The MASTS deep-sea forum has several initial aims highlighted below, which will evolve over time, to:

1) Interact with the different communities which have an interest in the deep-sea

2) Engage with new partners and promote collaboration across disciplines in order to further deep water research both at a national level as well as internationally

3) Ensure greater integration between researchers investigating deep/shallow water and the climate/atmosphere

4) Discuss and help deliver the best scientific knowledge available to policy makers

Deep sea researchers operating within the mASTS community have access to a variety of state of the art equipment, some of which has been specifically designed to operate and sample in the deepest parts of the world’s oceans. The challenge of conducting research in these extreme environments means that much of the science is by definition, cutting edge. However, use of modern technology, together with practical ingenuity is leading to novel discoveries including species and ecosytems new to science.