Marion Island Relief Voyage on the SA Agulhas II Voyage 015, April 2015

The Marion Island Relief Voyage was conducted on the SA Agulhas II Voyage 015 from 9 April to 15 May, 2015. The 2015 Marion Relief Voyage on board South Africa’s polar research and supply vessel MV SA Agulhas II offered yet another opportunity to conduct multi-disciplinary ship-based oceanographic research focusing on links and interactions between air and sea, ocean physics, chemistry, biogeochemistry and biology, including microbial, planktic and benthic communities. The overall aim was to continue contributing to the establishment of an oceanographic observation and monitoring system directed by South African research institutions in support of South Africa’s needs – and where possible, the global requirements of the Global Oceans Observing System (GOOS), the Southern Ocean Observing System (SOOS), the Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACAP), etc. With the declaration in April 2013 of the Prince Edward Islands (PEIs) as South Africa’s first offshore Marine Protected Area (MPA), the outcomes of this cruise will further contribute toward an integrated view and a better understanding of the functioning of the combined island/marine PEI ecosystem.