Date: 2/2/2010
Eighteen scientists from
Australia,
France and
New Zealand are taking part in the initial six-week voyage to research whales, their food and their interaction with the environment. The research will use non-lethal techniques to study whale ecology and their impact on the ecosystem, Australian Antarctic Division acting chief scientist Steve Nicol said.
Japan has a six-boat whaling fleet in Antarctic waters as part of its scientific whaling programme, allowed by the International Whaling Commission despite a 1986 ban on commercial whaling.