China places first ecological subsurface mooring buoy in polar region

(ECNS) -- China's 40th Antarctic expedition team placed its first ecological subsurface mooring buoy in the Amundsen Sea on Saturday.

Wang Jinhui, deputy leader of the expedition team on China's research icebreaker Xuelong-2, introduced that the main ecological sensors of the ecological deep-water mooring buoy were independently developed, and they use optical and acoustic methods for long-term detection of Antarctic krill in the upper ocean.

Deployed at a depth of approximately 3,000 meters, this bouy is slated to remain operational for one year to collect long-term series data on krill and relevant ecological environmental parameters.

It will help better understand the seasonal distribution characteristics of Antarctic krill, analyze the status of major biological populations and potential impacts of climate change in Antarctica under global warming, and provide a scientific basis for the protection of Antarctic marine ecology.