Abstract
A recently developed deep-sea photometer is described. The photometer uses a silicon photodiode as a light sensor and is interfaced with the Institute of Oceanographic Sciences' acoustically telemetering net monitor system. Using the photometer in conjunction with the I.O.S. midwater trawls it is possible to simultaneously measure irradiance at the depth of the net and collect biological samples. The relationship between light and the distribution of mesopelagic animal communities can thereby be studied directly. The photometer has measured light to a depth of 700m in the northeast Atlantic. It records at least seven decades of irradiance and its response is independent of temperature between -3 and +30°C. Some observations on the subsurface light regime in the northeast Atlantic and Southern Oceans are presented and a biological sampling programme using the photometer is described. Preliminary analysis suggests that the association of oarticular species with specific light levels is not especially close.
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