![]() ![]() Some gain energy from the chemicals released from mineral-rich, hydrothermal fluids venting at the seafloor. Entire communities of animals and microbes adapted to the high-pressure environment thrive in the dark depths, relying on limited carbon input from land or whale falls. Researchers have been collecting samples and studying the abyssal seafloor since the 1960s and have discovered a surprising diversity of life at these depths. The sheer size of this area, coupled with the challenges of descending to depths where water pressure can reach 600 atmospheres, makes exploration difficult-but by no means impossible. The bottom at these depths accounts for about one-third of the planet’s seafloor. It’s also abundant in minerals frequently used in manufacturing. The abyss is largely unexplored, but we know it contains animals found nowhere else on earth. When these eruptions persist long enough, mounts continue to grow, extending beyond the abyss into shallower waters, even creating volcanic islands when they break the water’s surface. Repeated eruptions build ever-taller undersea mountains. Sea mounts, individual underwater volcanoes, form when a magma from a hot spot in the mantle below pushes its way up through the crust. Ridges are areas where new oceanic crust is formed by volcanic activity and two plates are moving apart. Trenches occur where one tectonic plate is subducted under another. These features are the result of geologic activity. The seafloor itself consists of large plains broken by trenches, sea mounts, and oceanic ridges. ![]() Sunlight doesn’t penetrate to these depths, so the waters here are extremely dark, and the animals that live here often use bioluminescence to communicate. The seafloor and water column from 3,000 to 6,500 meters (9,842 to 21,325 feet) depth is known as the abyssal zone, or the abyss. Other Expeditions Highlighting WHOI ResearchĮarth’s vast oceans run deep, bottoming out around 4,000 meters (13,123 feet) in most places, although trenches can form underwater canyons extending another 7,000 meters (22,965 feet).Expedition to Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary.How do polynyas help feed emperor penguins?.Why is pressure different in the ocean?.What’s the difference between climate and weather?. ![]()
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