Smoking Ocean Vents Found in Surprisingly Shallow Water

Scientists have found new hydrothermal vents off the Azores, and they may harbor unique life.

WATCH: HYDROTHERMAL OCEAN VENTS FOUND IN SURPRISINGLY SHALLOW WATER
BY STEPHEN LEAHY

PUBLISHED JUNE 21, 2018

A new field of hydrothermal vents was just discovered in the Azores. Hydrothermal vents are deep-sea hot springs at the bottom of the sea floor that form unique, chimney-like structures. They are often home to strange forms of life.

“This is an extraordinary discovery since this hydrothermal field is shallower than all others known in the Mid-Atlantic Ridge,” says Emanuel Gonçalves, co-leader of a deep-sea expedition organized by Portugal’s Oceano Azul Foundation in partnership with the Waitt Foundation and National Geographic Pristine Seas.

“It’s like finding an alien environment on Earth,” says Enric Sala, a marine ecologist and National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence. “These are rare examples of ecosystems that live off energy from the center of the Earth instead of sunlight,” he says.

The Azores are nine volcanic islands in the North Atlantic Ocean. They lie about 850 miles (1,360 km) to the west of Portugal, which administers them. The newly discovered vents are just 60 miles offshore of one of the islands, and only 1,870 feet (570 meters) deep. Most vents are in more remote regions and much deeper, like the first-ever-discovered vents that are 8,000 feet deep (2440 meters), and over 200 miles offshore of the Galapagos Islands.

More:
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/06/hydrothermal-vents-discovered-azores-science-environment/?beta=true