Expedition on the R/V “Titov” on September 10-17, 2024

Within the state assignment No. 0279-2021-0005 “Study of transformations of the state of water bodies and watercourses of Eastern Siberia in seasonal and long-term aspects in the context of climate change, geological environment and anthropogenic loads” (led by A.P. Fedotov), field work was carried out on the R/V “Titov” on September 10-17, 2024, to study the ecological state of the coastal zone of Lake Baikal at control transects and monitoring stations.

The expedition`s objectives included the continuation of a series of Circum-Baikal expeditions to assess the state of the shallow water zone of Lake Baikal with the involvement of research divers, the assessment of changes in the quantitative and qualitative composition over the years at control transects and stations for monitoring based on photographs of reference sponges, and the removal and setting up of temperature loggers for reading information on year-round control of temperature regime in the bottom layer in the shallow water of Lake Baikal on laid transects (at depths of 6, 12, 15, and 30 m).

During the expedition, temperature loggers were replaced and read out at 9 transects in the vicinity of Ulanovo station, Listvennichny Bay, Varnachka Pad, Maloye More Strait (Zamogoy Island), Cape Elokhin, Cape Turali, Nizhnee Izgolovye of Svyatoy Nos Peninsula, Cape Ukhan, and Aya Bay. Underwater photography of reference sponges was carried out at the transects in the areas of Ulanovo and Cape Turali.