During China’s 16th Arctic Ocean Scientific Expedition, researchers aboard the icebreaker Xuelong (Snow Dragon) successfully recovered a submerged scientific mooring that had been collecting observations in the Arctic Ocean for approximately one year.
Sea ice complicated the recovery, requiring around 30 expedition members to work in coordination for nearly 12 hours while Xuelong repeatedly adjusted its position and heading. The mooring was successfully retrieved shortly before 4 a.m.
The recovered instrument contains a year of continuous observations from different ocean depths. The dataset will contribute to research on seasonal changes in the Arctic marine environment and ecosystem and provide valuable long-term in-situ observations for understanding ongoing environmental change in the Arctic.
China Media Group documented the recovery operation, with video reports available below: