The deep sea is still one of the few areas on the planet that has been barely explored. Many new species and geological features have been found that have led us to rethink life as we know it.
Hydrothermal vents with their superheated water would be the last place one would think life could be found. Extremophiles including bacteria such as Thermococcus litoralis have been found living in hydrothermal vents and have yielded thermostable enzymes such as DNA polymerases essential to modern molecular biological techniques.
The photo at the top left of this page shows a black smoker (courtesy of NOAA). These are formed where superheated water with high amounts of dissolved minerals are vented through “chimneys”. These rock stacks grow over time as the minerals drop out of solution when the superheated water meets the cold seawater.
Light cannot penetrate beyond about 3000 feet therefore many deep sea animals live completely without light. Many deep sea creatures are bio-luminescent and have feeding strategies adapted to this extreme environment. Often their appearance is quite strange due to adaptations to the low temperatures, high pressure, lack of light and scarcity of food.
Come explore this strange and wonderful environment with us.
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