Plattform Platform	Reise-Nr. Cruise-No.	Zeitraum Period	Projekt Project	Arbeitsgebiet Working area
Meteor	M78-3b	19.06.2009 - 06.07.2009		SW Atlantic (Limit 20W)

Fahrtleiter Chief Scientist	Institut Institute	Auslaufhafen Port of departure	Einlaufhafen Port of return	Stationskarte Station map	Schiffsroute Trackchart
Wefer Gerold	Universitat Bremen, Zentrum fur Marine Umweltwissenschaften	Montevideo	Montevideo

Ziel der Reise / Objectives of Cruise:

The slope off Uruguay and Northern Argentina offer the possibility to study sediment transport including the related downslope and alongslope processes in a relatively small area. Huge amounts of terrigenous sediments are deposited by the Rio de la Plata and other rivers on the shelf and at the continental margin. These quickly accumulated sediments are potentially unstable and might be transported downslope in canyons and/or on the open slope. Strong contour currents result in along-slope sediment transport. Within the scope of Meteor-Cruise M78/3b the work of the previous Meteor-Cruise M78/3a was continued. The main target was to investigate sediment transport and depositional patterns from the slope to the deep-sea. For this purpose mainly a mobile drill rig was used at sites, which were previously surveyed using seismics and hydroacoustic systems during Meteor-Cruise M78/3a. Additional geological sampling was done at water depth the rig could not reach or sampling by gravity corer was sufficient. Geotechnical investigations were carried out with the aim to analyze the controlling parameters for the destabilization of the slope and the succeeding failure of a sediment body. Geochemical analysis were done for pore water analysis. During change of station and transit times hydroacoustic data was collected to fill data gaps of the first leg and to search for promissing core locations.

Messungen / Measurements