Hydrothermal vents are fissures on the seabed from which geothermally heated water discharges. They are commonly found near volcanically active places, areas where tectonic plates are moving apart at mid-ocean ridges, ocean basins, and hotspots. Hydrothermal deposits are rocks and mineral ore deposits formed by the action of hydrothermal vents.
A cold seep is an area of the ocean floor where hydrogen sulfide, methane and other hydrocarbon-rich fluid seepage occurs, often in the form of a brine pool. Cold does not mean that the temperature of the seepage is lower than that of the surrounding sea water. On the contrary, its temperature is often slightly higher. The "cold" is relative to the very warm conditions of a hydrothermal vent. Cold seeps constitute a biome supporting several endemic species.
An abyssal plain is an underwater plain on the deep ocean floor, usually found at depths between 3,000 and 6,000 metres. Lying generally between the foot of a continental rise and a mid-ocean ridge, abyssal plains cover more than 50% of the Earth's surface. They are among the flattest, smoothest, and least explored regions on Earth. Abyssal plains are key geologic elements of oceanic basins.
Mirocaris is a genus of shrimp associated with hydrothermal vents. Sometimes considered the only genus of the family Mirocarididae, Mirocaris is usually placed in the broader family Alvinocarididae. Mirocaris is characterized by a dorsoventrally flattened, non-dentate rostrum, as well as the possession of episodes on the third maxilliped through to the fourth pteropod. The genus contains two species, M. fortunata and M. indica. The two species are found in different oceans, and can be distinguished by the pattern of setation on the claw of the first pereiopod.
The Romanche Trench, also called the Romanche Furrow or Romanche Gap, is the third deepest of the major trenches of the Atlantic Ocean, after the Puerto Rico Trench and the South Sandwich Trench. It bisects the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) just north of the equator at the narrowest part of the Atlantic between Brazil and West Africa, extending from 2°N to 2°S and from 16°W to 20°W. The trench has been formed by the actions of the Romanche Fracture Zone, a portion of which is an active transform boundary offsetting sections of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.
Symphurus thermophilus is a species of tonguefish notable for being the only flatfish known to be an obligate inhabitant of hydrothermal vents. It is known from several widely dispersed locations in the western Pacific Ocean and occurs in great numbers. They are tolerant of harsh conditions and are often found in close association with elemental sulfur, including molten sulfur pools that exceed 180 °C in temperature. As they are not significantly different in appearance and feeding habits from other tonguefishes, they are thought to be relatively recent colonizers of vent ecosystems.
West Mata is an active submarine volcano located in the northeastern Lau Basin, roughly 200 km (124 mi) southwest of the Samoan Islands. It is part of the Tonga-Kermadec volcanic arc, which stretches from the North Island of New Zealand to Samoa. The volcano was first discovered in 2008 by scientists aboard the R/V Thompson research vessel, using sonar mapping and a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to explore the seafloor. At the same time West Mata was discovered, multiple neighboring volcanoes—most of them hydrothermally active—were discovered as well, including Volcano O, Tafu-Maka, Northern Matas and East Mata.
The hydrothermal vents and seamounts of the Azores are a series of Atlantic seamounts and hydrothermal vents that are part of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge system, giving rise to the archipelago and bathymetric region of the Azores. These geological structures, formed from masses of basalt, are of a geomorphological interest due to their rich deposits of ore. In addition it fosters a rich ecosystem of diverse subaquatic plant and animal life. There are food chains within this environment, for example, that are purely chemosynthetic, and do not need sunlight for photosynthesis.
ABISMO is a remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) built by the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) for exploration of the deep sea. It is the only remaining ROV rated to 11,000-meters, ABISMO is intended to be the permanent replacement for Kaikō, a ROV that was lost at sea in 2003.
The class Zetaproteobacteria is the sixth and most recently described class of the Pseudomonadota. Zetaproteobacteria can also refer to the group of organisms assigned to this class. The Zetaproteobacteria were originally represented by a single described species, Mariprofundus ferrooxydans, which is an iron-oxidizing neutrophilic chemolithoautotroph originally isolated from Kamaʻehuakanaloa Seamount in 1996 (post-eruption). Molecular cloning techniques focusing on the small subunit ribosomal RNA gene have also been used to identify a more diverse majority of the Zetaproteobacteria that have as yet been unculturable.
The Beebe Hydrothermal Vent Field is located just south of Grand Cayman in the Caribbean, on the north side of the Mid-Cayman Spreading Centre in the Cayman Trough. Approximately 24 kilometres (15 mi) south of Beebe is the Von Damm Vent Field.
Luckia is a genus of amphipod crustaceans in the family Pontogeneiidae, with the sole species Luckia striki. It is found in hydrothermal vents in the Atlantic Ocean.
Foundation Seamounts are a series of seamounts in the southern Pacific Ocean. Discovered in 1992, these seamounts form a 1,350 kilometres (840 mi) long chain which starts from the Pacific-Antarctic Ridge. Some of these seamounts may have once emerged from the ocean.
Monowai Seamount is a volcanic seamount to the north of New Zealand. It is formed by a large caldera and a volcanic cone just south-southeast from the caldera. The volcanic cone rises to depths of up to 100 metres (330 ft) but its depth varies with ongoing volcanic activity, including sector collapses and the growth of lava domes. The seamount and its volcanism were discovered after 1877, but only in 1980 was it named "Monowai" after a research ship of the same name.
NW Rota-1 is a seamount in the Mariana Islands, northwest of Rota, which was discovered through its hydrothermal activity in 2003. The volcano has been observed to be erupting underwater, the first time that submarine explosive eruptions have been directly witnessed.
The Von Damm Hydrothermal Field is a field of hydrothermal vents located just south of Grand Cayman in the Caribbean, on the Mid-Cayman Rise in the Cayman Trough. It is approximately 24 kilometres (15 mi) south of the Beebe Vent Field. The vent field is named in commemoration of geochemical oceanographer Karen Von Damm, who died in 2008.
Eifuku and NW Eifuku (北西永福) are two seamounts in the Pacific Ocean. The better known one is NW Eifuku, where an unusual hydrothermal vent called "Champagne" produced droplets of liquid CO
2. Both seamounts are located in the Northern Marianas and are volcanoes, part of the Izu-Bonin-Mariana Arc. NW Eifuku rises to 1,535 metres (5,036 ft) depth below sea level and is a 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) wide volcanic cone.
Yonaguni Knoll IV is a seamount in the Okinawa Trough, east of Taiwan. It lies at about 745 metres (2,444 ft) depth and formed through Quaternary volcanism that yielded dacitic and rhyolitic magmas. The seamount is hydrothermally active, with numerous sites that are colonized by mussels and other marine animals. A submarine underground "lake" of liquid carbon dioxide has been identified at Yonaguni Knoll IV.
The Kairei vent field is a hydrothermal vent field located in the Indian Ocean at a depth of 2,460 metres (8,070 ft). It is just north of the Rodrigues Triple Junction, approximately 2,200 kilometres (1,400 mi) east from Madagascar. It is the first hydrothermal field discovered in the Indian Ocean and the first of the series of known vents along the Central Indian Ridge.
Alvinocaris alexander is a species of hydrothermal vent shrimp in the family Alvinocarididae, and was first described in 2009 by Shane Ahyong, from specimens found off the Kermadec Islands. A. alexander closely resembles A. williamsi from the Menez Gwen site on the mid-Atlantic ridge.
