Gulf of California 2015, Leg 1 – California Current 02.07.15 The 2015 Gulf of California expedition begins with a three-day transit of the R/V Western Flyer from Moss Landing to Ensenada, Mexico. On this first leg, researchers led by Senior Scientist Francisco Chavez will collect observations at a station west of the Islas Marias in the northern Eastern Pacific Warm Pool for three days. They will conduct high resolution pump sampling to study the nitrogen transformations associated with the decay of microbial phytoplankton at the top of the world’s largest oxygen minimum zone (OMZ).
Gulf of California 2015 Expedition 02.07.15 MBARI scientists are making their third expedition to the Gulf of California to build on research conducted during expeditions in 2012 and 2003. They will continue many ongoing investigations in this 1,130-kilometer-long (700-mile-long) finger of water that separates the peninsula of Baja California from mainland Mexico.