An oceanographic expedition carried out by the American Schmidt Ocean Institute led to the discovery of a truly incredible marine ecosystem, with living beings unknown until now. Giant tube worms and molluscs are just some of the creatures identified during the fruitful research activity. The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, it will certainly cause a lot of talk.
Underwater robots
For his expedition into the subsoil of the hydrothermal springs ofPacific Ocean (at 2500 meters deep), the Schimdt institute exploited the technology of underwater robots, which operated in place of humans. The research team coordinated the activity on board the Falkor vessel. The hydrothermal springsexperts explain, are found within deep cracks developed in the earth’s crust. The high temperature, very high pressure and lack of sunlight create a condition in which only the most resistant living things can resist. This recent study has shown that there is still so much to discover about our planet.
“It was once believed that only microbes and viruses inhabited the seafloor crust beneath hydrothermal vents“, reads the report, reported by ABC News. “But living organisms such as giant tube worms, worms and snails have been found in hydrothermal vents, which are vents on the seafloor that form where seawater and magma beneath the Earth’s crust meet“he explained Monica Brightmarine ecologist at the University of Vienna.
To fathom the backdropthe researchers used a remote-controlled robot equipped with a chisel to drill holes about 10 cm into the volcanic rock. Once the rocks were extracted and turned upside down, an entire community of living beings was found, which had found accommodation in the many cavities.
What is found at the bottom of the sea?
Here is the answer to those who wonder which animals can live in the depths of the ocean. For the most part, specimens of tube wormsor Oasisia alvinaeand another species of worm, the Riftia pachyptilawhich reaches a length of half a meter. Also found were snails, which fed on sediment, and other species that have yet to be identified.
“There were animals, 50 centimeters long, lying in there, alive“said Monika Bright.”The ocean plays a very important role for our planet, for our climate and therefore… we need to study it better.
I’m very sure there will be many more discoveries coming, even though it is very expensive and difficult to work in these deep-sea environments,” he added.
To date, according to what was reported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, only 5% of the oceans were explored.