The Australian Integrated Marine Observing System (IMOS)

The Integrated Marine Observing System aims to
observe the oceans around Australia to meet the national
and international research needs. Australia has one of
the largest marine jurisdictions of any nation on earth.
At over 14 million km2
Australia’s Exclusive Economic
Zone (EEZ) is nearly twice the surface area of the
Australian continent. It extends from the tropics to high
latitudes in Antarctic waters and much of it is
unexplored.
The surrounding Pacific and Indian Oceans strongly
affect the continental climate-system at all time scales,
from seasons to decades. The major ocean currents on
its eastern, western, northern and southern boundaries,
best known of these being the East Australian Current
(EAC) and the Leeuwin Current affect regional climatic
conditions and help sustain the marine ecosystems.
There is evidence that these currents are changing on
decadal time scales and have already impacted marine
ecosystems, but the data is sparse and neither the
currents nor ecosystems have been monitored in a
systematic way.