Sylvan will be in Alvin for some of the 16 dives that the submersible will make during the 30-day expedition. Understanding these processes will add to scientists’ knowledge of hydrothermal vents and the biology and chemistry of the deep ocean. This research project will examine how microbial communities and geological conditions change when a vent changes from active to inactive. Scientists have found that the microbes living on inactive vents are very different from microbes dwelling near active vents, but they don’t yet know if that transition occurs quickly or over many years, Sylvan said. And, sophomore environmental geosciences major Mia Self will be responsible for analyzing microbial exoenzymes. Oceanography graduate student Charles Holmes II will be conducting sulfide microbiology research and processing rock samples for later analysis at Texas A&M. “That data tells us how much carbon is made and how much is eaten up in an environment,” Sylvan said. ![]() Oceanography postdoctoral research associate Amanda Achberger will be conducting radiotracer assays, or radioactive bioassays, on the expedition to determine microbial rates of primary production and heterotrophic production. Kate Campbell, a graduate student at Texas A&M Galveston, will be on the cruise. Two Texas A&M students, a Texas A&M Galveston student, and a Texas A&M postdoctoral researcher will also be on board the ship as part of the science team. “Therefore, it is important to gain a deep understanding of their ecology, so that informed decisions can be made if seafloor mining does become a reality.” Student research experience in the Pacific “In addition, these inactive vents are potential targets for deep-sea mining for precious metals,” Sylvan said. These vents are potentially important ecosystems in the deep sea because although hydrothermal fluids no longer flow out of such vents, “they can last for tens of thousands of years, and therefore may contribute to deep-sea chemistry and biology,” he said. ![]() In recent years, scientists have been studying hydrothermal vents that become inactive after venting ceases. Brandy Toner, associate professor in the Department of Soil, Water, and Climate at the University of Minnesota, are co-leaders of the expedition. Tivey, vice president for academic programs and dean of administration at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), and Dr. “There’s so much we still don’t know about hydrothermal vents, which have only been studied for about 40 years.”ĭr. “We call this research project Hot2Cold Vents, and it is an interdisciplinary effort to understand the microbial communities that make up hydrothermal vent ecosystems, with a focus on what happens after active vents cease venting,” Sylvan said. BBC-One’s Blue Planet Live program will air footage from the R/V Atlantis on March 27 and March 28, and that footage will be available online. The science team will study vents on the East Pacific Rise using Alvin, a three-person human occupied vehicle (HOV) submarine.īBC-One will also be on board and broadcasting live from the first leg of the expedition. ![]() The expedition aboard the R/V Atlantis leaves San Francisco March 25 with a group of 16 scientists, and returns to San Diego April 24. Sylvan, assistant professor in the Department of Oceanography in the College of Geosciences at Texas A&M University. To get those answers, an expedition funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) is sailing next week, led by cruise Chief Scientist Dr. Today oceanographers are still working to understand the ecosystems around live and inactive vents, and the implications for deep-ocean science and ocean exploration policy. Visually magnificent and biologically significant, ocean-floor hydrothermal vents were completely unknown to scientists until 1977. Chris Linder/Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
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