ALBERT

Description: April 15th – April 24th 2021 Kiel (Germany) – Kiel (Germany) BALTIC APRIL 2021

Description: 31.05. - 10.07.2022, Mindelo - Pt. Delgada

Description: FS Meteor – M184 “LabSeaVar2022” 12.08. - 15.09.2022, St John’s - Hamburg 1. Wochenbericht (12. - 14.08.2022)

Description: FS Meteor – M184 “LabSeaVar2022” 12.08. - 15.09.2022, St John’s - Hamburg 2. Wochenbericht (15. - 21.08.2022)

Description: FS Meteor – M184 “LabSeaVar2022” 12.08. - 15.09.2022, St John’s - Hamburg 3. Wochenbericht (22. - 28.08.2022)

Description: 27 June – 3 July 2022

Description: 4 – 13 July 2022

Description: FS Meteor – M184 “LabSeaVar2022” 12.08. - 15.09.2022, St John’s - Hamburg 4. Wochenbericht (29.08. - 04.09.2022)

Description: FS Meteor – M184 “LabSeaVar2022” 12.08. - 15.09.2022, St John’s - Hamburg 5. Wochenbericht (05.09. - 11.09.2022)

Description: The ALKOR cruise AL547 represents a concluding milestone of the Helmholtz innovation project ARCHES (Autonomous Robotic Networks to Help Modern Societies). The aim was to implement a heterogeneous robotic sensing network to simultaneously monitor changes in the water column and at the seafloor. The network has been developed by a consortium of partners from AWI, DLR, GEOMAR and the University of Kiel. The participating sensing platforms allow for real-time data transfer and the entire network shall be able to autonomously respond to environmental changes in the ocean. The network comprised seven different mobile and stationary platforms. Tests were conducted at the Mittelgrund working area in the entrance of the Eckernförde Bay (western Baltic Sea). During 47 stations the various sensing platforms were deployed and recovered for maintenance. A total of 87853 messages were sent using hydro-acoustics, of which 71734 messages contained O 2 data, 15177 were status messages, 926 messages were commands to trigger a change of the measurement behavior of a platform and 16 messages represented broadcasts about the environmental status. We synoptically recorded short-term O 2 time series on the different platforms, which were placed along a depth gradient in the working area. As the Eckernförde Bay is known for sporadic fish kills by anoxia we hope to contribute to a better understanding of the O 2 dynamics in coastal areas.

Description: In the Helmholtz Future Project ARCHES (Autonomous Robotic Networks to Help Modern Societies) with a consortium of partners from AWI (Alfred-Wegener-Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research), DLR (German Aerospace Center), KIT (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology), and the GEOMAR (Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel), several Digital Twins of ocean observation systems were developed by the GEOMAR and AWI. The ARCHES Digital Twin Framework is one of the results of this project. The software is based on the Robot Operating System (ROS) and is written in Python.

Description: Image Quality control / quality assurance and curation Tools (IQT) conceptualised and developed by the MareHub working group on Videos/Images (part of the DataHub, a research data manangement initiative by the Helmholtz association). The MarIQT core is a python package which is helpful on its own but is key to the more user-friendly jupyter notebooks that make extensive use of the python package. Auto-generated documentation (CI) of MarIQT is available here: https://datahub.pages.hzdr.de/marehub/ag-videosimages/mariqt (password-protected) Public documentation is also available here: https://marine-imaging.com/mariqt (manually uploaded, probably older than previous link)

Description: The objective of this cruise was to establish the first order functionality of the LIGHTHOUSE system in terms of mechanics, ROV operations, electrical components and data link. This is a highly integrated suite of optical and acoustic sensors to create a real time 360° scan of an underwater environment, in order to enhance the situational awareness of pilots and mission specialists. The tests were to be conducted in the clear, deep waters of the Norwegian Sognefjord. Due to severe technical malfunctions that became only apparent during mobilization in the port of Kiel, the vessel stayed moored to the east shore and west shore quays in Kiel Harbor, except for an excursion off Boknis Eck in the Eckernförde Bight. Despite these restrictions in locality, the majority of the work programme was carried out with great success.

Description: The objective of this cruise was to conduct the final and complete field test of the LIGHTHOUSE situational awareness system for remotely operated vehicles, developed in the HVF 0068 Project LIGHTHOUSE. This included three divesof the ROV PHOCAin the Norwegian Sognefjord, during which the optical and acoustic sensors were validated. Moreover, as part of the EU H2020 project iAtlantic (grant agreement 818123), we investigated the response of pelagic deep-sea fauna to warmingand suspended sediment (which will be introduced to pelagic ecosystems by deep-sea mining activities). To this end, we captured the jellyfish Periphylla periphyllaand conducted shipboard experiments.

