Research ship Azores Ocean finishes first mission, opens to visitors in Ponta Delgada
Azores GuideThe Azores Ocean has surveyed deep-sea habitats for the marine protected areas. The public can go aboard in Ponta Delgada on 9 November.
The research ship Azores Ocean has completed its first scientific mission, the opening stage of the AMPO2026 oceanographic campaign on the ecosystems of the Azores. The first phase ran from 26 October to 3 November, according to notícias que contam.
The crew studied deep-sea habitats and collected baseline data for future monitoring of the Azores Marine Protected Areas Network. The Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA) contracted the science to the University of the Azores, whose OKEANOS institute planned the missions, set the methods, took part in the work and processed the data.
A second phase runs from 7 November to 9 December with the Portuguese Navy, under the scientific coordination of the Hydrographic Institute. It includes bathymetric and geophysical surveys south of São Miguel and Faial.
The ship will be open to the public in the port of Ponta Delgada on 9 November, from 15:00 to 17:00, notícias que contam reports.
According to Rádio Atlântida, the ship is about 46 metres long and has diesel-electric propulsion. Together with its scientific equipment and a remotely operated underwater vehicle, it cost about 30 million euros, paid for by the Recovery and Resilience Plan.
This site reported earlier on questions about the vessel: César seeks clarity on management of Azores research vessel.
Sources
Azores Guide
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