The largest Atoll in French Polynesia

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Our fourth research mission to French Polynesia provides an opportunity for a more detailed examination of Rangiroa, the largest atoll in the Tuamotu Archipelago and one of the largest in the world. Rangiroa (meaning Vast Sky) consists of 415 small islands, …

Lessons from the Reef: Did You Know?

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It’s been two weeks since the Gambier portion of the Global Reef Expedition to French Polynesia ended. In less than two weeks, our science team will be heading back to French Polynesia to conduct research in Rangiroa. In the meantime, …

It’s not just Sand

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Collecting and analyzing sediments is a key procedure in the field of Marine Geology. It may seem trivial to give so much attention to “sand”; however, the trained sedimentologist can learn a lot from a sample of ‘sand’, or sediment. …

Something’s Fishy Around Here

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A fish sandwich? Think again. You may want to leave the fish on the reef, if you live in Mangareva.  There’s a good chance it may be ciguateric and you may get ciguatera poisoning.  Ciguatera fish poisoning (CFP) is seafood …

Acropora Gardens

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Mangareva contains more diverse coral habitats than anything we have seen to date. Parts of the outside rim of the atoll are emergent. The cross sectional profile starts with a classic reef flat, 10 m wide in places and often …