An international team of geoscientists has set out on a sea expedition to explore submarine canyons in the central Mediterranean Sea.

Submarine canyons are large and deep valleys eroded in the seafloor. They are poorly studied features that host a wide diversity of marine life. The study of submarine canyons is important because they transfer nutrients and pollutants from coastal waters to the deep ocean and can be a focus of submarine landslides and associated tsunamis.

The CUMECS expedition will survey unexplored canyons located 80 km to the east of Malta. The team, which is led by Dr Aaron Micallef from the Universities of Malta and Barcelona, hopes to understand how these submarine canyons have formed, if they are still active nowadays, and what organisms they host.

The CUMECS team will use state-of-the-art technology on board the Italian research vessel Urania to compile a detailed seafloor map, acquire video imagery with a remotely operated vehicle, and collect samples from more than 1000 m water depth. The team consists of scientists and graduate students from eight research institutions in Europe and New Zealand. A documentary will be shot during the expedition to increase awareness among students and the general public about the diversity, beauty and importance of investigating and protecting deep sea environments.

The CUMECS expedition departed from Valletta today. It is funded by Eurofleets (http://www.eurofleets.eu), an EU Framework Programme 7 project. People interested in the expedition can follow the activities on board the vessel in real-time on:

www.cumecs2012.blogspot.com

and

www.facebook.com/cumecs2012