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Scientists conducting microbial life research on volcanic vents have discovered incredible ocean landscapes from the seabed off the coast of California. Just check this:
An international team, led by Associate Professor Samantha Joye of the University of Georgia, has undertaken to explore sites in the northern and southern Gulf of California, analyzing how microorganisms live in warm waters at near the winds. These images come from the ROV SuBastian, a remotely operated submarine capable of taking samples and visualizing the area around these vents, from the Schmidt Ocean Institute's Falkor research vessel.
"We discovered remarkable towers where each surface was occupied by a type of life. The vibrant colors found on "living rocks" were striking and reflected a diversity of biological composition as well as mineral distributions, "Joye said in a press release.
Scientists collect microbes and analyze their DNA from the boat using portable sequencers, according to the Schmidt Ocean Institute's website, before moving on to more sophisticated equipment on land. They visited eight sites in the Gulf.
But the team was aiming more than microbes, she also discovered incredibly geological formations. This included mineral towers with a maximum height of 23 meters (75.5 feet) and 10 meters (33 feet) wide. The colored towers contained metals and sulfur and gave off extremely hot fluids (366 Celsius or 690 Fahrenheit), but still flourished thanks to microbial life. The warmer fluid also seemed to accumulate on some parts of the tower, creating mirror effects of another world.
The results of the research are forthcoming. But hey, what we've seen so far is pretty impressive.
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