The expedition comprises scientists from Russia's Ilichev Pacific Oceanological Institute of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences and Japan's Meiji University.
"The Strait of Tartary, despite the large scope of work carried out here in searches for oil deposits, has so far not been thoroughly explored as one of the major geological and oceanographic sites. The exploration of geodynamic conditions of the formation of the Strait of Tartary sedimentary basin, the estimation of its hydrocarbon, seismogenic and climate forcing potential are among the major goals of the expeditionary research of the Ilichev Pacific Oceanological Institute… for the 2017-2021 period," Maksim Valitov, a representative of the Ilichev Pacific Oceanological Institute, said.
The researchers will carry out studies to examine the structure of the earth's crust in the region, as well as the composition and age of the sediment, and will identify underlying tectonic structures.
The expedition is expected to end on May 27.