Preliminary results of the E.L. Holmberg 1994 cruise to Subareas 48.3 and 48.2

A total of 63 hauls and 10 oceanographical legs were obtained. Of these, 44 hauls taken in Subarea 48.3 on a random stratified des n are used to estimate the standing stocks of the main commercial fish species along different methods, as well as their length frequency distributions. A change in surface water temperature of about -0.5 to -1.0 in a period of approximately 20 days was detected around South Georgia Islands. In the Scotia Sea the boundary of the Weddell-Scotia confluence was found within historical limits while surface water (down to 50/70 meters) was warmer than expected. It was also found that the spatial structure of fish populations significantly affects the results of biomass estimates.