Editorial Page

Life Aquatic

Some creatures prefer to spend their lives deep under water

The Global Ocean Sampling Expedition (GOS) is an ocean exploration genome project with the goal of assessing the genetic diversity in marine microbial communities and understanding their role in nature's fundamental processes.

10 days

Duration of the expedition
3 islands

Adams, Waiheke, and Secretary Island
5 boats

On the research mission

Jessica Marshall

Marine Biologist

It was begun as a Sargasso Sea pilot sampling project in August 2003, Craig Venter announced the full Expedition on 4 March 2004. The project, which used Craig Venter's personal yacht, started in Halifax, Canada, and circumnavigated the globe and returning to the U.S. in January 2006.

Beginnings

The history of Marine Biology

Marine biology is the scientific study of organisms in the ocean or other marine or brackish bodies of water. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies species based on the environment rather than on taxonomy. Marine biology differs from marine ecology as marine ecology is focused on how organisms interact with each other and the environment, while biology is the study of the organisms themselves.

Joseph Smith

Marine biologist

Just over a month later, on February 24, 1831, the expedition sighted bare mountain tops through the ocean ice. Biscoe correctly surmised that they were part of a continent and named the area Enderby Land in honour of his patrons. On February 28, a headland was spotted, which Biscoe named Cape Ann; the mountain atop the headland would later be named Mount Biscoe.

Marine biology is the scientific study of organisms in the ocean or other marine or brackish bodies of water. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies species based on the environment rather than on taxonomy. Marine biology differs from marine ecology as marine ecology is focused on how organisms interact with each other and the environment, while biology is the study of the organisms themselves.

THE QUESTION

Can the ocean save our planet?

Just over a month later, on February 24, 1831, the expedition sighted bare mountain tops through the ocean ice. Biscoe correctly surmised that they were part of a continent and named the area Enderby Land in honor of his patrons. On February 28, a headland was spotted, which Biscoe named Cape Ann; the mountain atop the headland would later be named Mount Biscoe.

Biscoe kept the expedition in the area while he began to chart the coastline, but after a month his and his crews' health were deteriorating. The expedition set sail toward Australia, reaching Hobart, Tasmania in May, but not before two crew members had died from scurvy.

Biscoe correctly surmised that they were part of a continent and named the area Enderby Land in honor of his patrons.

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Marine biology is the scientific study of organisms in the ocean or other marine or brackish bodies of water. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies species based on the environment rather than on taxonomy. Marine biology differs from marine ecology as marine ecology is focused on how organisms interact with each other and the environment, while biology is the study of the organisms themselves.

Credits

Editor-in-Chief — Matt Porter

Editor — Kate Brown

Photographer — Johan Rose

Producer — Amanda Lee

Special thanks to the sailors

and the captain