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RST Apology to Tasmanian Aboriginal people 2021.

Currents of the continental shelf and upper slope of Tasmania

Papers & Reports

Summary

Satellite-tracked drifters, satellite imagery, a research vessel and moorings in the waters of Tasmania, excluding Bass Strait, revealed a southward Current, sometimes called the Zeehan Current, on the outer continental shelf of western Tasmania. The current has a peak speed in winter, when it reaches around southern Tasmania as far north as Schouten Island before veering southeastward under the influence
of the East Australian Current. In summer, the Zeehan Current is weaker, while the East Australian Current is stronger and overshoots southward past Tasmania by about 200 km, entraining the Zeehan Current in the process. Off western Tasmania, well seaward of the Zeehan Current, the residence time for satellite-tracked drifters was as much as one year. More than 200 km south of Tasmania in summer there was weak flow to the west. Eleven of 13 satellite drifters released in Tasmanian waters eventually meandered eastward towards New Zealand, with a travel time of over 18 months from the time of release.

 

Keywords:

Royal Society of Tasmania, RST, Van Diemens Land, natural history, science, ecology, taxonomy, botany, zoology, geology, geography, papers & proceedings, Australia, UTAS Library

Acknowledgement of Country

The Royal Society of Tasmania acknowledges, with deep respect, the traditional owners of this land, and the ongoing custodianship of the Aboriginal people of Tasmania. The Society pays respect to Elders past, present and emerging. We acknowledge that Tasmanian Aboriginal Peoples have survived severe and unjust impacts resulting from invasion and dispossession of their Country. As an institution dedicated to the advancement of knowledge, the Royal Society of Tasmania recognises Aboriginal cultural knowledge and practices and seeks to respect and honour these traditions and the deep understanding they represent.

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On 15 February 2021, the Royal Society of Tasmania offered a formal Apology to the Tasmanian Aboriginal people.