Tuesday, April 27, 2010

New Hydrothermal Vent Discovered


Learning about hydrothermal vents in class piqued my interest and when I came across this news article I was especially interested. They have found a very deep vent in the Cayman Trough in the Caribbean; this vent being the deepest known hydrothermal vent. This vent is 3 miles below the ocean surface. The article called these vents black-smoker vents because of the dark color of the water and other substances being forced out of the vents.

Now that researchers have located this vent, they plan to characterize the organisms that are living there and compare them to the organisms which are living near vents that are not so deep. They also want to study the chemicals and minerals that are being released into the water by this and other vents. Hopefully there will be more information to come about this vent. This article was just introducing the fact that researchers have discovered a vent deeper than any other previously discovered vent. Very interesting research.

3 comments:

  1. It really is amazing to think that even that deep in the ocean, whole ecosystems are thriving. It makes me wonder where will we find life next?

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  2. hmmm, three miles below the ocean surface is very deep however, what is the average depth of hydrothermal vents?

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  3. Hello Frndz...
    Nice Blog...
    Great Information! Nice post,it is really very helpful for me.One of the few articles I’ve read today.I’m saying thanks

    Marine vents

    ReplyDelete

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