSO - PT NODES The AZORES Node is devoted to the integrated study of mid-ocean ridge processes, from the sub seafloor to the water column, important for biological, geological and oceanographic processes, the CADIZ node, devoted ocean circulation, marine resources and hazards, and NorteP node dedicated to test new technologies, combine autonomous platforms with EGIM, AUV, gliders and wave glider EMSO AZORES – MoMAR Observatory Long Term Monitoring of the Mid Atlantic Ridge Geophysical Node Data archiving in Brest (www.ifremer.fr/co- en/allEulerianNetworks) OBS/JPP module Underwater connection 1 surface relay buoy (BOREL) SEAMON West node Acoustic and satellite data transmission Ecological Node Underwater WIFI 2 SEA MONitoring nodes Blandin et al. In prep TEMPO ecological module (Ifremer) Aim: provide data for research on the impact of changes in hydrothermal fluid fluxes, fluid chemistry, and water column processes on the microbial and faunal compartments SEAMON East node of deep sea vents, at a range of spatial (Km to microbial habitats) and temporal (seconds to several years) scales. EMSO-AZORES - Condor observatory EGIM: “EMSO Generic Instrument Module” 18 The European Aquatic Animal Tracking NetworK Goal: monitor the large scale movements and migrations of marine animals (from tunas and sharks to salmon and eels, turtles and marine mammals). The networK approach need/benefits: - Shared data, shared resources - Increased funding opportunities (large consortiums) - Voice for the scientific community 19 Land-based facilities - DeepSeaLab Aquaria to conduct experiments with deep-sea fauna Seawater temperature and pH can be independently controlled in different Pressure vessel IPOCAMP aquaria, enabling the simulation of conditions predicted as consequences of climate change Methane and Sulphur can be controlled to maintain hydrothermal vent fauna Challenges & Opportunities Challenge: Monitoring/predicting impacts of climate change on deep-sea communities Opportunity: Mooring with sensors for the collection of long-term data on carbon / biogeochemisty variables (alkalinity, pH, pCO2, oxygen, inorganic nutrients) Challenge: Limited information on functioning of deep- sea communities (corals, sponges) Opportunity: Use Mobile Deep-sea Laboratories hosting hydrographic, biogeochemical, optical and acoustic sensors, as well as fixed biological survey equipment (e.g. benthic chambers, microprofilers, sediment traps, larval pumps) and process experiments (e.g., respirometers) in combination with experiments in the land facilities molab.geomar.de Challenge: Quantify the flux of particulate organic carbon to the deep ocean (benthic-pelagic coupling) Opportunity: Oceanographic mooring with sediment traps at different water depths; optical sensors for chl-a fluorescence and, assessment of flux quantities and particle character including size- and type-distributions http://www.fao.org/docrep/009/a0210e/a0210e07.htm DOOS and the Portuguese Science Foundation are gratefully acKnowledged for sponsoring my participation at the meeting <*)))< Thank you to the Açores team….and all the external cooperations! .