We returned to Sonabia in order to document the sea floors in that area. We carried out the first dive off Cotonera Island, in front of Islares, where there are various rock formations atop a sandy seabed. The top part of the rock formations was covered in Cystoseira algae and we found other species on … Read more
In the morning, we return to the mouth of the Oriñón estuary to dive, once off the whale of Sonabia and then again off the Cercadas Islands. For the first dive, we return to the underwater passageways of the Whale, where some rocks are 6 meters high and many of them are covered with red … Read more
We say goodbye to Santander under cloudy skies and set sail towards our next port, Castro Urdiales. During the first dive, off the Morcejonera rock in front of Ris beach, the flat seabed was comprised of sand and small rocks. The rocky area was covered with Cystoseira algae. We also spot some areas covered with … Read more
We took advantage of the lack of wind and calm day and made two dives near the shore. In the first dive, at Bajo El Doble or Ganzanilla off De Berria beach, we found a sea bottom with rocks at different elevations and overhangs where the great majority of the rock is covered by some … Read more
Finally the sea offered us a beautiful calm day, so we planned two dives with deep-sea divers, un under Cabezo la Vaca and the other at Cabo Quejo. In the first dive, at less than 1 nautical mile from shore, to the west of Cabo Mayor, the rocky bottom was covered by algae, mainly of … Read more
After two days waiting in Santander without having been able to dive at all, everyone on board is anxious to dive and document the sea bottom. However, working conditions outside the bay continue to be unsuitable. Pablo López invites us to go diving with him at Isla de la Torre, an area strongly influenced by … Read more
Joan and Manuel continue working to solve the ROV’s problems, but for now, we still can’t document deep seabeds. Since the weather conditions outside the bay do not allow the divers to work, we stay in port and carry out some maintenance work on the equipment. Pablo López, a biologist who works in the Santander … Read more
Almost 50% of these long-living ecosystems have disappeared from European waters. Some coral formations date back more than 8,000 years. The Oceana Ranger research vessel has discovered deep-sea white coral in the Aviles Canyon. The deep-sea coral was identified using an underwater robot, which can work down to 600 meters. The first colonies of white … Read more
We set sail at 8:20 from Santander in search of the seamounts near the city in order to dive and document the seabeds, although the sky was clouded over and the wind was causing some waves. We’ve had problems with the ROV and we’re waiting for some spare parts to arrive from Barcelona. So, the … Read more
Although the morning was completely clouded over, with winds from the N-NW, we carried out two dives with the ROV at two seamounts off the Galizano coast: La Maruca and El Castro seamounts, areas where artisanal fisheries have traditionally operated. The dive at La Maruca, at approximately 120 meters depth, was complicated due to the … Read more
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