Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) Department of Ocean Science and Engineering was the host organization for the 4th International Network for Submarine Canyon Investigation and Scientific (INCISE2018). More than 60 experts from 13 countries and regions attended the conference at Kylin Villa in Shenzhen to exchange cutting-edge academic achievements. It was also an opportunity for attendees to explore development prospects in submarine canyons. Professor Xu Jingping from SUSTech’s Department of Ocean Science and Engineering was the rotating chairman for this session.
Submarine canyons are one of the most important topographic and geomorphological features of continental shelves. They are the main path for transporting terrigenous sediments and pollutants from the continental shelf to the deep sea. The extremely complex terrain makes submarine canyon research tremendously challenging. The conference was divided into five major themes- Canyon processes in the space-time continuum (formation, evolution, circulation); New ways to study submarine canyons: integrated programs, new technologies and coordinated monitoring efforts ；Patterns in submarine canyons: role of scale and heterogeneity ; Physical and anthropogenic disturbance in submarine canyons, conservation and marine policy; Canyons and trenches in South China Sea and West Pacific. There were significant in-depth discussions around topics of geology, sedimentology, geomorphology, oceanography, ecology, and biodiversity.
Scientists from Western Washington University, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, National Oceanography Centre (NOC), Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI), and China University of Petroleum presented keynote speeches. Experts and scholars contributed 32 academic reports, proposed future research directions, and showed both the cutting-edge directions and development prospects from different perspectives.
INCISE is held every two years, and the next conference will be held in Ireland in 2020. SUSTech’s successful holding of INCISE2018 provided an important platform for inter-disciplinary exchanges among experts in the field. It has played an active role in promoting the development and global outlook of the Department of Ocean Science and Engineering at SUSTech.
