The Xuelong-2 icebreaker, a significant asset in China’s scientific exploration efforts, successfully wrapped up its monumental 208-day expedition after covering 40,000 nautical miles, returning to Haikou City in Hainan Province on May 28.
This mission marked China’s 41st Antarctic campaign and the world’s first collaborative expedition dedicated to studying Antarctic autumn ecosystems. The team comprised 91 participants, including researchers from China, Australia, South Korea, the United States, Malaysia, Norway, Thailand, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, among whom were 10 faculty members and students from Shanghai Jiao Tong University’s School of Oceanography.
During the field survey conducted from March 27 to April 15, the researchers worked under extremely harsh conditions, enduring temperatures as low as minus 20 degrees Celsius. They successfully gathered over 5,000 samples across 24 sampling stations, including diverse aquatic specimens, sediment cores, and sea ice samples.
This expedition was pivotal as it delivered the first comprehensive study of critical Antarctic trophic levels such as zooplankton, Antarctic krill, mesopelagic fish, seabirds, and marine mammals during the vital autumn period. The findings offer valuable insights into how polar species adapt to the severe low-light conditions of winter and reveal processes related to carbon transport into the deep ocean during ice formation.
Source: news.cgtn.com
