Revealing Roo Rise: OceanX Expedition Establishes a New Scientific Baseline for the High Seas
The OceanX expedition has completed a 22-day mission to map and study the biodiversity of the Roo Rise region in the Indian Ocean. The team successfully mapped over 12,800 square kilometers of seabed and collected extensive biological and environmental data.
Why it matters
Establishing scientific baselines for high seas regions is critical for international marine conservation and understanding deep-sea ecosystems.
Expedition maps more than 12,800 square kilometers of seabed and documents deep-sea biodiversity across a little-studied high seas region SINGAPORE – Media OutReach Newswire – 4 August 2026 – OceanX today announced the completion of High Seas: Revealing Roo Rise, a 22-day scientific expedition aboard R/V OceanXplorer to investigate one of the eastern Indian Ocean's most ecologically significant and under-characterized high seas regions. Scientists monitor a deep-sea sampling dive from Mission Control aboard OceanXplorer as an ROV pilot navigates ROV Chimaera. Conducted in collaboration with Minderoo Foundation, Minderoo OceanOmics Centre at UWA, the Western Australian Museum, and the Living High Seas Initiative, the expedition surveyed two seamount features within Roo Rise. One lies within the South of Java Island Ecologically and Biologically Significant Marine Area [EBSA], while the other is located near its southwestern boundary. Researchers from the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore also participated in the expedition.
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