WELLINGTON, New Zealand, Jan. 29 (UPI) -- A New Zealand research vessel has headed for the Antarctic, beginning an eight-week census of marine life in the Ross Sea.
The Tangaroa mission is New Zealand's contribution to a 23-country international effort. The vessel, built in 1991 as a research ship and provided with new technology in 2005, has equipment that can capture images as deep as 4,000 meters under the surface and can collect samples.
"The oceans are truly the final frontier of exploration," said Pete Hodgson, the research, science and technology minister, as he joined Prime Minister Helen Clark for the departure ceremony.
The Tangaroa mission is part of the International Polar Year project, a multi-national exploration of the Arctic and Antarctic scheduled to run from March 2007 to March 2009.
Since it was launched, the Tangaroa has discovered 30 underwater volcanoes and previously unknown species, including carnivorous sponges.
