Eight weeks of voyage ended successfully for scientists aboard Tangaroa, after discovering amazing creatures in the Antarctic waters of New Zealand. Scientists collected over 30,000 specimens in their 2,000-mile journey on the Ross Sea, out of which many were previously unknown. Among them, the team of researchers found new species of giant starfish, jellyfish and other marine species.

The purpose of the research was to provide information from the Southern Ocean and Ross environment to further monitor the effects of climate change in the area, while at the same time they focused on the biodiversity and collected samples from the sea floor to the sea surface and captured images of the sea bed up to 4000 m depth.

Although scientists expected to find a greater diversity of fish, instead they were surprised to find marine organisms they had never seen before, as if time stood still here for some of them and they've managed to keep impressive sizes. Scientists explained the size through the conditions offered by the water they live in (low temperature, few predators, plenty of oxygen). According to the National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research (NIWA), at least 8 new species of mollusks have been discovered.

The project represents a collaboration between New Zealand’s Ministry of Fisheries, Land Information New Zealand (LINZ), Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Antarctica New Zealand, Te Papa, The National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research (NIWA) and several New Zealand Universities. A team of twenty-six scientists and 18 crew members took part in the project.

The scientific voyage, which started as part of the Census of Antarctic Marine Life (CAML) and International Polar Year (IPY), proved to be an exciting journey in terms of biodiversity, and came to show once again that we still know too little about the Antarctic region. In other words, any voyage in the enigmatic Antarctica could turn into a great discovery.

Image credits: NIWA