Posted on 08/04/2008 5:58:31 PM PDT by krb
Aug. 4, 2008 -- Jets of searingly hot water spewing up from the ocean floor have been discovered in a far-northern zone of the Arctic Ocean, Swiss-based scientists announced Monday.
The so-called "black smokers" were found 73 degrees north, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between Greenland and Norway, in the coldest waters yet for a phenomenon first observed around the Galagapos islands in 1977.
The earth's plumbing system of hydrothermal vents contain their own, unique ecosystems given the absence of sunlight at depths, in this case, of 7,874 feet, with vinegar-like water attaining temperatures of up to 752 degrees Fahrenheit.
A team from Norway's University of Bergen and the Lausanne-based Swiss Federal Institute of Technology found the vents on an expedition in June, with the results published on the Swiss polytechnic's Web site.
These geo-thermal currents are found on undersea, geologically active "mountain ranges" -- formed from mighty tectonic plates that push into each other and create spines along the ocean floor.
Hydrothermal vents have been called "black smokers" for the bilious clouds of material emitted from their chimneys.
Scientists are discovering new weird, resilient microbial life forms that live in these clusters, feeding off flecks of gold and other minerals from Earth's interior.
Bump.
What’s Obama doing there?
Undersea smokers? I wonder how they keep ‘em lit? ;’)
Scientists Break Record By Finding Northernmost Hydrothermal Vent Field
ScienceDaily | 24 July 2008
Posted on 07/24/2008 10:51:43 PM PDT by zeestephen
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Good catch. Pity they slept through Geology 101.
Thanks for the ping!
I glanced at the list and noticed a thread on the crusades. This was of interest to me because of a character of mine in a book I’ve been revising in hopes of publication. Gervais’ past (before the story takes place) had him being a French knight who was planning to be what we would call an early responder to the call for Milites Christi (sp? ... been a while since I checked) well before 1095.
You’re most welcome.
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