File:CSIRO ScienceImage 10720 The remotely operated submersible Jason being recovered on board the RV Thompson The red cable is the photoelectronic tether to the ship which controls operations and sends images and data back to the ship.jpg

English: Scientists from the USA and Australia undertook a four-week expedition to explore the deep ocean south-west of Tasmania to search for life deeper than any previous voyage in Australian waters. The sampling documented the deepest known Australian fauna, including a bizarre carnivorous sea squirt, sea spiders and giant sponges, and previously unknown marine communities dominated by gooseneck barnacles and millions of round, purple-spotted sea anemones. Vast fields of fossil corals were discovered below 1400 metres, and dated to more than 10,000 years old. The samples collected will be used to determine the periods over the last millions of years when reefs have existed south of Tasmania. They will also provide ancient climate data that contribute to models of regional and global climate change, based on historical circulation patterns in the Southern Ocean. The research team aboard the research vessel RV Thomas G. Thompson deployed a deep diving, remotely operated subm