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The deepest known vent in the world is nearly 5 kilometers (3 miles) beneath the ocean surface.
By Douglas Main
LiveScience
Researchers are exploring the deepest known set of hydrothermal vents in the world, at a site in the Caribbean nearly 5 kilometers (3 miles) beneath the ocean surface.
They've discovered a new vent there that is deeper than any previously known, said Andrew Thaler, a researcher on the expedition. The group explores the area using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) named Isis, which just completed its first dive Wednesday, Thaler said.
The site, known as the Beebe Hydrothermal Vent Field, lays in the Cayman Trough, a deep section of the Caribbean south of Cuba. It lies about twice as deep as most known hydrothermal vents. Hydrothermal vents are fissures in the seafloor where geologically heated water spews forth.
The researchers, led by Britain's National Oceanography Center and the University of Southampton, discovered the Beebe field in 2010, but have yet to detail all of its treasure trove of life and geochemical oddities.
Their previous studies have already revealed several species new to science, and this go-around will likely do the same. "From a biological perspective, we won't know if we've made a major discovery until we've had a chance to process samples back at the lab, but there's no doubt that a few new species will be described from this cruise," Thaler said.
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Anemones and blind shrimp are bountiful near the vents.
The scientists set sail on the RS James Cooke on Feb. 6 and will be at sea until early March. They are blogging about the expedition at a site called Into the Cayman Abyss and tweeting using the hashtag #DeepestVents.
The vents are crawling with blind shrimp, fields of anemones, tube worms and other bizarre life forms, said Thaler, who studies these creatures as a researcher at Duke University. Isis has already returned with samples of seawater and wildlife scooped or vacuumed from the ocean floor, he said.
The vents, some of the hottest ever discovered, are also interesting from a geological perspective. Here, high temperatures and pressure cause venting fluid to become supercritical, meaning it behaves like a gas and a liquid. These fluids are very reactive, dissolving minerals deep in the Earth's crust and transporting them to the seafloor, according to the expedition's website.
The Beebe field also contains a series of older mounds from former vents, which could help researchers understand how these important formations are created.
One researcher placed half of a pig carcass within the Cayman Trough near the hydrothermal vents to see what scavengers it might attract, Thaler said.
Reach Douglas Main at dmain@techmedianetwork.com. Follow him on Twitter @Douglas_Main. Follow OurAmazingPlanet on Twitter @OAPlanet. We're also on Facebook and Google+.
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Expedition journeys into world's deepest hydrothermal vents
If they went into the vent, you can be damn sure they wouldn't get their expensive ROV back. Change the headline to something that makes sense. 'Down to' instead of 'into' perhaps.
The secret word is poached.
You tell 'em, ED-2874315. And can you tell the photo editor that the federal sequester won't affect locally paid cops and fire fighters? The secret word is game warden.
Very interesting article. I'm a little pissed about this, though: "One researcher placed half of a pig carcass within the Cayman Trough near the hydrothermal vents to see what scavengers it might attract, Thaler said." What an irresponsible and unscientific thing to do! If all he was interested in was seeing what scavengers might be attracted by a bounty of dead flesh, then he should have used something already known to that ecosystem, like fish carcasses and whatnot. How many pigs does he think those scavengers are used to getting down there, huh? You don't flippantly and unnecessarily introduce foreign material to an ecosystem, especially not the antibiotic- and hormone-laden poison livestock we're producing. Scientific incompetence pisses me off.
Okay, I've hydrothermal-vented. LOL
Calm down. How do you know it was not local grown free range pig? I have to chuckle when ever I hear the "antibiotic- and hormone-laden poison livestock we're producing" line. Granted the over-use/misuse of anti-biotics has its own issues but poison is not one of them. The human species of today is taller, healthier, lives longer and at population levels than at any other time in history. Somehow I doubt that is the result of a poisoned food supply.
"Calm down."
What is there to calm down about? I said, "I'm a little pissed...," and then followed my comment with a terrible pun. I think it was rather clear I was making a measured statement that was mostly tongue-in-cheek.
"How do you know it was not local grown free range pig?"
