ROV Dives – Health Diagnostics of Deep-Sea Coral

More about the research HERE. Dive 503 - Diving to Desecheo Ridge Date: April 18, 2023 Location: Desecheo Ridge, Atlantic Ocean off Puerto Rico Estimated Maximum Depth: 800 meters Work Completed: Explored the lower ridge benthic cover while transiting up the Desecheo Ridge. Focused on measurements and collections at ca. 150-200 m. Dive 504 - … Continued

Scientists Discover Three New Hydrothermal Vent Fields on Mid-Atlantic Ridge

An international team of scientists work together to rapidly find and explore large hydrothermal vents on the world’s longest mountain range. Video and photos available here. CONTACT: Carlie Wiener (808) 628-8666 cwiener@schmidtocean.org San Juan, Puerto Rico – Scientists have discovered three new hydrothermal vent fields over a 434-mile-long stretch of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge during the … Continued

The Underworld of Hydrothermal Vents

Expedition dates: June 29 - July 28, 2023 An important mechanism in ocean ecology is dispersal—– tides, currents, winds, and waves move larvae from one place to another with the potential to create new communities. While dispersal is well studied and understood in shallow ecosystems, how dispersal works for many hydrothermal vent species is yet … Continued

4K Highlights ~ Video Update

It sounds like something out of a fairytale: scenes of fantastical creatures - some floating, others firmly entwined within towering mineral chimneys that billow underwater "smoke." These are the very real ecosystems around the hydrothermal vents we were lucky enough to explore during Schmidt Ocean Institute's latest expedition. ROV SuBastian documented wonders including astounding geological … Continued

Ocean Worlds Beyond Earth

One of my favorite memories of sailing with Schmidt Ocean Institute was in 2016 when we were using the ROV SuBastian to explore volcanoes of the Mariana Arc and Backarc in the western Pacific. We live-streamed seafloor video from this amazing sulfur-rich underwater volcano called Daikoku back to shore, and we kept getting the question … Continued

Beautiful Unknowns ~ Video Update Week 3

Finding what you aren't looking for isn't always a bad thing! So far, the team has not found find more vents like the Lost City hydrothermal field, but they have discovered large high-temperature, black-smoker hydrothermal systems. These fields are massive and have bustling ecosystems, raising many questions that need answers. There is currently an international … Continued

Nace la curiosidad ~ Science Stories

“Aunque vengo de una isla, Puerto Rico, nunca antes había estado en un barco”. El microbiólogo Marc Fontánez Ortiz explica cómo su camino hacia las ciencias oceánicas no fue tan directo o simple como muchos podrían suponer. Eche un vistazo a su “Historia de Ciencia”, en donde él describe las experiencias que lo trajeron hasta … Continued

ROV Dives – In Search of Hydrothermal Lost Cities

On its inaugural expedition, Falkor (too) will head to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge with Chief Scientist Dr. David Butterfield from the NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory – University of Washington, and his team to search for hydrothermal lost cities. In 2000, scientists found a hydrothermal vent system on the Atlantis Massif unlike any seen before. Ghostly towers made … Continued

Biology of Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Vents

Some of the most striking features of the deep sea are the amazing oases of life found at sites of hydrothermal venting. Elsewhere in the deep ocean, there is a low density of animals due to the fact that food is less abundant with depth, and thus, there is not enough energy to sustain a … Continued