The St. John’s Island National Marine Laboratory (SJINML) is Singapore’s first and only fully-equipped offshore marine research station. Nestled in the Singapore Southern Islands, SJINML is within reach of a diversity of rich marine habitats, including mangroves, seagrass meadows and coral reefs. The diverse biotopes surrounding the island support a large variety of plant and animal species, many of which have yet to be identified and studied.
Despite this natural setting, St John’s Island is only 30 minutes by ferry from the main island of Singapore – just a stone’s throw from the cosmopolitan city with its massive science and technology research infrastructures. Such a scenario is rare anywhere but even more so in the tropics, and the opportunities for novel research are immeasurable.
SJINML: A Focal Point for Collaborative Marine Science Research and Education
The marine laboratory at St. John’s Island was established in 2002 as a facility for interdisciplinary marine research. In 2016, the National Research Foundation designated the facility as the St. John’s Island National Marine Laboratory, a National Research Infrastructure (NRI) to support locally important and globally impactful marine science research. Since 2020, the marine station has been further upgraded to include: a state-of-the-art climate-controlled aquaria for climate change research, biosafety-level-2 facilities to support upcoming disease-and pathogen- focused research, a 10-m seawater current flume to aid studies in marine hydrodynamics, and laboratories that enable researchers to conduct biochemistry and genetic work or take high- resolution bio-imagery. SJINML also offers self-catering accommodation and a research vessel capable of offshore field sampling and data collection. Backed by a team of trained and skilled personnel, and a network of stakeholders in academia, industry, and government agencies, SJINML is well-equipped to support collaborative research and education across multiple disciplines.
Operating as a shared research facility, SJINML is open to ALL researchers!
SJINML is within easy access of diverse coastal habitats including coral reefs, natural rocky shores, seagrass meadows and mangroves.
Sentinel for Singapore’s Marine Environment
Singapore is strategically located at the crossroads between the Pacific and the Indian Ocean. Despite its largely urban setting, Singapore boasts relatively species-rich coral reefs, mangrove and seagrass habitats — due to its location in one of the most biodiverse regions of the world. More than 250 species of hard corals, over 120 species of sponges, and 200 species of reef fish have been recorded here. Strategically located in the Singapore Strait and next to the Sister’s Islands Marine Park — Singapore’s first and only Marine Park — SJINML is well-situated to serve as a sentinel of Singapore’s marine environment.
To better assess ocean health and address key issues facing Singapore’s waters, SJINML is also developing the Marine Environment Sensing Network (MESN). MESN is a multi-institution effort to increase the collective pool of knowledge and understanding of Singapore’s marine environment by establishing three research buoys equipped with a variety of research-grade sensors collecting environmental parameters in real-time. The buoys also serve as a platform for the test-bedding of novel marine technologies.
