Biological Oceanography
in a Changing Ocean

Conducting research at sea provides a unique opportunity to observe the plankton species you have known for years, alive and moving in seawater, freshly collected from their natural habitat and brought to the surface. Their natural colours and movements remain, something not to take for granted, especially when usually working with preserved samples. In between laboratory work and filtering, we have found some extra time to seclude ourselves in the microscope room and take a

I think every child encountering a compass for the first time will ask the very natural question of what might happen if you continued following the needle.

On this cruise we have several people interested in phytoplankton, each looking at a slightly different part of this fascinating community.

Pensé que mi viaje iba a ser rápido, teniendo en cuenta la inmensa energía que llevaba conmigo en mis primeros instantes de vida.

I thought my journey would be a fast one, considering the immense energy I carried with me in the first moments of my existence.

My name is Espe Broullón and I am part of the IMAGE cruise because of the science, the good food and the people.

Coa miña investigación estudo como a mestura afecta á distribución de calor, salinidade e nutrientes nos océanos.

Hoy es el cumple de Dani. Dani es supermayor, hoy hace 5 años ya. Deberíais conocerla, porque es un ser increíble, más que precioso.

In the Arctic the most spectacular one is the copepod Metridia, a little critter which flashes a bright blue light when disturbed, apparently to confuse predators.

Pues por aquí estoy de nuevo, en medio de los mares, bajo un movimiento constante de olas, que te mecen para dormir pero que te complican un poquillo el resto de las tareas diarias. Como muchas veces, y especialmente en esta campaña IMAGE, estos viajes son el reencuentro con compañeros de antiguas aventuras, además de la maravillosa experiencia de conocer a futuros amigos para toda la vida. Y es verdad, como me dijeron hace muchos años, los amigos que haces en el mar son para

After carrying the excitement about the upcoming cruise with me a couple of day, I remembered to ask where the cruise will go. “We will start in Rejkjavik and end in Svalbard”.

No, no he tirado esta botella al mar desde la costa granaína; sino desde el ártico.

No, I haven't thrown this bottle into the sea from the coast of Granada, but from the Arctic.

Respiration involves oxygen uptake, CO₂ production, and the biological consumption of organic carbon.

There is perhaps one question that sums up life on a Spanish cruise better than any scientific conclusion: "¿Dónde está la pata de jamón?"

De todos los lugares del laboratorio flotante Odón de buen me ha tocado el mejor, un rincón con ventana desde el cual puedo admirar el mar en sus infinitos cambios, sus atardeceres y sus borrascas.

Of all the places in Odón de buen's floating laboratory, I’ve been given the best one: a little corner with a window from which I can admire the sea in all its infinite variations, its sunsets and its storms.

Despois de case 40 anos dedicado á Oceanografía, con 25 campañas ás costas, e de pasar case 2 anos de vida a bordo dun barco, a última fronteira era navegar os mares nórdicos ata as portas do océano Ártico.

After nearly 40 years dedicated to oceanography, with 25 cruises under my belt and almost 2 years of my life spent living aboard a ship, the final frontier is to sail the northern seas to the gateway of the Arctic Ocean.

I have traded the heat of the Lisbon summer for the bitter cold of the Greenland Sea, where I am now embarked for yet another oceanographic adventure.