THERE is a spot to the south of the island of Crete in the eastern Mediterranean which is known as Dublin.
No tourist will see it, let alone visit it, as it lies far under the sea. It is a mud volcano, and its existence was discovered two years ago by the Russian research vessel, the Professor Logachev.
One of the research team was Dublin-born Dr Brian Cronin, and he gave his name to this mud volcano. Another discovered nearby was named after Stoke-on-Trent, the birthplace of the programme co-ordinator, Dr Neil Kenyon.
Dr Cronin and Dr Kenyon set sail on the Profrssor Logachev again last night, along with 20 other students and scientists from 10 countries, but this time they sailed out of Dublin, and their destination is the north Atlantic.
The expedition is part of the "Floating University - Training Through Research" programme, a joint initiative of several marine research organisations and universities from both eastern and western Europe.
The expedition is headed by Dr Mikliail Ivanov, director of the UNESCO Centre in the geology faculty of the Moscow State University.
It is the first time the project has investigated the Irish coast, and the first time that Irish students and scientists are part of the team.
"The Atlantic margin is very unexplored," said Mr Geoffrey O'Sullivan, development manager of the Marine Institute, which supports the involvement of Irish scientists in such projects.
"We could never afford to have a research vessel like this, so it is very important that Irish scientists and students, who will be the next generation of research scientists, are involved."
One of the students is Ms Angela McDonnell, a Ph.D geology student in UCD. She already has a Master's degree in petroleum geology, and hopes to carry out further research on the Porcupine basin.
It was initial exploration there last year, led by Dr Pat Shannon of UCD and involving Dr Kenyon, which prompted Dr Kenyon and his team to bring the Professor Logachev there this year.
The vessel carries a range of advanced equipment to allow for exploration of the sea-bed. The most recognisable pieces of equipment are giant winches, carrying up to 10 kilometres of cable, which can lower the underwater cameras, side-scan sonars (mapping devides) and enormous grabbers to the sea-bed. There is a special device for lowering equipment in rough seas.
These then either send back images of the sea-bed, or take samples which can be analysed in the small laboratories on board. Information taken by the sonars and cameras is processed by computers and the images printed out.
This kind of research is of commercial as well as scientific interest, and is of particular interest to oil companies.
Dr Cronin, who was a student in Cardiff when he went on his first expedition and now teaches in Aberdeen University, brought sponsorship from oil companies to this trip. His research area is the transportation of material in very deep water, far from where it can be seen or even guessed at.
"Optical images of the sea floor is the only way. The existence of reefs may inhibit - or help - oil exploration in the North Sea," he said. "We can also compare what is on the modern sea floor with geological records like channels, which indicate where oil is."
The technology can also examine fish shoals, and can investigate sites for the disposal of nuclear and other waste.