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This issue of Oceanography mainly describes results from the HERMES project, which comes to a close in spring 2009. Building on the success of HERMES, the European Commission has funded a new project that will begin as HERMES ends. This project, entitled HERMIONE (Hotspot Ecosystem Research and Man's Impact on European Seas), will have a greater focus on human impacts in the deep-sea environment and will place more emphasis on the translation of information into policy. It will have a wider public outreach program and will include new areas of research, such as seamounts and hydrothermal vents. The HERMIONE project will address issues raised in the EC foresight document, The Deep-Sea Frontier: Science Challenges for a Sustainable Future (Cochonat et al., 2007), and will focus on four key objectives. These follow a logical progression, from investigating the physical dimensions of ecosystems, to understanding how they function and interconnect, to studying how they are impacted by human activity, to ensuring that this project can contribute to their sustainable management and protection. The HERMIONE consortium comprises 38 partners, including four small businesses, from 13 countries across Europe.