Our Expeditions
From deep-ocean Arvor deployments to high-altitude lake surveys and accessible mini-expeditions — explore every programme below.
Arvor Float Missions
The Arvor profiling float is the workhorse of our deep-ocean observation programme. Deployed across the Atlantic and coastal seas, each float drifts at a parking depth before rising through the water column, transmitting temperature, salinity, and biogeochemical data via satellite before sinking to repeat.
Mission log
North Atlantic Deep Survey
A constellation of Arvor-I profiling floats deployed across the Labrador Sea to capture high-resolution hydrographic data at depth. Each float completes 10-day cycles, drifting at 1 000 m and profiling to 2 000 m before surfacing to transmit. Data feeds directly into the Copernicus Marine Service and supports ongoing research into deepwater formation and subpolar gyre variability.
- Location Labrador Sea
- Float type Arvor-I
- Max depth 2 000 m
- Cycle period 10 days
- Parameters T · S · O₂
- Year 2024
Bay of Biscay Oxygen Campaign
An ongoing multi-year effort tracking the evolution of oxygen minimum zones on the Bay of Biscay slope. Arvor-DO floats equipped with optode sensors complete quarterly surveys, providing one of the longest continuous BGC-Argo records in the region. Seasonal monitoring of oxygen minimum zones and carbonate chemistry across the continental slope.
- Location Bay of Biscay
- Float type Arvor-DO
- Max depth 1 500 m
- Parameters T · S · O₂ · pH
- Period 2023 – ongoing
Lac du Bourget Thermal Survey
Using a freshwater-adapted Arvor-L float, this programme delivers continuous thermocline profiling in Lac du Bourget — France's largest natural lake — through spring stratification and summer bloom periods. Fluorescence data allows real-time tracking of cyanobacteria risk, feeding directly into public health advisories for the region.
Seasonal thermocline profiling and phytoplankton dynamics are monitored from April through October, capturing the full arc of lake stratification at 145 m depth.
Archive
A challenging winter deployment that keeps the float active through ice-cover periods — a rarely captured window into convective mixing and hypoxia risk beneath the ice sheet. Under-ice profiling captures cold-water mixing and nutrient cycling in this large peri-alpine lake straddling the Swiss–French border.
Full mission report →Mini-Expeditions
Short, accessible field experiences welcoming citizen scientists, school groups, and curious minds aboard our vessels or into the field. No prior experience required.
Rade de Brest Citizen Survey
A one-day hands-on deployment welcoming citizen scientists aboard to release and track a surface drifter in the bay.
Rade de Brest Citizen Survey
A day at sea with our team — participants help prepare, deploy, and monitor a surface drifter before watching the real-time track appear on their phones. No experience needed. Designed for schools, associations, and curious minds.
Register / learn more →Estuary Salinity Mapping
A half-day kayak transect collecting salinity and temperature readings across the tidal gradient of a small Breton estuary.
Estuary Salinity Mapping
Participants paddle a marked transect with handheld CTD probes, logging readings every 100 m. Data is compiled in a shared map that visualises the freshwater–saltwater mixing zone in real time.
Register / learn more →