- published: 25 Aug 2008
- views: 160696
A hydrothermal vent is a fissure in a planet's surface from which geothermally heated water issues. Hydrothermal vents are commonly found near volcanically active places, areas where tectonic plates are moving apart, ocean basins, and hotspots. Hydrothermal vents exist because the earth is both geologically active and has large amounts of water on its surface and within its crust. Common land types include hot springs, fumaroles and geysers. Under the sea, hydrothermal vents may form features called black smokers. Relative to the majority of the deep sea, the areas around submarine hydrothermal vents are biologically more productive, often hosting complex communities fueled by the chemicals dissolved in the vent fluids. Chemosynthetic bacteria and archaea form the base of the food chain, supporting diverse organisms, including giant tube worms, clams, limpets and shrimp. Active hydrothermal vents are believed to exist on Jupiter's moon Europa, and Saturn's moon Enceladus, and ancient hydrothermal vents have been speculated to exist on Mars.
Bill Nye discusses the discovery of hydrothermal vents on the ocean's floor
On the ninth remotely operated vehicle (ROV) dive of the Galapágos Rift 2011 expedition on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, the science team finally discovered the type of hydrothermal vent community they had been searching for. Clusters of tube worms, limpets, mussels, and anemones were seen to inhabit cracks in the lava bed where mineral-rich, geothermally heated water 'vents' out. Two species of tube worms were found in abundance: the giant Riftia pachyptila and also the much smaller, never observed in the Galápagos, Tevnia jerichonana. Brachyuran crabs, vent shrimp, and scale worms clung not only to the surrounding rock but also to the tube worms themselves in some cases. Extensive fields of dead and living clams surrounded the individual pockets of venting. Video courtesy of NOAA Okea...
While exploring near the Galapagos Islands, the team of E/V Nautilus discovered a huge "black smoker" hydrothermal vent more than 10 meters tall billowing a cloud of dark superheated fluid and teeming with strange life. E/V Nautilus is exploring the ocean studying biology, geology, archeology, and more. Watch http://www.nautiluslive.org for live video from the ocean floor. For live dive updates follow along on social media at http://www.facebook.com/nautiluslive and http://www.twitter.com/evnautilus on Twitter. For more photos from our dives, check out our Instagram @nautiluslive.
Biochemist Nick Lane explains work on a hypothesis for the origin of life, from his book Life Ascending: The ten great inventions of evolution. Read the paper http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23754820 and http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/ast.2013.1110 for more details. See also: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mW5XI1KCWLE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SF2uj0Oxqhg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWWRc19A9oA
In many areas of high volcanic activity, water seeps into the sub-surface where it is intensely heated and then finds its way to the surface again. Examples on the land include hot springs in therapeutic spas, and special types like geysers and fumaroles. In the ocean, this circulation occurs most commonly at the mid-ocean ridge, the world's longest mountain chain. Here, far below the depth of sunlight penetration, hydrothermal vents at over 400°C with their dissolved compounds provide the basis for complex ecosystems. Music: Sebastian Rahe German version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39tDf5r2no0
During a recent expedition to the Gulf of California scientists from MBARI discovered a new field of hydrothermal vents, the deepest yet discovered in the Gulf of California. These new hydrothermal vent fields were found over thirty-eight hundred meters below the surface in the Pescadero Basin, located off the east coast of Mexico’s Baja California, about one hundred miles east of La Paz. These hydrothermal vents result from a unique combination of geology and chemistry. Using a remotely operated vehicle, researchers found towering white columns emitting geysers of clear shimmering liquid with temperatures up to 290 degrees Celsius. The superheated water flowing from these vents starts deep underground. As the hot water rises, it flows through and reacts with the surrounding bedrock, becom...
While exploring near the Galapagos, the team of E/V Nautilus encountered some beautiful creatures, including the Flamboyant Squid Worm, a species just discovered in 2007. E/V Nautilus is exploring the ocean studying biology, geology, archeology, and more. Watch http://www.nautiluslive.org for live video from the ocean floor. For live dive updates follow along on social media at http://www.facebook.com/nautiluslive and http://www.twitter.com/evnautilus on Twitter. For more photos from our dives, check out our Instagram @nautiluslive.
The team of E/V Nautilus, in partnership with Ocean Networks Canada, explores these massive, beautiful chimneys spewing dark clouds of superheated hydrothermal vent fluid near the coast of British Columbia. E/V Nautilus is exploring the ocean studying biology, geology, archeology, and more. Watch http://www.nautiluslive.org for live video from the ocean floor. For live dive updates follow along on social media at http://www.facebook.com/nautiluslive and http://www.twitter.com/evnautilus on Twitter. For more photos from our dives, check out our Instagram @nautiluslive.