On January 6, Beijing time, China's 40th Antarctic expedition team successfully deployed deep-water ecological submersibles in the Amundsen Sea, which is also the first time that China has deployed ecological submersibles in the polar regions.
Wang Jinhui, deputy leader of the expedition team, introduced that the main ecological sensors of this set of submersible targets rely on independent research and development of key research and development projects, and carry out long-term detection of upper marine krill through optical and acoustic methods. The submersible standard is about 3,000 meters deep and is planned to be placed for one year, and will collect long-term series of krill data and related ecological and environmental parameter data.
It is reported that the deployment of this set of ecological submersibles will help to better grasp the seasonal distribution characteristics of Antarctic krill, analyze the status of major biological populations in Antarctica and the potential impact of climate change under the background of global warming, and provide a scientific basis for the protection of Antarctic marine ecology.
China's 40th Antarctic Expedition is organized by China's Ministry of Natural Resources, and plans to rely on the "Snow Dragon" and "Snow Dragon 2" and various research stations to carry out a series of comprehensive surveys and monitoring, and to study the role of Antarctica in global climate change.
Why Antarctic krill?
The food chain of Antarctic animals is very distinctive, and some people describe it this way: there are only three possibilities for an animal living in Antarctica to be divided from the food chain: it is krill, it eats krill, or it preys on animals that eat krill. This statement is a bit of a simplification from a scientific point of view, but it also makes it very clear that Antarctic krill plays a critical role in the Antarctic biosphere, where almost all animals depend directly or indirectly on krill for their survival. Some animals have 100% krill in their recipes, and there are no substitutes for them. As a typical representative of zooplankton in the Southern Ocean, Antarctic krill is a very key link in the food chain of Antarctica, playing a "switch" role. It is no exaggeration to say that their rise and fall determine the life and death of all animals in Antarctica.
At the same time, Antarctic krill plays a role in "carbon sequestration" in the earth's ecological environment, effectively reducing excessive carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which is the focus of the scientific community.
Source: Xinhuanet, China National Geographic