Southeast Asia Information Port (www.dnyxxg.com) – Reporters learned on the 25th from the Ministry of Natural Resources of China that the joint China-Cook Islands (CCO) seabed minerals bureau, jointly promoted by the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Cook Islands Seabed Minerals Bureau and organized by the Second Institute of Oceanography of the Ministry of Natural Resources, has successfully completed its expedition. This marks a crucial step forward in China-Cook Islands marine cooperation and injects new momentum into the bilateral blue-water partnership.
Chinese and Cook Islands researchers conducted joint operations in the Cook Islands' exclusive economic zone, completing over 2,400 kilometers of shipborne multibeam bathymetry surveys, accurately acquiring high-precision seabed topographic data for key sea areas; conducting towed camera surveys, clearly recording the distribution of benthic organisms, seabed characteristics, and high-definition video data from the basin to the seamount profile; and successfully implementing box sampling, CTD (conductivity, temperature, depth) profiler (CTD) observations and water sampling, multi-tube sampling, and long-term moored observations, collecting valuable samples of various types, including deep-sea nodules, crusts, sediments, seawater, and organisms, obtaining first-hand marine environmental data. This expedition laid the foundation for scientifically assessing the seabed mineral resource potential of the Cook Islands' exclusive economic zone and establishing a regional marine environmental baseline, effectively filling a gap in scientific data for the region.
During the voyage, the Chinese research team provided deep-sea resource survey technology and theoretical training to the Cook Islands' participating members and conducted academic exchanges. Researchers from both sides exchanged views on the geology, benthic organism types and characteristics of relevant areas in the eastern Pacific Ocean, enhancing mutual understanding of the seabed geology and marine environment of the region.
This voyage was the first joint expedition conducted by the Ministry of Natural Resources of China and the Cook Islands, laying a solid foundation for in-depth cooperation between the two sides in areas such as deep-sea exploration, marine environmental protection, and marine capacity building. (End)
