Akademic Oparin, a research-survey ship of the Russian Academy of Sciences, has left Nha Trang port for northern port city of Hai Phong to conduct a joint study with Vietnamese scientists on the host country’s marine biodiversity.

According to the Nha Trang Institute of Oceanography, the join survey team includes 12 Vietnamese scientists from Vietnamese research institutes and 22 Russian researchers from the Russian Academy of Sciences.

They are planned to conduct a comprehensive survey on marine biodiversity and biochemistry in all territorial waters of Vietnam, Lao Dong newspaper reported on May 3.

The team will research coral ecosystems, collect and identify varieties of seaweed, organisms and micro-organisms in deep waters of the Gulf of Tonkin, Cat Ba island, Van Phong gulf and Ca Na beach.

Since 1987, Akademic Oparin has conducted four surveys on marine biodiversity and biochemistry in Vietnam’s sea area under a cooperation agreement between Vietnam’s Academy of Science and Technology and the Russian Academy of Sciences, the paper quoted marine researcher Nguyen Tac An as saying.

Results from the research are used in developing aquaculture development, building strategies on sea-based economic development environmental protection and security-defence at sea.

The Akademic Oparin was specially designed to conduct biochemical and bioorganic research at sea and is one of only two known ships in the world dedicated to this type of research.-VNA