Description: ALKOR cruise AL548 took place as part of the EMFF (European Maritime and Fisheries Fund)-funded project BASTA (Boost Applied munition detection through Smart data inTegration and AI workflows; https://www.basta-munition.eu) and as continuation of the munition monitoring started within the BMBF-funded project UDEMM (Environmental Monitoring for the Delaboration of Munition in the Sea; https://udemm.geomar.de/). In October 2018, a first cruise (POS530 MineMoni2018) was conducted, to gather data for a broad baseline study in the German Baltic Sea. Results show a moderate contamination level on regional and coastal scale, but indicate higher levels for specific local areas. Within UDEMM, expertise was developed to detect, exactly locate and monitor munition (e.g. torpedoes, sea mines, ground mines) on the seafloor using optical and hydroacoustic means. In addition, chemical analyses of dissolved contaminants in the water and sediments was performed. Data acquired during this cruise are used in BASTA, which aims for enhanced munition detection via AUV-based artificial intelligence applied on multi-sensor datasets. At the same time, the project ExPloTect (Ex-situ, near-real-time exPlosive compound deTection in seawater) (also EMFF-funded) addresses the need for an innovative approach to detect explosive compounds in seawater. A prototype system was used and successfully tested for the first time during this cruise. The main focus was placed onto the two already known dumpsites Kolberger Heide and Lübeck Bight. Additionally, new areas Falshöft (Schleswig-Holstein) and Cadet Channel, Trollegrund and Großklützhöved (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern) were explored. In each area high-resolution multibeam mapping was performed and contact lists, indicating potential munition objects were produced on board. AUV surveys were conducted to ground-truth possible contacts via detailed photograph and magnetometer mapping. This was complemented with towed video (TV)-CTD profiles. The transits to and between those sites were planned along former constraint routes during WWII. These routes were main targets of the British Air Force and mines and bombs can be expected along these ways. During transits water samples were taken with on a CTD- (conductivity, temperature, depth) rosette-mounted Niskin bottles in regular distances, in order to obtain a comprehensive understanding munition compounds (inter alia trinitrotoluene (TNT)) measurements across the German Baltic Sea.

Description: Munition, darunter auch Flugabwehrgranaten, wurden während des Zweiten Weltkriegs in großem Umfang eingesetzt und während und nach dem Krieg in großen Mengen in der küstennahen Ostsee entsorgt. Neben der Primärladung aus Trinitrotoluol (TNT) enthielten viele Flugabwehrgranaten das hochgiftige Quecksilber(II)-fulminat (QF) als Initialzünder. Die Kolberger Heide (K) ist eine Munitionsdeponie in der Ostsee außerhalb der Kieler Bucht (KB) und liegt damit in der Nähe aktiver Schiffsrouten und dicht besiedelter Gebiete. Geophysikalische Beobachtungen haben gezeigt, dass K über 1000 Munitionsobjekte enthält, die schätzungsweise 30.000 Tonnen Munition enthalten (Kampmeier et al., 2020). Das Forschungsprojekt MUNISEE hat das primäre Ziel, das Ausmaß an Quecksilber (Hg)- Kontamination durch Munition in K, sowie in Dänisch-Nienhof (DN) außerhalb des ehemaligen dänischen Flakausbildungszentrums, zu untersuchen. Schätzungsweise sind etwa 10,5 km2 um DN herum mit Munition kontaminiert (HELCOM, 2015). Zu den spezifischen Forschungsaufgaben des Projekts gehört die Messung und Bewertung des Ausmaßes von organischem und anorganischem Hg in Gewässern, Organismen und Sedimenten. Eines der Hauptziele des MUNISEE-Projekts ist es, den Beitrag der Flugabwehrgranaten, die zur Freisetzung verschiedener Quecksilberverbindungen in die südliche Ostsee führen, in KB und DN zu bestimmen. Im Rahmen des MUNISEE-Projekts soll festgestellt werden, ob das Hg aus Flugabwehrgranaten dynamisch ist und sich lokal in der Ostsee verbreitet hat. Ein weiteres Projektziel ist die Bewertung der Hg-Mobilität, die den Hg-Transfer in die Nahrungskette umfasst. Die MUNISEE-Beobachtungen umfassten Messungen von Hg im Plankton, welcher die untere Ebene der Nahrungskette umfasst und in Fischen der Ostsee (KB und DN), um höhere Ebenen der Nahrungskette zu untersuchen. Für MUNISEE gab es vier Hauptprojektziele. Sie lassen sich wie folgt zusammenfassen: (1) Beprobung des Meerwassers und der Sedimente in DN und KB auf Quecksilber. (2) Bestimmung der Quecksilberflüsse durch den Abbau von QF und Sedimenten. (3) Bestimmung der Übertragungsrate von Quecksilberverbindungen in die Nahrungskette. (4) Präsentation der Daten für die wissenschaftliche Gemeinschaft und die Öffentlichkeit.

Description: DeepOASIS is a research proposal that was developed for the second call of research missions by the Deutsche Allianz Meeresforschung (DAM; German Alliance for Marine Reseach) in 2021. The proposal was successfully evaluated and selected for the final round of proposals. However, it was not prioritized for funding