The health of the Southern Ocean and the organisms in it could be dictated by underwater volcanoes, researchers say.
A marine research team will leave Fremantle on Friday, bound for the sub-Antarctic Heard and McDonald Islands 4000km southwest of Perth, to map the sea floor and research the link between iron produced from submarine volcanoes and its effect on marine life.
Marine geophysicist and voyage chief scientist Mike Coffin said researchers suspected iron was critical to the growth of phytoplankton blooms, the foundation for life in the Southern Ocean.
"Moreover, phytoplankton contribute at least half of the oxygen in Earth's atmosphere," Professor Coffin said.
Co-chief scientist and associate professor Andrew Bowie said if a link was found between iron and phytoplankton health, it would be a world first.
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"Quite simply, the Southern Ocean is anaemic," he said.
"It will be the first proven link globally between solid Earth processes associated with hotspot volcanism and biological processes in the ocean."
The CSIRO's $120 million Marine National Facility research vessel Investigator will tow a deep sea camera and deploy sensors to identify phytoplankton blooms.
The sea floor mapping and sub-sea acoustic systems will survey active hydrothermal systems, known as black smokers, and submarine volcanoes that are thought to be spread over several hundred kilometres of sea floor.
The 26-person expedition will conclude in Hobart on March 5.