Ultimately immaterial. My original point still stands: It's scientifically unsound practice to flippantly and unnecessarily introduce foreign material into an ecosystem. As to why, a whole range of scientific disciplines have something to say about this. Let's just pick one: That you don't introduce foreign biological material into an ecosystem is Epidemiology 101. What do you think the chances are that, three miles below the ocean's surface, those bottom feeders' immune systems have ever come across the attendant bacteria and viruses in and on that pig carcass, free range organic or not? Get the picture yet?
"I have to chuckle when ever I hear the 'antibiotic- and hormone-laden poison livestock we're producing' line. Granted the over-use/misuse of anti-biotics has its own issues but poison is not one of them."
Number one, I used the word poison within the context of describing the effect of introducing foreign biological material to an ecosystem. You'll be hard-pressed to argue to biologists that introducing poison to that ecosystem is an inappropriate description. Number two, even if I had been using the word poison to describe aspects of the human food supply, I wouldn't be on shaky ground. Here's just one example of many: the consumption of hormone-fed livestock has been linked to low sperm counts and low-quality sperm formation in adult men by several studies. Fact. Don't believe me? Google [+"livestock" +"hormones" +"sperm count"] and see the panoply of evidence for yourself. Sounds like poison is a good word to me.
"The human species of today is taller, healthier, lives longer and at population levels than at any other time in history. Somehow I doubt that is the result of a poisoned food supply."
Well, considering that the vast majority of those advances in health and longevity had already occurred prior to the advent of widespread antibiotic and hormone use in livestock production, what you cite has nothing whatsoever to do with this discussion---a clear non sequitur on your part. In truth, the jury is still out on what the long-term effects of consuming such livestock will be on our health, as we haven't even been doping them for all that long yet.
What I'm pissed about is that they added that comment about the pig carcass and then never bothered to talk about WHAT it attracted? Inquiring minds want to know!
Thank you Tom! I wanted to know what happened when they put the pig down too!
These supercritical undersea geothermal vents could become some of the most valuable sources of precious minerals in the future. If they can be claimed for mining purposes, they would basically constitute a permanent national treasure. You would park a drilling platform high up over them on the ocean surface, and then lower a hood and piping assembly down over them from above, high enough up so it didn't disturb these unique sea creatures (it is completely dark down there anyway), and then pipe the mineral laden water up to the surface for processing. An unending source of key minerals for the future, potentially worth trillons of dollars! - RC
PS - I would make this undersea hood buoyant, and anchor it to the floor with strong cables to safely secure it.)
Supercritical technologies are going to become a key means for remote undersea mining in the future, which will need atomic energy to supply the necessary heat. A sea bottom roving atomic reactor will probably be needed for this purpose. - RC
(Once you find undersea mineral deposits by surface drilling, you could potentially frack the ocean floor in a horizontal way deep undersea, and pump atomically heated water in at one location, and pump mineral ladened water out at a different location, without needing to disturb the ocean bottom (for the most part) at all. The supercritical state of this ocean water would basically do the rest of the work.) - RC
In case you haven't got the point yet, these undersea researchers are potentially prospectors, too. - RC
PS - There is actually another option available here as well, and that is to frack straight down almost to the Earth's mantle (the undersea crust is not that thick), and artificially create a geothermal heated vent in the ocean floor in a confirmed mineral deposit location, so you can basically do away with the ocean bottom atomic reactor which you would otherwise need for heat. Just a suggestion. - RC
It would also be very nice if some of our universities would help out by creating degree programs in supercritical mining. - RC
(Yes, I know, I know, I am lost in my own (shrinking) world. It's really something which comes with age, in case you aren't there yet.)
We of the underground movement to Save Blind Shrimp from Exploitation and Extinctionwill fight your corporate greed plan to create wealth, jobs and national security!! We have been aware of the long range plan for years and have prepared for this day. We are prepared to protect hydro-thermal anemone with our lives in the cause of destroying human civilization and returning to cave dwellings and hunter/gatherer edge of starvation existence. Beware, this is the only warning you will receive.
Ok one more warning ............ We have a core group of volunteers with the goal of chaining themselves to hydrothermal vents and yelling our manifesto before the next expedition by the corporate lackeys dive! Still working out the details of depth, pressure, heat, the yelling part, etc. but beware!!!!SBSEE
How truely little we know of our own back yard. Hope they find lots of new species and othe oddities from the abyss!
This area lies just South of Cuba. Offer to make Cuba the 51st. state and do it now.