Dr. Monika Bright and International Team Discover a New Dimension to Hydrothermal Vents
Dr. Monika Bright had a singular goal when she stepped onto the massive aft deck of R/V Falkor (too)—find evidence that giant tubeworm larvae travel beneath the seafloor to colonize new vent fields. Armed with a sampling system she referred to as the “Mesh Box Staining Gadget” and an international team from Austria, the US, Germany, France, Costa Rica, the Netherlands, and Slovenia, Monika felt prepared to begin her quest to answer the question that had been nagging her for a decade. She was not expecting to find an entirely new subseafloor ecosystem. Read more here.
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Upcoming Expeditions - The Galápagos and Beyond
This fall, R/V Falkor (too) will continue research in the Galápagos Islands in collaboration with The Galápagos National Park, the Charles Darwin Foundation, and the local navy, INOCAR. From mid-September until late October, Dr. Katleen Robert from Memorial University, Canada, and her team will conduct research on vertical cliffside reefs surrounding the islands. In late October and throughout November, Dr. John Jamieson, also from Memorial University, will lead an investigation on the application of InSAS as a potentially revolutionary tool for surveying the seafloor. Read more here.
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Photo credit: Stuart Banks / Charles Darwin Foundation
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Ocean Rising is an initiative developed by SOI and Nekton to deepen people’s relationship with the Ocean by galvanizing connections and tangible outcomes within significant sections of global culture from the arts, fashion, sport, music, gaming, film, literature, and food, amongst others. Ocean Rising is currently focused on music and fashion, resulting in several exciting collaborations, including bringing fashion designers onboard R/V Falkor (too) and inspiring an ocean-themed collection by designer Jenny Packham. Read more here.
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Exploring the Ocean with Creative Commons: Sharing Data, Images, and Footage
SOI has now applied the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) License for non-commercial use to provide open and easier accessibility to the data collected on the vessel, including footage of deep-sea creatures and underwater landscapes. This initiative promotes collaboration, education, transparency, and accessibility in Ocean research and encourages everyone to explore the depths and discover the wonders of the Ocean. Read more here.
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Open-Source Publications
Geography, not lifestyle, explains the population structure of free-living and host-associated deep-sea hydrothermal vent snail symbionts - Hauer, M., Breusing, C., Termbath-Reichert, E., Huber, J., and Beinart, R., May 2023
The analyses in this paper determined that snail populations in the Mariana Back-Arc are differentiated by vent field geography rather than snail lifestyle. Although the snail populations differ at two separate hydrothermal vent fields, the scientists determined that the free-living and host-associated symbionts of the deep-sea snails are populations of a single species. The data to draw on this conclusion came from examining the population structure of deep-sea snail species collected with R/V Falkor in 2016 during the Searching for Life in the Mariana Back-Arc expedition.
Levels of autotrophy and heterotrophy in mesophotic corals near the end photic zone - Carmignani, A., Radice, V., McMahon, K., Holman, A., Miller, K., Grice, K., and Richards, Z., May 2023
This paper provides new insight into the trophic ecophysiology of five species of scleractinian (stony) coral collected in the mesophotic zone from Ashmore Reef, Australia, on board R/V Falkor in 2021. The researchers used stable isotope analysis of host and symbiont tissues and protein concentrations to determine the physiological characteristics of the corals. The team then analyzed trophic strategies between coral species, showing species-specific differences in utilizing available light. The research was led by Amy Carmigiani, an Honours student from Curtin University, during the Australian Mesophotic Coral Examination expedition.
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Deep Sea Dive from a Desk Uncovers Three New Species, 2023-06-16 - An article from Phys.Org on three new species of carnivorous sponges described by Dr. Merrick Ekins of the Queensland Museum, who virtually participated in the “Seamounts, Canyons & Reefs of the Coral Sea” expedition.
Rare Octopus Discovery Made 2 Miles Below the Ocean Surface, 2023-06-30 - CNN was one of many news outlets to cover the findings of June’s Octopus Odyssey expeditions. A comprehensive list of articles can be found on the expedition webpage.
Rare Deep Sea Creature with ‘Truly Alien Form’ Spotted Right after Eating, Video Shows, 2023-07-05 - An article from The Miami Herald on ROV SuBastian’s encounter with a gulper eel.
Hallan en Costa Rica una Peculiar Eclosión de Bebés Pulpos de Aguas Profundas, 2023-07-10 - Discoveries from Octopus Odyssey were reported in numerous Spanish-language newspapers, including El Mundo, the second-largest digital newspaper in Spanish.
Under a Hellish Ocean Habitat, Bizarre Animals Are Lurking, 2023-08-08 - A piece in The New York Times on the discovery of a new ecosystem below hydrothermal vents during The Underworld of Hydrothermal Vents expedition.
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- Recipes from the Galley—Enjoy this delectable and adaptable muffin recipe from Chef Peter Goeppel.
- SOI Spotify Playlist—Welcome back to school time with this Ocean-inspired Playlist for Kids. Enjoy fun and educational music by Raffi, Mike Bennet, and The Banana Slug String Band.
- SOI Zoom Backgrounds/Wallpaper—Transport your colleagues and friends to the deep sea with these backgrounds for video calls. Ignite curiosity and excitement by spotlighting imagery from some of SOI's latest research. All are labeled with the expedition hashtag for easy social media searching if you (or your audience) are inspired to go into depth to learn more about the science and technology used to boldly explore our unknown Ocean.
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