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Mandy Joye (University of Georgia) and her interdisciplinary research team have discovered large mineral ventilation towers up to 23 meters high and 10 meters in diameter. These towers included numerous volcanic flanges that gave the illusion of looking at a mirror when they observed overheated hydrothermal fluids (366 ° C). The minerals in the features were loaded with metals and the fluids were highly sulphidic, but these sites were rich in biodiversity and potentially new wildlife.
"We discovered remarkable towers where every surface was occupied by a certain type of life, the vibrant colors found on" living rocks "were striking and reflected a diversity of biological composition as well as mineral distributions," said Dr. Joye. "It's an incredible natural laboratory to document incredible organisms and better understand how they survive in extremely challenging environments, but unfortunately, even in these far away and beautiful environments, we've seen huge amounts of waste, including fishing, deflated Mylar balloons and even a discarded Christmas juxtaposition alongside spectacular mineral structures and biodiversity. "
The expedition consisted of an unprecedented study of hydrothermal and gaseous plumes, with researchers using state-of-the-art technologies, including subsea 4K underwater cameras and radiation tracking devices, as well as sediment samplers. fluids operating via a remote-controlled vehicle, the SuBastian ROV. To get a true measure of methane and other volatile substances in the deep seabed, scientists need to capture the samples at the source. Scientists have been able to do this with a single osmo sampler, a device that pulls hydrothermal fluids into small, capillary-like tubes mounted on the ROV. Several other in situ experiments were conducted, including a high-throughput water filtration against viruses that allowed the team to reduce treatment biases.
From hot hydrothermal vents to slow cold evacuations, the common denominator of the sample collections included studies of the methane cycle. Hydrothermal fluid and gas plume samples all contained very high concentrations of methane and hydrated methane mounds crossing the surface. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas, 30 times more powerful than carbon dioxide. This study will advance knowledge on the biological storage of methane in the water column and sediment systems.
"We live in a different world and each dive gives the impression of floating in a sci-fi film," Schmidt Ocean Institute co-founder Wendy Schmidt said. "The complex layers of data that we collected on board Falkor during this expedition will help to tell the story of this remote place and make it known to the public." Testifying to these remarkable ocean landscapes, we are reminded are barely immune to the human impact, our hope is to encourage people to learn more and to care more about our ocean.
The team will now spend the next few months analyzing samples and publicly sharing the results. As the different datasets are synthesized, scientists will generate a more complete understanding of the Gulf of California system. This understanding will be applicable to ocean environments around the world and will also allow scientists to identify and formulate exciting new questions.
This work would not have been possible without the thoughtful authorization of the Secretariat of Foreign Affairs of Mexico (Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores) to allow the realization of marine scientific research in their waters.
Source of the story:
Material provided by Schmidt Ocean Institute. Note: Content can be changed for style and length.
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