Madeira expands deep-sea research capabilities with new technology

The Madeira Ocean Observatory is expanding its scientific capabilities to investigate deep-sea environments. While the Madeira Marine Biodiversity Monitoring program (BioMa) has focused on dives up to 30 meters in depth since 2016 across 19 locations in Madeira and Porto Santo, researchers are now moving toward deeper waters.

Investigator Pedro Neves stated that the region possesses technological capabilities superior to other regions, thanks to recently acquired equipment such as remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and autonomous vehicles. These tools will allow scientists to explore previously unknown habitats and marine communities.

Although deep-sea work is currently in an initial phase of testing complex technological instruments, Neves expressed high expectations for future findings, noting that these missions provide vital information about ecosystems that were previously only documented through sporadic or informal sightings.