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Over The Horizon

Studying the Southern Ocean

Gaps in knowledge of the hydrography of the Southern Ocean south of New Zealand, marine life and ecological interactions there, and the area's role in global climate change provide good justification for developing a New Zealand programme of marine research in the Southern Ocean along similar lines to that of South Africa's National Antarctic Programme (SANAP), suggests visiting South African researcher Denzil Miller.

Miller, chair of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources's science panel was speaking at the Antarctic Science: Beyond 2000 workshop, during a visit sponsored by the British Council, Kelly Tarlton's and Antarctica New Zealand.

Like other South African government agencies, SANAP recently went through a major restructuring exercise to ensure that the needs of the government's Reconstruction and Development Programme were met. Careful juggling of priorities and resources has resulted in an organisation ready to carry out a "coherent, relevant and politically-defensible programme of marine research in the Southern Ocean".